Giant Step Records

Template:Infobox record label

Giant Step Records is an American independent record label based in New York City. Founded in 1995 by Maurice Bernstein and Jonathan Rudnick as an imprint of MCA Records' jazz division GRP Records, it grew out of the influential underground club night and events brand of the same name. The label became known for championing the careers of artists working at the intersection of jazz, soul, hip hop, and electronic music, and played a significant role in shaping the neo soul and acid jazz movements of the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2000, Giant Step launched a fully independent label after parting ways with major-label corporate structures.

Background and origins

Giant Step traces its roots to 1990, when British promoter Maurice Bernstein and his South African partner Jonathan Rudnick began staging live music events in New York City under the name Groove Academy, with the slogan "Dedicated to the Preservation of Funk." Unable to secure traditional bank financing, the pair borrowed startup funds to book acts and venues. Their early concerts featured funk and soul legends including Maceo Parker, Isaac Hayes, The Ohio Players, and George Clinton, rediscovering artists whose records were being widely sampled but who were rarely presented in a live setting.

The events evolved into a weekly club night renamed Giant Step, inspired by John Coltrane's landmark album Giant Steps. The new format distinguished itself by blending live jazz with hip hop, offering a stage where visiting rappers and jazz musicians improvised over prerecorded hip-hop and funk alongside the regular Giant Step house band. The party was heavily influenced by the acid jazz club scene developing concurrently in England, particularly Gilles Peterson's Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Something nights.

The Giant Step club night originally took place at SOB's in Manhattan before moving through a succession of venues including Metropolis Café, Supper Club, Shine, New Music Café, and The Village Gate. Weekly events ran until 2002, when the party was discontinued; it was later revived at the Hudson Hotel. At its peak, Giant Step events expanded to Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

Early career launches

The Giant Step club night became a celebrated launching pad for artists who would go on to international recognition. Among those who debuted or gained early exposure through Giant Step events were:

The club's fusion of genres and commitment to live instrumentation helped foster what would later be recognized as the neo soul and alternative hip hop movements.

Artist management (early 1990s)

As the club events expanded in the mid-1990s, Bernstein and Rudnick moved into artist management. They signed and secured Warner Brothers record deals for:

Dana Bryant – New York poet and spoken-word artist
Repercussions – described at the time as "America's answer to The Brand New Heavies"
Groove Collective – a New York jazz-meets-dance collective whose sound grew organically from the Giant Step club band

Giant Step also secured a deal with Geffen Records for the UK act Raw Stylus. During this period, Giant Step collaborated with producer Gary Katz — best known for his work with Steely Dan — to help produce albums for Groove Collective, Repercussions, and Raw Stylus.

Giant Step Records as an imprint (1995)

In 1995, legendary jazz record producer Tommy LiPuma took over GRP Records at MCA Records and invited Giant Step to establish itself as an imprint label within the GRP/Impulse family. The first act signed to the label under this arrangement was Groove Collective.

The imprint gave Giant Step greater access to major-label resources while retaining its curatorial identity, allowing it to sign and develop artists that reflected the label's ethos of soulful, genre-crossing music.

Nuyorican Soul (1997)

In early 1997, Giant Step achieved widespread critical acclaim through its collaboration with Nuyorican Soul and a transatlantic partnership with Gilles Peterson's UK label Talking Loud. Nuyorican Soul was a studio project led by Latin house DJs "Little" Louie Vega and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez, collectively known as Masters at Work.

Unlike much contemporary dance music of the era, Nuyorican Soul was built around performances by real musicians rather than sampled or synthesized sounds. Contributors to the project included:

Three singles from the debut Nuyorican Soul album reached the top of the Billboard charts: "Runaway", "You Can Do It (Baby)", and "I Am The Black Gold of the Sun." The album sold over 50,000 units within months of its release.

Move to Epic Records

The success of the Nuyorican Soul campaign attracted the attention of Epic Records, which approached Bernstein and Rudnick with a partnership offer. Crucially, Epic was primarily interested in Giant Step's capabilities as a music marketing operation rather than its label roster. The company was offered a retainer arrangement in which the record label became a secondary priority.

Giant Step's first major project under this arrangement was the launch of singer Macy Gray, followed by Jill Scott and the re-launch of Sade. The promotion of Macy Gray — placing her music in cafés, clubs, and restaurants — was cited by Epic Records VP of A&R Rose Noone as reaching listeners in unexpected ways. Giant Step went on to assist Def Jam Records in breaking Musiq Soulchild, whose debut album sold 55,000 copies in its first week.

Independent label (2000)

Frustrated with the constraints of corporate imprint deals — particularly the repeated refusal to approve signings such as India.Arie and Donnie — Bernstein and Rudnick relaunched Giant Step Records as a fully independent label in 2000. The independent label released music on 12" vinyl aligned with the sonic identity of the weekly club night, championing artists such as:

In 2001, Jonathan Rudnick departed the company to pursue other interests, leaving Bernstein as the driving force behind the Giant Step brand.

Legacy and later activities

Giant Step's influence on American popular music in the 1990s is widely acknowledged. The label and club brand played a formative role in bringing acid jazz, neo soul, and Latin house to mainstream audiences in the United States, and served as a critical bridge between underground club culture and commercial recognition for a generation of artists.

The broader Giant Step company evolved into a music media and marketing agency, operating two primary divisions:

Giant Step – the events and music promotion brand
Giant Step Marketing – a creative agency providing marketing services to consumer brands

Giant Step Marketing went on to work with major record labels and brands beyond its original music focus, leveraging the cultural credibility built during the club's heyday.

Discography (selected)

Year	Artist	Title	Notes
1995	Groove Collective	We the People	First GRP/Giant Step imprint release
1997	Nuyorican Soul	Nuyorican Soul	With Talking Loud; features George Benson, Tito Puente, Roy Ayers
2000	Various Artists	Giant Step presents...	Independent label launch releases
2001	India.Arie	Early singles	Championed prior to major-label signing
2001	Donnie	Early releases	Signed after corporate imprint declined the artist

References

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External links