Reed Watson is a Grammy winning drummer, artist manager, and the founder of Well Kept Secret, the New Orleans–based music company he launched in 2024 after two decades of doing nearly every job the record business has to offer. Built on the premise that not every artist needs a traditional label, Well Kept Secret provides label services, management, and global distribution on a commission basis — artists keep their ownership, and their money.
An Alabama native, Watson spent a decade as general manager and co-owner of Single Lock Records in Florence, the Muscle Shoals label behind releases from St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Donnie Fritts, Dylan LeBlanc, Erin Rae, and Cedric Burnside. He stepped back from day-to-day duties there in 2024. As a drummer, he has toured and recorded widely, most notably as Burnside’s longtime collaborator, playing on the Grammy winning I Be Trying.
These days, Well Kept Secret handles worldwide management for Grammy winners like Jon Cleary and releases records from a wide variety of New Orleans favorites and new discoveries. He also acts as label director for Lomax Archive, an imprint devoted to remastering and reintroducing the field recordings of John and Alan Lomax, in association with Lomax’s family and the Association for Cultural Equity.