About
Hi, I’m Jay Banwell
Nice to meet you! A long time ago I discovered this problem: there are thousands of independent musicians that never get a chance to showcase their talent on a song and be heard by the public. Why do I care ? The reason is two-fold; musicians lose and people like you and I, who enjoy great music lose.
Our Mission: Royal 62 Records LLC is committed to supporting you and the independent musician by making great music and merchandise through exclusive products distributed worldwide.
So, here’s my story: Several years ago, and as a young musician, I realized I did not like record companies, more specifically, big record companies. Why would l waste my time sending a demo tape to a record company who will probably not even listen to it. I had friends then and have friends now who are giddy about getting a record deal. What is good about a record deal? In my opinion, not much. I say this because I know a lot, a whole lot, of musicians, some well-known, some not, who have suffered immensely at the hands of record companies. The treatment received after signing a contract can be brutal. Many musicians and bands make barely enough money to survive, subject to a meager per diem while being mandated to go on a tour. Many musicians have worked under producers and executives that put limits on their ability to be creative; basically, these musicians have been put in a box and are told things like: “this is how you need to sound” and “we need more songs like that one.” Many artists have really had to go through a struggle just to release records; Aimee Mann, John Fogerty and several others come to mind.
During college and while playing in rock and roll bands, I quickly figured out that I did not want to do music for a living. In the late 1980s, I opted to join the Army Reserves. I was very fortunate to enjoy a career in active service in the Army National Guard in the intelligence field spanning over several years until retiring in 2019. During most of my active service, I had my guitars and basses in mothballs and did not play, but in 2010, that ended, and I soon started making recordings in my basement and mainly on my own with the help of a few musicians. I soon discovered there were actually a lot of independent musicians wanting to work. I started Purple Look Play in 2015 and Band Well in 2019; two studio groups capable of receiving contributions from a large number of independent musicians.
Purple Look Play releases include: The Mating Dance (2016), At My Place (2017) and Boom (2021)
Band Well released Bill’s Saloon in 2020 and will release War Stories in 2022.
To put it simply, I write the songs, play some of the parts and hire additional musicians to help do the rest. Fast forward to today, and we now have Royal 62 Records LLC. Since there are so many things that I don’t like about record companies, I decided I’d start my own and do it the right way. That means that musicians know upfront what they are getting into when they play on a song. It also means they get paid on time. Our support personnel are treated fairly. This also means that you, the customer, who supports us, is a part of our family and treated with the utmost respect.
Authority: Royal 62 Records LLC was formed under the laws of the State of Nebraska on April 11th, 2021 and must adhere to the Nebraska Uniform Limited Liability Company Act and any additional applicable laws.
Royal 62 Records LLC has business relationships with several organizations including DISTROKID, Spotify, Shopify, Studio Pros, Airgigs, Carbonite, Sweetwater, Dietz Music Company, S.A.S. Productions, Fuse Recording, Pinnacle Bank and Rediger & Company CPAs.
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