3rd Rail Records is an independent record label based in Detroit, Michigan. Originating in a dormitory room at Michigan State University, 3rd Rail Records began 3rd Rail Records began its trek in April of 1996. As a college student with a love for music and mixing, then 21 year old Joseph Littleton envisioned a means of getting the music to the masses. Some pieces of the plan were unorthodox, but the main goal was to be self-contained, providing beats, rhymes, songs, production, and even distribution. It was a very distant dream, living off of a college student's budget, making beats with a drum machine and an old 4 track.

The record label's first release was in 1997, by a group called 3 Different Stylz. The group consisted of C.E.L., Arch Bishop and Detroit Red, all 3 being solo artists in their own right, focused on one unified effort. The EP "What Good Is An M.C. If He Can't Flow?!?" drew large attention over the college campus, but more attention came from knowing there was a record label on campus doing good business. 3rd Rail Records became the focal point of quality music in the area, grooming artists for showcases and producing the music behind the top performers. This made finding talent very easy to do. Less than 2 years from its creation, 3rd Rail Records released 4 Hip-Hop albums and a Modern Jazz album, selling over 10,000 units in total. Realizing that being a genre driven label can have its drawbacks, CEO Joseph Littleton moved to Detroit after college to expand his venture.

Fast forward 10 years later, 3rd Rail Records has established itself in respectable circles throughout the country. From the success of the latest compilation release "3rd Rail Records presents The Affiliates", this independent label has gotten the attention of other labels, music publishers and independent film makers.

3rd Rail Records has a simple goal: provide quality music from quality artists.

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