Independent Las Vegas label Jake Records - now into its fourth year in the game - has already released albums with Digital Underground, BINC, Westside Bugg, Element is taking on the task to assist in the relief efforts for Japan. Here"s an open letter from him and we all need to support the planned "Jake For Japan" album.

"Dear Friends and Family, I write to you with a sense of urgency today in the hopes that the extended Jake Records family can come together to make something very special happen for the disaster relief efforts in Japan. As you probably know by now, a massive earthquake struck Japan early Friday. That event triggered a massive tsunami, which has caused catastrophic destruction and loss of life. The death toll has flown right past 10,000, and experts believe that number to be a placeholder for the much larger number that may not be discovered for weeks. Entire towns were wiped off the map, hundreds of bodies are being found one town at-a-time. To top it off, the Japanese government is facing potential nuclear disasters at three of its nation"s power plants, which could effect the lives of hundreds of thousands more people.

We"re floating the concept of a digital-only release album, tentatively titled "Jake For Japan" which would feature songs from Jake Records artists, along with other caring musicians and producers from around the globe. With a single Tweet this evening on Twitter, Jake Records VP Aaron Jones was able to muster up nearly a dozen other artists who all want to participate. We"re asking you to please create something original, either inspirational, or somehow in the context of disaster, recovery, pain, rebirth, love, unity...

We"re going to reach out to our distribution network and try to release the album as fast as possible. We pledge that 100% of all proceeds will be given to a group of charities who are (or will be) working directly in Japan to help that country rebuild, recover, and recoup their lives. We hope that by acting, we can inspire others to act, and that the Jake Records family will have a serious and lasting impact on the lives of others.

Please get back to me, Scott Thomas [scott.thomas@jakerecords.com] ASAP and let me know your thoughts and ideas. Please also cc Aaron Jones [aaron.jones@jakerecords.com] on all correspondence, as he has pledged to see this through from start to finish.

Lastly, I just want to say that I know a lot of bad things have happened in the past few years in lots of places around the world. I"ve quietly given to various charities my entire adult life, hoping to help those in need as best I could. I can"t tell you why "now" is the time to do something like this and not a year ago, or six months ago... I can only say that I feel deeply compelled to make this happen, and perhaps it will become a legacy of the label to help others in need, all around the world.

Your Friend,
Scott Thomas of Jake Records"