Big Dada's first release was Alpha Prhyme's 12-inch single
Misanthropic, a collaboration between
Luke Vibert and
Juice Aleem in 1997. Over the following years, the label has released over one hundred and fifty records and garnered considerable critical acclaim, being described by
Observer Music Monthly as "the very best underground hip hop label". In 2007, Big Dada released the compilation
Well Deep to celebrate their tenth anniversary.
NME said the label was "not only a platform for the British urban underground but also attracts some of the most progressive wordsmiths and beat-scientists in the whole world... Big Dada are still pushing things forward." As the quote suggests, Big Dada is not exclusively a label for British acts. Their roster has also featured contributions from American hip hop artists including
Bigg Jus,
Busdriver, and
Mike Ladd, as well as
French hip hop group
TTC. They also released debut albums by both
Diplo and
Spank Rock, as well as the comeback album from grime legend
Wiley, who was so pleased with the record deal they offered that he recorded "50/50" in tribute. On 8 September 2009,
Speech Debelle won the 2009
Barclaycard Mercury Prize for her debut album
Speech Therapy produced by
Wayne Lotek. It is the label's third nomination, after
Roots Manuva's
Run Come Save Me in 2002 and
Ty's
Upwards in 2003. On 30 October 2014,
Young Fathers won the 2014
Barclaycard Mercury Prize for their debut album
Dead. It was the label's joint fourth nomination alongside
Everybody Down by
Kae Tempest and second Mercury Prize winning album. Roots Manuva, one of the label's best-known artists, signed a new deal with the label in 2011. In the 2007 documentary for the label
Well Deep, he said, "It's been a lovely relationship over the years... Big Dada's unique and it will always be unique because it's a philosophy, y'know? It's unique because it dares to stick its neck out and it's run by people who genuinely love music. It's not just a record label, it's a movement." In 2021 Big Dada relaunched "as a label run by Black, POC & Minority Ethnic people for Black, POC & Minority Ethnic artists." ==Roster (current)==