16th Avenue Records was an American independent record label

Independent record label

An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...

 specializing in country music

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

, based in Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

. The label was founded in July 1986 by Jerry Bradley, who was then the head of Opryland Music Group and vice president of Opryland USA

Opryland USA

Opryland USA was an amusement park located in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally from 1972 until 1997...

, as well as the former head of RCA Records

RCA Records

RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...

' Nashville division. The label's first signee was Charley Pride

Charley Pride

Charley Frank Pride is an American country music singer. His smooth baritone voice was featured on thirty-nine number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. His greatest success came in the early- to mid-1970s, when he became the best-selling performer for RCA Records since Elvis...

, whose 1987 single "Have I Got Some Blues for You" was the label's first release.

Other artists who recorded for 16th Avenue included Vicki Bird, Canyon

Canyon (country music band)

Canyon was an American country music group composed of Steve Cooper , Johnny Boatright , Jay Brown , Randy Rigney and Keech Rainwater . Between 1988 and 1989, the band released two studio albums on 16th Avenue...

, Lane Caudell, John Conlee

John Conlee

John Conlee is an American country music singer. Between 1978 and 2004, Conlee charted a total of thirty-two singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts and recorded eleven studio albums...

, DeDe Higgins, Neal McCoy

Neal McCoy

Hubert Neal McGaughey, Jr. is an American country music singer of mixed Irish and Filipino descent. Known professionally as Neal McCoy, he has released ten studio albums on various labels, and has released 34 singles to country radio...

, Prairie Oyster

Prairie Oyster

Prairie Oyster is an award-winning Canadian country music group from Ontario. They were named Country Group or Duo of the year six times by both the Canadian Country Music Association and the Juno Awards. The band also won the Bud Country Fans' Choice Award from the CCMA in 1994...

, John Wesley Ryles

John Wesley Ryles

John Wesley Ryles is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1968 with the single "Kay", a Top Ten hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles charts, and the title track to his debut album for Columbia Records.Ryles later recorded one album, Reconsider Me, for the Plantation label,...

 and Randy VanWarmer

Randy VanWarmer

Randy VanWarmer was an American songwriter and guitarist. His biggest success was the pop hit, "Just When I Needed You Most". It reached #8 on the UK Singles Chart in September 1979 after peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #1 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart...

.