Cartel Music
Nigerian record label and imprint founded by artist Tekno in 2019, now a joint venture with Mr Eazi's emPawa Africa.
- Based in
- Lagos, Nigeria
- Founded
- 2019
- Founder
- Augustine Miles Kelechi Okechukwu (Tekno)
Cartel Music (also styled Cartel Entertainment) is the Nigerian record label and imprint of the artist and producer Tekno, born Augustine Miles Kelechi Okechukwu. He set it up in January 2019 after leaving Ubi Franklin’s Triple MG Family, having previously been signed to K-Money Entertainment and Made Men Music Group.
Cartel released Tekno’s own catalogue through a distribution and licensing deal with Universal Music and Island Records from 2019 through his 2020 album Old Romance, then continued as his releasing imprint through 2022’s Mufasa. Since May 2024 it has operated as one side of a joint venture with Mr Eazi’s emPawa Africa, with Tekno taking a shareholding in emPawa Africa and new releases going out through that arrangement. Mr Eazi described the structure as a first of its kind for Afrobeats, joint ventures between African-owned music companies being uncommon.
Ownership sits with Tekno. No Nigerian Corporate Affairs Commission or UK Companies House filing was located under either name, so this entry describes the imprint as reported in trade press and phonogram credits rather than as a confirmed registered legal entity. It has no website of its own; note that 1020cartel.com in South Africa and elcartelmusic.fr in France are unrelated labels sharing the name.
