The collective behind the record labels Preference Records and The Village is known as Universe Brain. Through a hyperlocal focus its members, Jesse Justice, Samuel Lamontagne, Sam Lee, Ajay Ravi, and Mekala Session have gathered their energies around Los Angeles music communities and released projects from up-and-coming artists like Qur’an Shaheed, Diego Gaeta and Xin Xin. Through The Village they’ve focused on the Los Angeles jazz scene, and the legacy of Horace Tapscott and the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra. Through a variety of projects – music releases, concerts, exhibitions – their work engages music at the crossroads of multiple creative practices.