Be With Records is a British record label from London, founded in 2014 by Rob Butler.

In 2012, Butler had already made the decision to establish the label, however he wanted to do everything right from the very beginning, so he immersed himself for two years in the business-admin jungle, not only to prepare himself economically, but rather also for legal questions. By which, nowadays he has all sorts of things to do with, since Be With specialises in licensed re-issues of records, which have previously not appeared on vinyl, or have been out of stock for a long time. At the start, there was a record from Butler’s year of birth, for which the hard work promptly paid out. The reprint of Leon Ware’s 1982 self-titled soul-classic album was a fast sell out. Reason enough for Butler, to quit his bread-and-butter job and to take his luck into his own hands; supported by his actively, involved circle of friends. The decision making power is up to him. »I only want to publish records, which I would like to own myself on vinyl«, says the DJ and former record shop worker determinedly. So that explains the colourful mixture in the rapidly growing catalogue of Be With. Butler thinks that he has found a particular niche with his label, which other re-issue labels have not paid close enough attention to. The wish list of releases is still long, admits the self-declared »boring vinyl nerd«.

So what does Be With exactly amount to musically? What do the likes of The Streets, Kylie Minogue, the Haiiwan singer Nohelani Cypriano and the US-American Fusion-Rock band Air (not to be mixed up with the French duo) have in common? »For me it is all Soul music, even the trendy stuff«, Butler answers. »The driving force behind Be With is, that record lovers need their favourite albums and singles on vinyl. It is more a question of format than genre, the direction is indicated by the artists.« After a short time, Butler exaggerated this idea, and also published releases, through Be With, of the Swedish Dream-Pop band Korallreven, whose last single as well as a special remix-EP marks the long farewell of the band. Otherwise, the releases would have been only available digitally. Not the only case, in which there was also a personal relationship with the artists who are not usually involved in the re-issue process. Thanks to his work, he could got to know his hero Leon Ware. »He was very touched by our vision and offered to get us in touch with other soul legends!« the label’s operator recalls. The nice side of lengthy, legal, laborious processes. It’s a good job, that Butler had prepared intensively a long time before the founding of Be With, and can now enjoy the fruits of his labour.