Sovereign Hill Records Has Arrived

Build it and they will come. It’s a line from the 1989 Kevin Costner film Field of Dreams, but for Marco Selorio, it has been a decade-in-the-making for the charismatic Hip Hop impresario. 

 Sovereign Hill Records was hatched by Selorio early last year and registered in November 2016. It’s been a long time coming, but now it’s full steam ahead for the fledgling Sydney-based record label and talent agency.  

The concept came along in 2006, when the young entrepreneur organized his second Urbanstar Talent Quest. Dreams of building a new home for a wave of fresh, young talent were in the pipeline. Selorio at the time discovered some raw but dazzling performers, including rappers Natz Blazin, MC Tuppz and Regal, who would later on become Iggy Azalea. The idea came to a crushing halt when other parties got involved, and Selorio walked away.  

Over the next decade, Selorio’s events business grew rapidly. Hip Hop dance competitions, more talent quests, basketball tours. But new talents kept coming and going, including the likes of William Singe, Jai Waetford, TKay Maidza, Ylona Garcia, Sarah Ellen and Cyrus Villanueva. It was evident that Selorio and his team kept striking gold but failed to provide a home.    

“Young talents need a good place that can help them with their artistry, unlock their full potential and serve their best interests. It took me a long time to put the right team together. That’s why I felt now was the right time to create our own record label. Now or never.”  

The Sovereign Hill name was derived from a museum in Ballarat, Victoria, depicting the town’s glorious decade after the discovery of gold in 1851.    

“In many ways, Sovereign Hill Records is a place where we hope to discover hidden gems and develop future stars. This is a home not just for musicians, but dance artists and social media personalities too,” said Selorio.  

The first batch that signed on to Sovereign Hill Records is already pushing the envelope.

 Miss Powers, Naisa and Jayd Luna recently starred on the X Factor; Australian Beatbox champion and AGT grand finalist Genesis Beatbox is embarking on a three-month musical production. Calvin Orosa, another X Factor star, will soon be touring with YouTube sensation Gabe Bondoc to the Philippines.

 Reigning three-time WSB champions FMD Xtreme is the very first Philippine Hip Hop dance crew to ink with a record label.

 With an eye for extraordinary talent, Selorio, along with his creative team Maribelle Salinas, Blessie Pica, Michelle Lee and Stauro Punongbayan, hope to unearth more gold nuggets and push them to greater heights in the future.

 International tours are being planned for May, August and December, new music and videos will be recorded at the newly decked home studio and the talent agency arm is now accepting bookings.  A new office will soon be opened in Manila to cater for the South East Asian market.   

 “We have some super talented artists who can entertain and bring the crowd to their feet. Some of our acts are online content creators while others are singer-songwriters. I believe it’s only a matter of time before our team appears on the ARIA Charts, and maybe Billboard in the USA. I believe Sovereign Hill Records will surprise the entertainment industry and give music fans and Internet audience a fresh option,” said Selorio.

 Sovereign Hill Records are now open for business, and Selorio couldn’t be happier.