Roadrunner Records drives the collision of culture and heavy music. Founded in 1980, the company launched in Europe as an independent importer of American metal albums. Planting roots in New York City during 1986, it emerged as the preeminent label for homegrown heavy metal. Throughout the eighties and nineties, the independent label ignited the careers of influential alumni, including King Diamond, Machine Head, Sepultura, and Type O Negative. Achieving number one albums, GRAMMY® Awards, and multiplatinum success, Roadrunner Records carries on a tradition of mainstream infiltration with a current class comprised of Empire State Bastard, Highly Suspect, Gojira, Motionless In White Static Dress, Slipknot, Theory, Trivium, Turnstile and more. As a subsidiary of Elektra Music Group since 2018, Roadrunner Records continues four decades of excellence in heavy metal, hard rock, and rock, remaining a lifestyle as much as it is a label.