Read This: Is indie mainstay K Records shortchanging artists?

Founded in 1982 by Beat Happening guitarist-vocalist Calvin Johnson, Olympia, Washington’s K Records has been a fixture of the independent music scene for more than three decades, playing a crucial role in the punk boom of the 1990s. However, lately, some of the label’s disgruntled artists are upset about Johnson’s alleged financial mismanagement and questionable bookkeeping practices, and they’re taking to social media to voice their complaints. These sad events are detailed by writer Dave Segal in The Stranger in an article worryingly titled “Is K Records A ‘Broken, Sinking Ship’?” The article begins with the story of Kimya Dawson, a popular solo artist as well as a member of The Moldy Peaches, whose music was used prominently on the soundtrack of Juno. Dawson says that Johnson owes her hundreds of thousands of dollars, and she took her grievance to Facebook. Johnson says he has paid off some of his debt to Dawson, but Dawson counters that the money she has received comes from the Juno licensing deal with Rhino Records, not from what K Records truly owes her.