!K7 was founded in 1985 in Berlin by Horst Weidenmueller. The earliest incarnation of the company focused on video production, working with leading independent artists including Nick Cave, Mudhoney and Einstürzende Neubauten. Video collaborations with pioneers of the emerging early '90s electronic music scene spawned the first commercially marketed DJ mix album series, 'X-Mix', which included contributions from luminaries such as Richie Hawtin, Laurent Garnier and more. !K7 then launched the seminal 'DJ-Kicks' mix album brand in 1993. More than 18 years later and nearly 40 albums strong, it remains one of the most respected and prestigious DJ mix compilation series worldwide and has featured mixes by many of the leading players in contemporary electronic music including Carl Craig, Apparat, Daddy G, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Kode9 and Wolf & Lamb.

!K7 began releasing artist albums in 1996, and has since been responsible for an array of progressive projects from across the electronic music spectrum. Key acts have included Tosca, Boozoo Bajou, Bomb The Bass and Herbert. Recent signings include Brandt Brauer Frick and New Look.

From 2001, !K7 broadened its musical range with the incorporation of leading specialist labels Strut, Gold Dust, Rapster and Ever. With each label focusing on its own niche within the independent musical landscape, the !K7 Label Group has released new music from artists as varied as Pete Rock, Roy Ayers, Mulatu Astatke, Grandmaster Flash, Kid Creole and Lee Hazlewood. The company also introduced distribution services to its portfolio during this period. Current label partners using !K7's P&D services include BBE, Fania, Crosstown Rebels, Moshi Moshi, Ghostly and Lo! Recordings.

In 2011, !K7 opened a management department which currently looks after the interests of Brandt Brauer Frick and Hercules & Love Affair.

In 2008 Strut joined the !K7 label group. Between 1999 and 2003 Strut the UK based imprint released everything from Nigerian afrobeat, leftfield disco to rare groove. The label was re-launched in January 2008 and besides a host of critically acclaimed compilations, new artist albums have been released including Grandmaster Flash's first studio album in 15 years. It has also give rise to the series 'Inspiration Information' in which contemporary producers and vocalists collaborate with classic artists that have heavily influenced their career such as Amp Fiddler and Sly & Robbie, Mulatu and The Heliocentrics. Strut's founder, Quinton Scott, is responsible for A&R.

In 2001 Rapster Records, a new label under the !K7 label group umbrella, started focussing on urban, soul and hip hop. Since then, Rapster has been releasing records by some of the most impressive artists from the hip hop and soul scenes.

DJ Jazzy Jeff, Pete Rock and Roy Ayers are just some of the names on the labels' fine roster. Always looking for opportunities to work with partners of excellence and to explore new possibilities and styles, Rapster forged an alliance with UK based soul aficionado Peter Adarkwah whose label BBE has been dealing in diverse, eclectic sounds covering many genres from old scratchy Brazilian grooves through 70's funk via jazz fusion and new hip hop for over a decade.

And with special projects such as the Exit Music “Songs with Radio Heads” compilation or the Kings of… series (featuring Masters at Work, RZA, Gilles Peterson and many more), as well as the Beat Generation albums, Rapster's reputation as one of the hottest hip hop labels to date established itself in no time.

Gold Dust also became part of the !K7 label group in 2008. A&R'd from the US office, it focuses mainly on American artists and has signed various hip hop legends such as Large Professor, People Under The Stairs and Zion I, alongside rising new stars Parallel Thought & Vic D. The label is also working on many other exciting new projects so it's no wonder that Gold Dust looks set to firmly establish itself as one of the worlds leading hip hop imprints.