States Record Company was a Chicago-based record label. A subsidiary of United Recording, it was in business from May 1952 to December 1957. States focused on rhythm and blues, jazz, and gospel.

Junior Wells was an American singer, harmonica player, and recording artist. He is best known for his signature song "Messin' with the Kid" and his 1965 album Hoodoo Man Blues, described by the critic Bill Dahl as "one of the truly classic blues albums of the 1960s". Wells himself categorized his music as rhythm and blues.