FALL-WINTER 2026 CONTEST
Enter to win this fabulous prize package from Little Village Records!
YOU CAN WIN:
5 CDs from Little Village Records
HARRELL DAVENPORT -- Young Rell
SEAN "MACK" McDONALD -- Have Mercy!
TIA CARROLL -- You Gotta Have It
CANDICE IVORY -- When The Levee Breaks, The Music of Memphis Minnie
KYLE ROWLAND -- Not Holding Back!
The Little Village Records Story
Our Mission
Little Village Records, based in Northern and Southern California, is a 501c3 nonprofit record company that seeks to shine the light of awareness on musicians who might not otherwise be heard and in doing so further the belief that a life filled with diverse music builds empathy, making for stronger communities and a better world.
Founded in 2014 by veteran keyboardist Jim Pugh (Taj Mahal, Phantom Blues Band, Robert Cray Band, Etta James & more) his work with legendary blues artists and top selling rock musicians has earned him multiple Grammy Awards, platinum and gold records. After 40 years in the music industry, the idea for Little Village came to Pugh after taking a step back and pondering what meant most to him.
Little Village combines everything I love – music, diversity, and helping people. --- Jim Pugh
Slowly, the idea for a nonprofit record label that encompassed those values was pieced together, and Little Village began operations in 2014. With some help, Pugh searches out, discovers, records, and produces music that otherwise would not be heard beyond the artist’s family and community. It’s our intention to support the dreams of artists from nontraditional backgrounds, who are working in genres with deep roots in American culture. We pride ourselves on our diverse artist roster and variety of music genres represented by the label including mariachi, folk, blues, gospel, rock, spoken word, roots, soul, and more. All proceeds from CD sales return to the artists, who also own all their intellectual property, unlike a traditional record label. Production costs, musicians, studio time, promotion, and manufacturing are completely covered by Little Village. Our work is made possible with donations from people like you.
Check out this insightful interview with LVF founder Jim Pugh at Sound and Soul
“Little Village has never actually sold one CD because we don’t own any of the CDs. I give them the CDS – and the downloads -- in any format. It’s all owned by the artists. It’s not by the record label. I don’t pay them. They get it first. I’ve never seen a check for a sale of a CD. It makes sense. In a way, I try to find likeminded people who are in a position to, rather than giving to the symphony or the opera, they’d like to give it to Mike Duke or the Sons of the Soul Revivers and help them. A relatively small amount of money goes a long way in improving the quality. I’m not out to make rock stars. I don’t know how to do that. I never have known how to do that. But helping people a little bit? This does that. So it’s not quite that insane (laughs)! It really isn’t!”
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Winner will be chosen in late December 2026 and notified by email
