Formed in 2012 by Scottie McNiece and David Allen, and launched in 2014, the label mostly releases records that have been categorised as jazz, with a particular focus on artists from the Chicago area.
[1][2][3] The label formed when McNiece, a drummer originally from Indiana, moved to Chicago and started a live jazz night in a bar in the River North part of the city.
[4] The label's first release was Alternative Moon Cycles, by Chicago Underground trumpeter Rob Mazurek, in December 2014.
[4] British DJ Gilles Peterson named International Anthem as his Label of the Year in 2020.
[5] In 2021 two of the label's releases, We’re New Again – A Reimagining by Gil Scott-Heron & Makaya McCraven and Suite for Max Brown by Jeff Parker, were nominated for Libera Awards Best Jazz Record, with the Scott-Heron/McCraven collaboration going on to win.