Universal Music Enterprises has announced the launch of a new imprint and cross-platform initiative, Urban Legends.

The strategy includes highlighting over three decades of urban catalog, to celebrate the revolutionary and defining recordings of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Under the Urban Legends banner, rare and unreleased albums, singles, remixes, photos and video footage will be reissued from UMG-affiliated labels, as well as reissuing classic albums as deluxe vinyl box sets.

But at its core, Urban Legends will serve as an editorial content site and ecommerce platform, delivering daily news, editorial features and video updates on hip hop and R&B artists within the UMG ecosystem.

Andre Torres, VP Urban Catalog at UMe said, “For the first time, we’re putting a spotlight on the artists that shaped and defined what we know today as urban music. I’m thrilled to give fans a place that celebrates their heroes – artists whose music changed the landscape of our industry. These artists continue to influence, impact, define and redefine culture around the world as well as providing their distinctive stamp on today’s most important artists. Urban Legends will be a resource for fans to revisit music of decades past both in nostalgia and discovery – giving new generations insight into the roots of the music they love today.”

Said UMe boss Bruce Resnikoff: “We want to ensure that we are constantly evolving and offering fans new ways to discover, and sometimes rediscover, the foundations of classic music in an engaging way. We hope this new platform will give fans a new way to connect, discover and contextualize music.”