The answer is A. it shows what kind of man he was
One of the essential characteristics that must be taken into consideration when choosing a research topic is that it must not be too broad, and it should be narrowed as much as possible in order to be more specific to the subjects themselves. Therefore, the answer would be "<span>Record labels first rose to prominence in the mid-twentieth century and became the largest player in the music business; today, they have less importance in the industry."</span>
The purpose of an essay is determined by your goal as a writer, as well as your subject matter.
Since 'next' is a time-order word, you need another.
'Then' is a time-order word. You are not stating a 'fact', nothing happened abruptly, or 'suddenly', and you aren't comparing anything, 'similarly'.
