About Chrysalis Records

Founded in 1968 by Chris Wright and Terry Ellis, Chrysalis Records quickly established itself as one of the defining independent labels of its generation. The name was a blend of the founders’ own, CHRis and ellIS, paired with the image of the butterfly’s pupal stage. The transformation it suggested was never passive. From the very first record, Chrysalis backed its instincts with conviction.

The earliest years were built around Ten Years After and a growing roster that helped forge a new model for what an independent music company could be in Britain. By the mid-1970s, that roster had expanded to take in the full sweep of the era: UFO and Steeleye Span among them. When punk arrived, Chrysalis moved with it, signing Generation X, then striking a landmark deal with The Specials that brought much of the 2 Tone movement into its orbit, with The Selecter following close behind. It was a remarkable period — the label wasn’t chasing trends, it was helping to define them.

The early 1980s marked a major commercial peak. Ultravox’s “Vienna” became one of the defining singles of the decade, and the label’s commitment to artists such as Everything But The Girl, The Waterboys, and Sinéad O’Connor – whose I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got sold over seven million copies worldwide and included the era-defining “Nothing Compares 2 U” – placed Chrysalis at the centre of some of the most enduring records in British music history.

After passing through major-label ownership, Chrysalis Records was reacquired in 2016 by Jeremy Lascelles and Robin Millar CBE through Blue Raincoat Music, with founder Chris Wright returning as non-executive chairman. On 26 February 2020, the label returned as a frontline label for the first time in over two decades.

Today, Chrysalis operates as a UK-based but globally active independent label, with international reach across both its contemporary roster and its historic catalogue. Since its relaunch, it has continued to shape its next era through a growing roster of contemporary artists, including Emeli Sandé, Ben Harper, Marika Hackman, Laura Marling, The Wandering Hearts, Gia Ford, and Liz Lawrence, reflecting the same instinct for distinctive, era-defining music that has defined the label throughout its history.

The catalogue now spans more than 20,000 recordings across five decades of era-defining music. The same values that shaped Chrysalis in 1968 continue to guide every release today.