Idle Mind Media is an independent underground label for artists who sit outside what is considered "normal."
Our catalog leans toward voices that question the default settings of culture, form, and genre. We give them room to follow an idea to its honest end rather than pull it back toward the center. This is music as a place to unsettle assumptions, question defaults, and sit with ideas that do not resolve cleanly.
The roster is built around artists who treat their work as more than background noise. Some come out of metal, hip-hop, industrial, or experimental electronic worlds, but the common thread is a refusal to treat genre as a fence. They write from lived pressure and friction, and the sound carries that weight.
Founded & Operated By
J.P. Hicks founded Idle Mind Media in 2001 as a space for underground artists with vision. What started as a way to release music that didn't fit anywhere else has grown into a small collective of artists who share a commitment to creative honesty and a willingness to exist outside the mainstream.
What connects them is not a single message, but a shared comfort with tension.
Our Values
Underground
We keep one foot in the margins on purpose. The label exists for music that feels a little too heavy, strange, or direct for the places that chase safe numbers.
Independence
We are small by design. Artists keep control of their voice and identity, and we move at a pace that serves the work, not a quarterly target.
Point of View
We look for artists who have something to say, even if it's uncomfortable or hard to pin down. A clear perspective matters more to us than a tidy hook.
Community
We care about long-term relationships. Shows, features, and collaborations matter as much as streams, and we build around people who show up for each other.
Creative Freedom
Artists come here to follow ideas all the way through. We avoid templates and trends, and we don't ask anyone to smooth out the edges that make the work theirs.
Long View
We think in terms of catalogs, not moments. The goal is a body of work that holds up when the current sound has moved on.
Idle Mind TV
Experimental Visual Content
Beyond the music, Idle Mind TV explores experimental visuals, music videos, and behind-the-scenes content. It's a space for Weirdcore aesthetics, Appalachian Gothic imagery, and visual experiments that mirror the sonic ethos of the collective. New content weekly.
If your music sits a little outside what is considered normal and you're looking for a serious home for it, we want to hear it. We look for intent, a clear point of view, and a willingness to stay slightly out of step with the center.