Herbert Egoldt began his career in music distribution in the 1970s, selling bootlegged American rockabilly recordings via a mail order service called Big-H.
In 1986, Egoldt closed the Rock-O-Rama shop in Cologne following a demonstration outside the premises organised by left-wing groups, and the Office for the Protection of the Constitution began investigating the label around this time.
[1][3] In the early 1990s, scrutiny of the white power music scene in Germany intensified, in the wake of a wave of anti-immigrant violence (notable incidents from the period include the Rostock and Hoyerswerda riots), expanding popularity of the genre, and an exposé published in Der Spiegel in 1992.
[8] This provoked an increased attention interest from German authorities in the scene, and in February 1993, police raided Rock-O-Rama's office in Brühl to gather evidence for a sedition prosecution, confiscating approximately 30,000 CDs, cassette tapes, and records.
[8] This was true in the years before the label's reorientation towards white power music as well, with frequent complaints of unfavourable contracts, poor production, and interference with cover art.