Bad Religion’s Brett Gurewitz, Founder of Epitaph Records, to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award

By Variety Staff

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Bad Religion guitarist and Epitaph Records founder Brett Gurewitz will receive A2IM’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the organization’s Libera Awards ceremony on June 21, it announced today.

While the band, which he cofounded in 1980, is one of the most influential punk bands of its era, the label — along with its sister labels, Anti- and Hellcat — has arguably had an even greater impact, helping to spawn acts like The Offspring, Rancid, Pennywise and NOFX, among many others; the Anti- label’s roster includes Tom Waits, Mavis Staples, Tinariwen and Neko Case.

“I’m humbled and honored to receive a Libera Award from my indie colleagues at and grateful for their advocacy of independent artists and labels,” said Gurewitz.

“At a time when there is much talk about artist-owned labels and DIY, it is fascinating to watch one such label, Brett Gurewitz’s , evolve from the singular punk vision of an artist/songwriter/producer into one of the most respected and diverse independent label groups,” said A2IM CEO Richard James Burgess. “Brett created a powerhouse legendary label, and we are proud to present him with the A2IM Lifetime Achievement Award.”

The Libera Awards will take place on June 21 at NYC’s PlayStation Theater. Presented by SoundExchange in partnership with BuzzAngle, the evening will top off A2IM’s Indie Week’s four days of workshops and networking.