Beat Factory was a Canadian urban music management/production company and independent record label, based in Toronto, Ontario.In 1982, Beat Factory was founded by Ivan Berry and songwriter Rupert Gayle. Throughout the 1980s and '90s, Beat Factory managed the top urban music artists in Canada. In 1988, Berry signed Michie Mee to an international record deal with Atlantic Records, making her the first Canadian hip hop artist signed to a major label.