About

Anticon (styled as anticon.) is a San Francisco Bay Area independent record label founded in 1997. It is collectively owned among seven founding artists and one manager. The musicians signed to Anticon are referred to as the Anticon Collective.
The label's roster of artists has been described as "the hip-hop equivalent of post-rock," and "avant-garde hip-hop", also called "avanthop".
Releases feature material created by its members, affiliates, and extended musical family. Although Anticon cohered originally within alternative hip hop circles, Anticon's founders have become only tangentially related to hip-hop music, and the label has in recent years begun releasing music in the indie rock and electronica genres. Artists signed to Anticon are based on the west coast, the east coast, the midwest, and Canada, and the label has recently signed artists in the UK.
The artists within the collective have been known to perform and release music in solo and group form. Artists on the label are known for frequent collaboration, both within and outside of their own collective. However, the Anticon collective has over time evolved into a group of separate artists who, despite sharing a similar progressive and often challenging indie quality, explore different styles of music including electronica and rock. Many of the artists on Anticon are signed to multiple labels, and some have their own small, independent labels through which they have self-released material.
Anticon has also organized art exhibitions featuring visual art by several of the artists on the label.
On February 9, 2010, founder and fellow rapper Tim "Sole" Holland left Anticon exclaiming that it is time to try and push forward and find new opportunities. Holland does leave assurance that this is a progressive decision and has nothing to do with his love for Anticon. "There are no ill feelings between myself and members of anticon. I will continue to work with many of the artists and will always love them as brothers and consider them allies."

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