The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release Minor Disturbance by their band the Teen Idles.

[4] These labels presided over the shift from the hardcore punk that then dominated the American underground scene to the more diverse styles of alternative rock that were emerging.

[17] With the catalog number "Dischord 200", it consisted of singles and EPs by Minor Threat, Government Issue, Teen Idles, SOA, and Youth Brigade.

[17] Bands such as Minor Threat,[18] Government Issue,[19] the Faith,[20] Void,[21] Iron Cross,[19] Embrace,[22] Rites of Spring,[22] Nation of Ulysses,[22] Scream,[23] Soulside, S.O.A., the Teen Idles, Gray Matter, Jawbox,[22] Marginal Man,[22] Shudder to Think,[22] Dag Nasty,[22] Lungfish and Fugazi[6] have released records on Dischord.

Additions to the Dischord roster as of the late 1990s and 2000s include Q and Not U,[6] Beauty Pill, Antelope, Soccer Team,[24] French Toast, Faraquet, Black Eyes, the Aquarium, Title Tracks, Edie Sedgwick, Slant 6, and Andalusians.