Which record label was founded by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson?

Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson founded Dischord Records. The Washington, D.C., label began in 1980 as a do-it-yourself project intended to release Minor Disturbance, an EP by their band the Teen Idles.

MacKaye and Nelson handled much of the early work themselves, including assembling and packaging records. They ran the label from Dischord House and focused on documenting the local D.C. punk and hardcore community. The label’s roster later included Minor Threat, Government Issue, Faith, Void, Rites of Spring, Fugazi, and many other influential groups.

Dischord became known for inexpensive releases, artist-friendly principles, and a commitment to the local scene rather than mainstream music-industry methods. Alternative Tentacles, Epitaph Records, and SST Records were also major independent punk labels, but they were founded by different figures. The label’s name is therefore the single canonical answer to this question.