Bronze Records Los Angeles 1939 Crewneck Sweatshirt

Leroy Hurte was a musician, recording engineer, musician, educator, and promoter of African-American culture. He learned the business of manufacturing records while working at Allied Record Manufacturing in Hollywood in the 1930s. In 1939, Hurte opened the Flash Record Store at 623 East Vernon Ave, where he established Bronze Records, one of the first independently owned record labels to record African-American artists. Hurte is credited with having the first self-contained R&B recording and 78 RPM record manufacturing facility inside his record store, and as a result of his tenacity, recorded many artists that otherwise may have never been heard, let alone pressed to vinyl. All told, Hurte recorded more than 100 78's by the '50s.