Vee-Jay Records

Vee-Jay was founded in Gary, Indian in 1953 by Vivian Carter and James C. Bracken, who used their first initials for the label's name. The first song they ever revorded made it in to the top ten of the national rhythm and blues charts. In a short time, Vee-Jay was the most successful black-owned record company in the U.S.A.; by 1963, they were charting records at a faster rate than some of the major labels. They were the first U.S. company to have the Beatles; in one month alone in early 1964, they sold 2.6 million Beatles singles, but two years later, the company was bankrupt.