acquisitions
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Verswire — a venture capital music startup launched by Veeps founder/COO Sherry Saeedi, Blink-182‘s Mark Hoppus and Lippman Entertainment partner Nick Lippman, with Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz on board as a strategic advisor — raised $12.3 million in seed and Series A funding led by E.O.A. Productions and idobi Radio along with Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman and Foo Fighters tour manager Gus Brandt. Concurrently, Verswise announced a new publishing arm set to launch this year in partnership with Kobalt Music Group.
Verswire has been described as a development incubator for both emerging and established artists that tailors a custom investment for each, including “funding, resources, tools, mentoring, support from prominent music executives and an ecosystem to own and operate their businesses within while allowing them to keep majority ownership of their masters,” according to a press release at launch. The company has signed two artists thus far: Beauty School Dropout and brand-new signee Girlfriends, an alt-rock duo composed of Travis Mills and Nick Gross.
Oscilloscope Laboratories has acquired North American rights to director Alexandria Bombach’s Indigo Girls documentary Indigo Girls: It’s Only Life After All, which premiered on the opening night of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. The distributor is planning a theatrical release for the film in the spring.
BMG acquired the majority of the recorded music catalog of French pop singer and composer Alain Chamfort. The acquisition comprises 13 albums, including Poses, Amour Année Zéro, Tendres Fièvres and Secrets Glacés as well as some of his biggest hits, including “Manureva,” “La Fièvre Dans Le Sang” and “Géant.” BMG will release Chamfort’s future recordings, including a four-track EP with Sébastien Tellier in January and a new studio album, L’Impermanence, in March. BMG will subsequently reissue several of Chamfort’s previous albums.
Additionally, BMG has strengthened its interest in Berlin band NENA‘s catalog, including the band’s global smash hit, “99 Luftballons.” Adding to its existing shares in the catalog, the company has acquired singer Nena’s U.S. recording copyright and ROW artist royalties, along with three band members’ artist shares. Other songs in the NENA catalog including “Nur geträumt,” “Leuchtturm,” “Irgendwie, irgendwo, irgendwann” and “? (Fragezeichen).”
Iron Horse Acquisitions Corp., a special purpose acquisitions company (SPAC), has raised $69 million from an initial public offering of 6,900,000 units at $10 each. Each unit consists of one share of common stock, one full warrant and one right to receive one-fifth of one share of common stock upon the consummation of an initial business combination. The company’s units are listed on the Nasdaq and started trading under the ticker symbol IROHU on Dec. 27. Founded by Jose A. Bengochea, who serves as CEO, Iron Horse is described as a media and entertainment-focused blank check company that will focus on deals spanning verticals including music rights aggregators, music licensors, international music labels, K-pop, AI, production studios, celebrity-backed content creators, gaming, fantasy sports, social media marketers and talent management.
TRINITI, a generative artificial intelligence platform powered by music tech studio CreateSafe, has partnered with newly launched music production platform SOUNDS.STUDIO, which will use TRINITI technology to provide an in-browser music and audio AI tool allowing users to create and distribute music all in one place. TRINITI previously made news for powering Grimes‘ AI voice model. Under the new deal, SOUNDS.STUDIO will allow its users to have the GrimesAI voice model on their own music and then distribute it to the major streaming platforms via TRINITI’s distribution channels.
Lyrics licensing and data solutions company LyricFind acquired technology company Rotor Videos, which makes it easier and more cost-efficient for artists and labels to create video content for Spotify Canvas, Apple Motion Art, social media platforms and more. The Rotor Videos team will continue to be led by founder/CEO Diarmuid Moloney, who will report to LyricFind founder/CEO Darryl Ballantyne. Along with the acquisition, LyricFind and CD Baby have struck a partnership to launch integrations of the Rotor Videos tool and LyricFind’s video enterprise solution, enabling CD Baby artists to create video content directly on the CD Baby platform.
ADA Worldwide has struck a distribution partnership with Omnivore Recordings covering the label’s entire catalog along with new releases. Omnivore specializes in historical releases, reissues and previously unissued vintage recordings, as well as select releases of new music, on CD, vinyl and digital. Omnivore’s catalog includes recordings by such acts as The Muffs, Alex Chilton, Laura Nyro, Stephen Stills and Blood, Sweat & Tears.
ASM Global has renewed its management contract with the Wilmington Convention Center in Wilmington, N.C., extending the relationship through 2028. The relationship between the two extends back to 2008.
Colombian hemp and cannabis producer One World Products partnered with Kx Family Care, a CBD-enriched personal care product line created by Stephen Marley and Shelly O’Neill. Under the deal, One World will produce and distribute Kx Family Care products in Colombia and Latin America, with the two companies collaborating on efforts to market and distribute the products.
Kids’ music brand KIDZ BOP struck an exclusive apparel licensing deal with IHL Group. An all-new KIDZ BOP apparel line including activewear, intimates, sleepwear and loungewear is set to hit North American retailers in the third quarter of 2024.
Universal Music Group (UMG) has acquired the catalog of Oriental Star Agencies (OSA). Founded in 1966 in London by Pakistani immigrants Muhammad Ayyub and his brothers, OSA is known as one of the United Kingdom’s top labels for South Asian talent.
The OSA catalog consists primarily of recorded music, but the new UMG deal encompasses all of its master recording holdings and its publishing. This includes 18,000 songs and video recordings, including from Malkit Singh, a well-known Bhangra artist; Bally Sagoo; and Attaullah Khan. It also includes works from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, a prolific, Grammy-nominated artist and film composer who is known for popularizing a form of Sufi devotional music, called “qawwali,” outside of his native Pakistan.
The sounds of OSA artists were able to permeate the United Kingdom’s musical consciousness even further at the turn of the 21st century, when several older OSA tracks were placed on the soundtrack of the hit soccer movie, Bend It Like Beckham, released in 2002. The label continued to operate independently until 2017 when it sold to Hi-Tech Music, another British record label.
According to IFPI’s Global Music Report, the Asian recorded music market grew 15.4% in 2023, marking the third consecutive year the continent has experienced double-digit revenue growth. Now, Asia accounts for just under 23% of the global market and is expected to continue to expand. Japan, South Korea and China account for the majority of Asia’s global music exports, but South Asian countries overall continue to grow year after year.
In recent years, as the music catalog market grew red hot and competition among buyers became greater than ever, some investors showedincreased interest in acquiring music from typically underrepresented genres and nationalities in the catalog market. Reservoir, for example, invested in new relationships and catalogs in Saudi Arabia and Egypt; Wahoo Music Fund One focused solely on Latin music purchases; Singapore-based blackx tried to corner the Asian music market; and Armada Music’s BEAT started buying up dance catalogs.
According to a press release about the OSA deal, the catalog acquisition “complements UMG’s current service offering and will help drive momentum for the South Asian music market, enabling local artists to reach the largest possible audience in the global community.”
“This acquisition of a hugely successful and iconic British-Asian label specializing in South Asian music will further increase Universal Music Group’s exposure to, and participation in, a fast growing and rapidly changing market,” said Adam Granite, executive vp of market development at UMG, in a statement. “I am particularly pleased that Universal Music Group will become the next custodian of Oriental Star Agencies, a label that has played an unparalleled role in bridging the musical identities of the UK and South Asia, taking the unique sounds of its artists to a broad audience. We believe this catalog has huge potential, and look forward to taking it to the next generation of music fans globally.”
“This is a momentous day for OSA and all our artists,” added Mohammed Twassen of OSA. “Becoming part of the UMG family will turbo-charge our South Asian music, helping it to get in front of more music fans across the world. The past decade has seen a true global explosion of music from the region, and now, under UMG’s stewardship, the next decade promises to be even more exciting.”
Generative AI music creation platform, label and publisher Boomy reached a distribution partnership with ADA Worldwide, Warner Music Group’s independent distribution and label services arm. Under the deal, Boomy’s A&R team will bring top artists and exclusively curated music from the Boomy roster to ADA. Select Boomy artists will be distributed and marketed across platforms including Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music. Boomy artists who will benefit from the partnership include rapper-producer Jelie, German harpist Katirha, Boston-based producer Lightfoot, rapper Paperboy Prince and techno/lo-fi music project Plague of Grackles. Boomy’s AI systems allow human creators to make original music even if they lack professional tools or a formal music-making education.
AI and metaverse technology and content company Futureverse signed with CAA for representation in all areas. The companies will collaborate to open up new opportunities for talent and intellectual property across Web3, the metaverse, AI, virtual games and experiences and more. The announcement follows the unveiling of Futureverse’s JEN 1, a “high-fidelity model” for text-to-music generation and research paper that proposes a strategy to pioneer a new licensing framework compensating rights holders, producers and artists. “Futureverse’s strategic collaboration with CAA has forged a strong alignment in fostering the development of mutually beneficial business models that empower creators with groundbreaking tools and lucrative revenue opportunities. As pioneers in AI, web3 and metaverse infrastructure, driven by a deep appreciation for art and humanity, we see an incredibly bright future for the world of entertainment,” said Futureverse co-founder Shara Senderoff in a statement. Futureverse’s other co-founder is Aaron McDonald.
Through an existing joint venture, CTS Eventim and Sony Music Latin Iberia acquired Punto Ticket in Chile and Teleticket in Peru, expanding the JV’s South American ticketing business, which launched in Brazil in 2016. The acquisitions will provide ticketing systems and related services to concert promoters and venues across both countries. Corporate leadership for the acquired companies will remain intact.
Spotify partnered with mobile provider Orange Middle East & Africa, which will now offer complimentary data bonuses for its customers to access Spotify’s service. “We are aware that data costs continue to be a hindrance for people who would like to stream music, that’s why we are actively working at Spotify SSA on partnerships like this one,” said Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, MD for Spotify in Sub-Saharan Africa, in a statement. Brelotte Ba, deputy CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, added that the deal will “contribute to the acceleration of digital inclusion on the continent.” Orange operates in a total of 18 countries across Africa and the Middle East.
HARMAN, a Samsung Electronics subsidiary that focuses on connected technologies for automotive, consumer and enterprise markets, acquired music management, discovery and streaming platform Roon. Described in a press release as “a music player for music enthusiasts,” Roon is available on all popular operating systems and also manufactures a line of hardware server appliances called Nucleus. Roon will operate as a standalone HARMAN business with its existing team remaining in place. HARMAN plans to grow Roon’s open device ecosystem that collaborates with more than 160 other audio brands, delivering audio to more than 1,000 high-performance devices.
Universal Music Group (UMG) signed a deal with Ethiopian streaming platform Sewasew Multimedia, which will now license and market UMG’s music catalog in Ethiopia. “UMG has a long and successful presence in Africa, and given Ethiopia’s rich and vibrant music culture, we are excited to work with Sewasew Multimedia to help grow the Ethiopian music industry to its full potential,” said Ulrik Cahn, UMG executive vp of Africa, Middle East and Asia, in a statement.
Independent digital distributor IDOL signed a global distribution and label services deal with Young Art Records, the L.A.-based label belonging to producer and DJ TOKiMONSTA. Under the partnership, IDOL will handle global distribution and marketing for Young Art Records’ catalog and frontline releases. In addition to TOKiMONSTA, Young Art artists include rapper Cakes Da Killa, Canadian R&B musician Rochelle Jordan and instrumentalist-songwriter duo Daktyl & Benni Ola.
Warner Music Group (WMG) struck a partnership with Ghana-based Small World Records, the label and publisher founded by music entrepreneur and streetwear connoisseur SmallGod. Under the new agreement, Small World will collaborate with teams from WMG, ADA and Warner Chappell Music to elevate Small World’s artist and songwriter rosters worldwide and discover, nurture and elevate a new generation of African talent. SmallGod will continue leading Small World’s operations.
SiriusXM unveiled a new collaboration with Europe’s Radio Monaco to launch the SiriusXM Radio Monaco channel, which will bring artists and DJs from Monte Carlo to SiriusXM listeners in North America. According to a press release, Radio Monaco (originally launched in 2006) is the only music stream originating from Monaco. The channel will broadcast live from Jimmy’z Monte-Carlo and air DJ sets from the parties around the Monaco Grand Prix while featuring exclusive interviews and content with stars from the country’s music scene. Radio Monaco will be available to SiriusXM subscribers across North America.
Spinnin’ Records signed a new joint venture with independent dance label and publisher Kanary Records, run by brothers Alex and Christopher Van den Hoef — also known as production duo DVBBS. Artists on Kanary’s roster include Arkade, Bad Nonn and Dayfive. “We are delighted to join forces with Alex and Christopher, reigniting our relationship from over a decade ago,” said Jorn Heringa, head of A&R at Spinnin’ Records, in a statement. “Both brothers bring deep expertise and knowledge to the table and will work harder than anyone else to develop and drive KANARY to new heights with us. Welcome back to Spinnin’!”
Mozaic.io, a global payments platform that allows co-creators to automatically send and receive split payments, closed a $20 million Series A funding round from Boston-based growth equity firm Volition Capital. Mozaic.io initially focused on payouts for music distributors, artists and collaborators before expanding to serve the entire peer-to-peer creator economy, with a goal of expanding further into the gig and freelance economy. The investment brings the total raised for Mozaic.io to $27.1 million, with existing investment from Rise of the Rest, Maverick Nashville and music industry executive Joe Galante. The funds will be used for new product development and expanding Mozaic’s sales and product teams.
Audoo — a music technology company that allows artists, songwriters, PROs and CMOs to see in real-time where their music is played via the use of proprietary audio meters, enabling them to better collect on public performance royalties — partnered with Abu Dhabi-based music rights organization ESMAA. Through the collaboration, ESMAA will incorporate Audoo’s “Audio Meter” and insights platform into its operational framework, allowing more accurate and transparent data collection and payment distribution for artists and rights holders. “ESMAA is at the forefront of building a modern rights company and through implementing the best technology from Audoo, we bridge the path of identifiable potential income with a system that optimises the use of music recognition in public performance spaces,” said Spek, founder/CEO of ESMAA, in a statement.
Canadian booking agency Paquin Artists Agency (PAA), a division of Paquin Entertainment Group, formed a strategic partnership with Louis Carrière, founder/president of Quebec-based agency Preste. The partnership will deepen PAA’s footprint in Quebec as it opens a new office in Montreal. PAA will also provide key resources to Carrière and his team to export Quebecian talent.
Believe-owned metal label Nuclear Blast announced an exclusive e-commerce partnership with Impericon, a provider of metalcore merchandise and music. Under the deal, Impericon will oversee all of Nuclear Blast’s European e-commerce activities starting in the first quarter of 2024.
An affiliate of private equity firm STG completed its acquisition of Avid Technology in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $1.4 billion. The acquisition, previously announced on Aug. 9, was approved by Avid stockholders on Nov. 2. Under the terms of the deal, Avid stockholders will receive $27.05 per share. Avid common stock ceased trading prior to the opening of trading on Nov. 7 and will no longer be listed on the Nasdaq. Avid will operate as a privately held company and remain headquartered in Burlington, Mass. “By becoming a private company, we believe Avid will be able to achieve the speed of innovation, scale and performance required for us to continue leading the industry forward,” said Jeff Rosica, Avid’s CEO/president, in a statement. “Combined with their significant operational and financial resources, STG brings deep investment experience in the technology sector that will accelerate the achievement of Avid’s strategic vision, building on the momentum of our successful ongoing transformation achieved over the past several years.”
Global content studio The North Road Company is partnering with Two One Five Entertainment — a company co-founded by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter of The Roots — after acquiring a significant stake in the company. The deal establishes creative coordination between the two companies, with North Road planning to finance future Two One Five film, TV and other creative projects to scale the company. “Although we’ve had success thus far, finding an investor and strategic partner like North Road will have an immediate impact on our business, as their superior production capabilities will help us significantly increase our output,” said Questlove in a statement. “Additionally, the capital they are committing provides us the flexibility to independently fund creative ideas, grow our executive team and truly scale the business.”
The Anaheim Ducks and Honda Center announced a partnership with The Offspring to commemorate the 30th anniversary of both the Ducks and Honda Center as well as the band’s breakthrough album, Smash. The collaboration will encompass several crossovers during the Ducks’ 30th anniversary season and beyond, including “Come Out and Play Night with The Offspring” on Feb. 9, 2024. The night will include appearances from the band — which hails from Orange County — along with limited edition and co-branded merchandise. Fans will also receive exclusive perks and rewards during Friday night games at Honda Center throughout the Ducks’ 30th anniversary season. Additionally, the band and the Ducks have teamed up to create Puck Punks: The Offspring Powerplay Hits, a limited-edition vinyl set that will go on sale in the Ducks Team Store on Feb. 9, with a number of copies signed by members of The Offspring and Ducks players to be made available. All proceeds raised will benefit the Anaheim Ducks Foundation.
Universal Music Group India and leading Indian talent management company REPRESENT struck a strategic partnership that will give the REPRESENT roster access to Universal Music Group’s global footprint across distribution, publishing, brands and more to help boost REPRESENT artists’ growth and reach worldwide. The companies will collaborate on artist development and fan engagement, among other areas. REPRESENT artists who will be distributed and supported under the partnership include Anuv Jain, MC Stan, Zaeden, Lost Stories, Yashraj, Hanita Bhambri, Akanksha Bhandari, Kamakshi Khanna, Saahel, Savera, Kayan, OAFF and Jai Dhir.
Icelandic-Chinese artist, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Laufey has extended her deal with label partner AWAL following the successful release of her album Bewitched, which debuted at No. 23 on the Billboard 200 in September. Laufey is nominated for best traditional pop vocal album at next year’s Grammys and is in the middle of a sold-out North American tour.
GoldState Music, a new company launched last year by Charles Goldstuck that was formed to create a diversified portfolio of music copyrights and sound recordings, announced a “significant” investment and a new partnership with funds managed by Flexpoint Ford Asset Opportunities. The investment will help accelerate GoldState’s acquisition of music intellectual property assets, including full catalogs, influential copyrights, master recordings and publishing rights. As part of the deal, GoldState will source new catalog acquisitions and manage the licensing, synchronization and administration for the existing and acquired copyrights. According to a press release, in its first year of operation, GoldState acquired music rights from several artists and songwriters “spanning multiple genres, geographies, and asset types.”
The Daouda Leonard-founded music tech studio CreateSafe raised a $4.6 million seed funding round to launch TRINITI, a generative artificial intelligence music platform designed to make it easier for artists and rights holders to license and monetize their data in generative AI models while offering a platform to manage consent, credit and compensation. TRINITI was previously utilized by Grimes (Leonard’s management client) to distribute works using a cloned version of her voice to all major streaming services; according to a press release, more than 1,000 songs have been created since the project’s launch. TRINITI includes personalized AI tools with an attribution engine that can take the input of voice, sound, writing and imagery to communicate an artist’s musical and artistic vision. The funding round was led by cryptocurrency and blockchain tech investment firm Polychain Capital, with additional backing from Crush Ventures, Anthony Saleh, Paris Hilton (11:11 Media), MoonPay, Chaac Ventures, Unified Music Group and Dan Weisman (vp at Bernstein Private Wealth Management).
10K Projects struck a joint venture with Loaf Boyz Ventures, the record label of rapper Moneybagg Yo. The first release under the deal was YTB Fatt’s first mixtape, Who Is Fatt, which dropped in August. Other projects set for release under the deal include a Loaf Boyz compilation album and new music from Memphis-based rapper Kevo Money. Moneybagg Yo’s solo work will continue to be released through Yo Gotti’s CMG label. This marks the first deal for 10K since it became a standalone label within Warner Music Group.
Virgin Music Group signed a global agreement with Latin independent labels Machin and Equinoccio Records. Founded by Mexican singer, songwriter and producer Pepe Aguilar, both labels have a focus on the Regional Mexican genre. Machin Records is home to Angela Aguilar, Leonardo Aguilar and Irany & David, while Equinoccio is home to Pepe Aguilar.
Online design platform Canva launched a popular music library that will give users to access 60-second clips of commercially released songs for personal use in videos, social media posts and more through partnerships with Warner Music Group (including Warner Chappell Music and Warner Recorded Music), Merlin and more than a dozen other labels and publishers in deals announced earlier this year. Available songs include works by artists including Michael Buble, Vance Joy, Kenya Grace and Curtis Mayfield, all of whom will earn royalties when clips of their songs are used in Canva designs. The newly expanded music library is available to Canva Pro and Education subscribers, with access to small enterprises using Canva for Teams and Nonprofit users to follow, in Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
Music finance firm Sound Royalties announced a new “working relationship” with entertainment banker David Innes, according to a press release. Under the agreement, Innes’ new venture, On the Money Entertainment Advisory and Consulting, will support Sound Royalties “by amplifying its networking reach among music creatives and expanding its new business pipeline,” the release adds.
Spatial web technology company Cosmic Wire partnered with Creative Artists Agency (CAA) to create innovative experiences for CAA clients using spatial and immersive technology. The companies will additionally work together to innovate sponsorship opportunities for corporate brands in virtual environments.
Music rights and metadata management software platform Orfium partnered with Japanese anime music company Bandai Namco Music Live. Under the deal, Orfium will manage, optimize and monetize Bandai Namco’s repertoire using its AI-based rights management software. Bandai Namco Music Live represents more than 3,000 creators and is behind such anime titles as the Love Live! series, Violet Evergarden, One-Punch Man and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.
SoundCloud announced a partnership with A&R executive Randall “Sickamore” Medford, who partnered with SoundCloud on IIIXL Studio, a new Brooklyn-based enterprise that will be dedicated to signing and developing New York artists for SoundCloud’s artist development program. The first IIIXL artist-in-residence is Liim. Through the collaboration, Sickamore will connect talent with SoundCloud’s artist partnerships division, which will offer white-glove creative and marketing resources to chosen artists and their teams. A monthly New York hip-hop showcase is also forthcoming.
Also at SoundCloud, the streaming platform partnered with sleep, meditation and relaxation app Calm to introduce new mental health and wellness benefits for artists. Under the deal, SoundCloud Next and Next Pro artists will have access to exclusive offers for Calm through SoundCloud’s existing member benefits program, including free trials and 50% off Calm Premium.
Bonsai, a platform that helps recording artists engage with and monetize their superfans, announced integrations with Discord, YouTube and Instagram allowing fans to directly interact with their favorite artists. Bonsai’s core feature lets artists invite their fans to participate in “asynch AMAs,” through which fans use Bonsai to ask artists questions. Artists can then record audio responses for their fans, which are then paired with visual generative art to form a “bonsai” that gets delivered to fans via text, email and — with the new deals — Discord, Instagram and YouTube.
We Are Giant — a new platform that helps artists amplify their direct-to-fan relationships by hosting licensed listening parties for new music and unreleased demos, exclusive livestreams, interactive chat rooms with the musicians and more — formally announced its launch while announcing an $8 million funding round from investment management platform Sterling Partners. We Are Giant is led by founder/CEO Andy Apple, who previously served as an investor at VC firms Sound Ventures and Wavemaker Partners in addition to a tenure at JPMorgan. Also on the leadership team is Dan McComas (previously at Reddit), who serves as vp of products & community.
TaP Music Publishing has sold Dua Lipa back her publishing rights, the company announced Thursday (Nov. 2). She was previously a client of the company’s artist management roster as well. TaP said in a statement: “We wish Dua all the best for the future.” Anna Neville, co-president of TaP Music, added: “This is an exciting […]
Exceleration Music signed a strategic partnership with the founders of American independent label Rounder Records — Ken Irwin, Marian Leighton Levy and Bill Nowlin, as well as Rounder’s first and longtime president/CEO, John Virant — on their new venture, Down The Road. The new label will be focused on “the historic depth and breadth of Americana,” according to a press release, including releases from banjo player Tony Trischka, bluegrass group Blue Highway and Irish traditional music performers Dervish. It will also reissue 14 catalog titles produced by the Rounder Records co-founders in recent years. Down The Road releases will be distributed by Redeye, which Exceleration acquired in September.
Audoo — a music technology company that provides data allowing artists, songwriters, PROs and CMOs to see in real-time where their music is played, enabling them to better collect on public performance royalties — raised $5 million in its last funding round from investors including Elton John and David Furnish, bringing its total raised to $22 million. “Working as a musician can be seen as all glitz and glamour but for the vast majority of artists, especially new and emerging acts, this isn’t the case,” said John in a statement. “It’s often brutally unfair and this sadly extends into being paid correctly. Right now, artists are not being paid accurately for their plays because the data simply doesn’t exist … That’s why we’ve invested in Audoo and their world-class technology and data, to help create a more transparent system for everyone, and ultimately to keep the music alive.”
Patreon acquired livestream ticketed event platform Moment (formerly Moment House). In the coming months, “foundational elements” of Moment will be integrated into Patreon, according to a blog post. Since its founding in 2019, Moment has partnered with artists including Justin Bieber, Tame Impala and Kygo.
Warner Music Group (WMG) acquired Indian artist management and live events company E-Positive, strengthening WMG’s position in the region. On its roster, E-Positive boasts Darshan Raval, one of the most-streamed artists in India. E-Positive will continue acting as a standalone company, led by founder/CEO Naushad Khan. “Darshan, as well as the whole of the E-Positive roster, will be able to harness Warner Music’s global network and start to connect with a wider international audience,” said WMG president of emerging markets Alfonso Perez Soto in a statement. “This deal helps us to level-up and enhance our 360 offering to artists by bringing in the knowledge and expertise of Naushad to Warner Music. Our improved suite of services we will enable our artists to transcend the whole of India and help bring Indian culture to the rest of the world.”
In more WMG acquisition news, the company bought the recorded music business of Jukka Immonen‘s The Fried Music. Based in Finland, The Fried Music artists — including Anna Puu, Knipi and Viivi — will be integrated into the Warner Music roster and enjoy access to its global network. Starting on Jan. 1, 2024, Immonen will also begin serving as head of A&R at Warner Music Finland.
Mediabase has acquired the All Access music distribution business unit from Joel Denver. “Through this integration, Mediabase offers a seamless user experience by providing downloads of broadcast-quality content from our label partners,” said Mediabase president/CEO Philippe Generall in a statement. “The power of these collective platforms promises to redefine how industry professionals access and leverage media assets.”
Hook, a platform that allows users to remix and remake songs using AI, closed a $3 million seed investment round led by Steve Cohen‘s Point72 Ventures and Waverley Capital, co-founded by former Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman, Jr. Other participants included Mark Gillespie‘s Three Six Zero and Japanese entertainment brand Avex. The investment will be used to continue developing Hook’s platform; Hook will also collaborate with artists and record labels to develop technology to unlock new revenue streams. Founded by CEO Gaurav Sharma, Hook is planning to launch a closed beta later this year.
ASM Global extended its 10-year partnership with Onondago County, N.Y., to manage The Oncenter and St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview in Syracuse. Under the new deal, ASM Global will continue managing The Oncenter convention and entertainment facility — which includes the Nicholas J. Pirro Convention Center, the Upstate Medical Arena and three theaters in the John H. Mulroy Civic Center — as well as the St. Joseph’s Amphitheater, a 17,500-capacity outdoor concert venue.
Elsewhere at ASM Global, the company signed a long-term renewal contract to continue managing three venues in Puerto Rico: the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot arena, the Antiguo Casino de Puerto Rico and the Puerto Rico Convention Center.
The Circuit Group, a new company with a stated mission to create business opportunities around artists’ intellectual property, formed a joint venture with management and production company Pivot Music (led by Paolo Mojo) and DJ-producer Rebūke. Under the partnership, Pivot and its premier act, Rebūke, along with his ERA Music label, will move under the Circuit Group umbrella. According to a press release, The Circuit Group acquires up to 50% of artists’ song catalogs, offering those artists an immediate source of revenue while also aligning their interests with Circuit Group’s vision of creating additional avenues for intellectual property. The company also invests in and strikes strategic alliances with other entities across recorded music, publishing, merchandise, brand partnerships, gaming, events, Web3 and more.
Artist-producer-multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin partnered with Lowly and Create Music Group to launch a joint-venture record label named O’Connor. The label launched on Friday (Oct. 13) with “311!”, the first single off sneek, a collaborative album between Martin and singer-songwriter Gallant. O’Connor’s executive board includes Martin, Deon Ford (Lowly’s A&R director) and Samantha Whitehead (creative director, art historian and Martin’s day-to-day manager). Under the deal, Martin will also produce for select Lowly/Create artists while assisting in A&R and artist development with Ford.
Linkfire renewed an agreement with Warner Music Group to provide its Saas marketing platform to the company globally. The agreement extends through April 30, 2024.
BMG acquired global rights to all three studio albums from Australian artist Angus Stone‘s Dope Lemon project, including 2016’s Honey Bones, 2019’s Smooth Big Cat and 2022’s Rose Pink Cadillac, as well as his 2017 EP, Hounds Tooth. BMG released Dope Lemon’s fourth studio album, Kimosabè, on Sept. 29 under a new recordings deal.
Sphere Entertainment announced that amplification technology company Powersoft contributed immersive haptic technology and amplifier solutions to Las Vegas’ Sphere venue. Powersoft technology is integrated within the venue’s 10,000 haptic seats as part of Sphere Immersive Sound powered by HOLOPLOT.
Backline, a nonprofit that provides mental health resources to music industry workers and their families, announced a new partnership with Eventric/Master Tour, software that assists with tour logistics. Under the agreement, the Master Tour mobile app will now include an in-app button that directs users to mental health resources, including the Crisis Text Line, the National Suicide Hotline and Backline’s suite of resources. Master Tour boasts a user base of over 250,000, with 55,000 active monthly users.
AI sound wellness company Endel partnered with dance music label Spinnin’ Records to create 50 AI-generated soundscape album playlists tailored for focus, relaxation, sleep, physical activity and more. The first two soundscape albums are out now, with new albums set to release every week over the next two months. All of the albums will fall under a new profile called Spinnin’ COSMOS. Artists involved in the project to date include Brazilian DJs Felguk and Italian production and DJ duo VINAI. “With this collaboration with Spinnin’, we’ve transformed hundreds of tracks from their incredible catalog into life-enhancing albums and playlists at a huge scale while retaining the iconic sound of Spinnin’ Records and its artists,” said Endel co-founder/CEO Oleg Stavitsky in a statement.
Decca Records US and the World Federation for Mental Health announced a partnership for World Mental Health Day on Oct. 10. Under the agreement, Decca US released a World Mental Health Day-themed playlist of calming music featuring artists including Chad Lawson, Cody Fry, Kings Elliot, Balmorhea, Daigo Hanada, Lara Somogyi, Sophie Hutchings and Samuel Mariño. Additionally, Decca US artist Lawson, who hosts a podcast on mental health, partnered with AI-powered sound wellness company Endel to release a meditation soundscape album featuring reimagined tracks from his album breathe.
HIFI, a financial services startup catering to the music business, has been acquired by Block, the payments technology company launched by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. A person with knowledge of the transaction tells Billboard the deal closed on Tuesday (Oct. 10). Launched in 2020, HIFI allows clients to track their royalty income from a variety […]
Multimedia Music has acquired the entire film and TV music catalog of composer Christopher Lennertz, known for his work on films including Horrible Bosses, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Sausage Party, Bad Moms and Baywatch and TV shows including The Boys, Lost in Space and Supernatural.
Lennertz is a multiple Emmy nominee and 20-time BMI Awards honoree who was recently named a BMI Icon at the organization’s 2023 Film, TV & Visual Media Awards in May.
“We are huge fans of Chris Lennertz’s work, he has created fantastic scores for so many successful films and TV series,” said Multimedia Music partner James Gibb in a statement. “We’re delighted to add his body of work to our catalog of wonderful film music by some of the best composers in the business.”
“When looking for the ideal place to entrust Christopher’s catalogue, we turned to Multimedia Music based on their great reputation and their great people,” added Lennertz’s agent, Richard Kraft of Kraft-Engel Management.
The deal is just the latest for Multimedia Music, led by Gibb and Phil Hope, which claims it’s spent a total of $150 million on acquisitions since it launched in late 2021. Previous deals include purchasing a 50% stake in a catalog of music publishing and master rights from the film music library of Amblin partners; the STX music library of master and publishing rights; the catalog of composer James Newton Howard; and the master and publishing rights to a 48-title film score catalog from Atlantic Screen Music.
Canada-based audio group Lenbrook acquired the assets of U.K. music technology company MQA nearly six months after MQA lost its founding financial backer and filed for administration. The purchase adds several patents as well as two audio codecs — MQA and SCL6 — to Lenbrook’s intellectual property portfolio. “We view this acquisition as an opportunity to ensure the technologies developed by the scientists and engineers at MQA continue to serve the industry’s interests rather than be confined to any single brand or company,” said Lenbrook CEO Gordon Simmonds in a statement. Lenbrook has retained a core group of MQA engineers and developers as well as sales and marketing staff including Andy Dowell, formerly the head of licensing at MQA, who will continue leading business development activities. A press release states that “MQA had amassed over 120 licensees [including Lenbrook] and several content partnerships, so Lenbrook’s primary objective in this acquisition was to provide certainty for business and technical developments that were underway prior to MQA’s administration.”
Universal Music Middle East & North Africa (MENA) partnered with Cairo-based Harb Talent Management on a deal that will see the two companies work together on talent discovery, development, music production, marketing and promo, live events and brand partnerships in Egypt. Under the agreement, Universal Music MENA announced three signings to its roster: Egyptian hip-hop artists Ahmed Santa, Slyver and Abu El Anwar. All three are expected to release music later this year and next.
Vassal Benford, CEO/chairman of the B.B. King estate, the B.B. King music company and the family trust, announced the launch of the B.B. King Life Legacy Initiative, which will encompass several new partnerships, retail products and brand concepts. The first project announced is a partnership with Heritage Distilling for an exclusive line of King-branded spirits. Also forthcoming are a new music project that will feature artists including Quavo, Jason Derulo and Swae Lee; a King theatrical biopic; a King documentary featuring a new single from Quavo; and a 24-hour B.B. King blues network.
Create Music Group struck a partnership with Black Lion, a music technology company behind a valuation engine that analyzes the performance and value of song catalogs to reduce the amount of time music companies spend evaluating potential acquisitions and signings. “This strategic partnership will significantly expand our ability to identify, research and make deals with rights holders all around the world,” said Create Music Group co-founder/chief business operator Wayne Hampton in a statement. “Black Lion’s cutting-edge technology will streamline our deal making process and enable us to generate increased revenue for Create and for all of our partners.”
India-based record label Saregama India acquired a 51.8% stake in youth-focused Indian digital content creator and publisher Pocket Aces, “with a clear path” to acquire an additional 41% in the next 15 months, according to a press release. “This acquisition will further strengthen Saregama’s strategic ambition to take [a] leadership position in New Music across all Indian languages,” the release continues. Pocket Aces boasts an intellectual property catalog of more than 3,000 pieces of content including web series and music videos on its channels — FilterCopy, Nutshell and Gobble — as well as a talent management arm with a roster of more than 100 digital influencers and a long-form studio called Dice Media. The release claims Pocket Aces has more than 95 million followers, “which Saregama will leverage to further popularize its music library among the 18-35 audience segment. It will also create synergies across the artiste & influencer management and long-format video creation businesses of the two companies.”
Epic Games has sold Bandcamp to Songtradr, an online music licensing marketplace. News of the sale arrives as the Fortnite developer also announced plans to eliminate 16% of its workforce — around 830 jobs — and to spin off its SuperAwesome services division, according to a memo on Epic Games’ website.
“We’ve been spending way more money than we earn…We’re cutting costs without breaking development or our core lines of businesses so we can continue to focus on our ambitious plans,” explained Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney in the memo.
Epic Games acquired the independent music platform for an undisclosed sum in March 2022. Though the purchase initially shocked the music business, several music executives explained to Billboard right after the sale that the motive behind buying Bandcamp might be to improve Epic’s relations with musicians or ease synch licensing. According to Epic Games at the time of the sale, “Bandcamp will play an important role in Epic’s vision to build out a creator marketplace ecosystem for content, technology, games, art, music and more.”
In the company’s latest memo, it continued to stress its desire to build itself into a wide-reaching “ecosystem for creators” but added that it needed to reach profitability.
In the past few years, Songtradr has been active in acquiring new businesses to expand its reach. In March 2023, it purchased B2B music company 7digital for a reported $23.4 million. It also recently acquired AI metadata and music search platform MusicCube in 2022, Massive Music and Song Zu in 2021, and Big Sync Music in 2019. Other companies in its expanding portfolio include Tunefind and Pretzel; it also invested $1 million in music credits database Jaxsta.
Bandcamp’s new owner says it will continue to operate the platform as a marketplace and music community with an artist-first revenue share, while the acquisition will enable it to expand its capabilities to support the artist community. In addition, Songtradr will now offer all Bandcamp artists the ability to have their music licensed to all forms of media, including content creators, game and app developers, and brands.
In a press release announcing the acquisition, Songtradr added that Epic Games is “exploring ways” to allow Bandcamp artists to opt-in to have their music licensed for use in Epic’s gaming and metaverse ecosystem via a partnership with Songtradr. Epic will continue to collaborate with Bandcamp on Fortnite Radio and “is investing in Songtradr to support Bandcamp’s successful integration into” the company, according to the Songtradr release.
“The acquisition of Bandcamp will help Songtradr continue to grow its suite of services for artists,” said Songtradr CEO Paul Wiltshire in a statement. “I’m a passionate musician myself, and artistry and creativity have always been at the heart of Songtradr. Bandcamp will join a team of music industry veterans and artists who have deep expertise in music licensing, composition, rights management, and distribution.”
“Songtradr shares Epic and Bandcamp’s values around ensuring artists are fairly compensated for their work,” added Epic Games vp/GM, store Steve Allison. “Bringing Bandcamp to Songtradr will make it easier for independent artists to connect with creators and developers looking to license their music and enable Epic to focus on its core metaverse, games, and tools efforts.”
Sibling duo Mau y Ricky launched their new independent label, Why Club Records, in partnership with Warner Music Latina. According to a press release, the new imprint will not only act as a home for the duo — who were previously signed to Sony Music Latin — but will also “look to impact culture through music with a purpose, supporting artists who have something to say and want to break through the mold.” About Why Club Records, Mau y Ricky said: “We trust [Alejandro] Duque and [Roberto] Andrade as the ideal partners for this new stage. We are working on the most important album of our career so far.” The Miami-based duo’s first single under the new label, “Vas a Destrozarme,” will drop Oct. 5. – Griselda Flores
Round Hill Music acquired Austin-based neighboring rights agency Rident Royalties, which deals with film/TV composers and production music. With the acquisition, Round Hill’s existing neighboring rights platform, Sound Hill, expands to more than 1,200 performers and 120 record labels. The deal also allows it to tap the production music and TV/film score neighboring rights markets and expand into additional territories. Rident Royalties owner/president Chris Kennedy will serve as co-head of Sound Hill alongside Róisín Brophy.
Virgin Music partnered with independent publisher, record label and management firm Position Music, which boasts a catalog of more than 35,000 songs. Under the deal, Virgin Music will distribute Position Music’s new releases and existing catalog while helping to market, promote and develop Position’s frontline label roster, which includes artists, songwriters and producers such as Judah & the Lion, Kyle Dion, Ryan Oakes, Kid Bloom, Layto and Fantastic Negrito.
Atlanta-based management company Crown World Entertainment, founded by CEO Vincent Searcy, acquired Indie Distro and, with the purchase, launched Crown World’s new independent distribution arm, CWE Distro. The company will now offer music distribution to all streaming platforms as well as data insights, brand strategy, digital marketing, synch licensing, neighboring rights and content monetizations. For $29.99 a year, emerging artists who sign up for CWE Distro will keep 100% of their royalties, receive guaranteed distribution to more than 50 digital service providers and more. Plans for established artists are available by invitation and require no subscription fee. The first releases from CWE Distro are “Find Someone” by singer-songwriter Eric Bellinger and WifeyBaby’s “Stingy.”
Independent podcast company Acast partnered with royalty-free music platform Slip.Stream in a deal that will allow Acast podcasters to access more than 70,000 songs for use in their content. All 100,000 Acast podcasters will receive “Pro Level” access to Slip.Stream free for six months and a discount offer to upgrade to an annual Pro plan after that.
In other Acast news, the company partnered with podcast network Luminary to expand the reach of selected Luminary Original podcasts. Under the agreement, five shows — including Joking Not Joking with Mo Amer and Azhar Usman and How I Masaba with Masaba Gupta — will be made available to listeners across all platforms via Acast. Additionally, Acast will serve as Luminary’s exclusive monetization partner for these podcasts across all platforms. Luminary will also utilize Acasts’s recently launched Acast+ Access capability to allow listeners to access exclusive content on the listening app of their choice.
ASM Global will operate the new, 185,000-square-foot Henrico Sports & Events Center slated to open at Virginia Center Common in Glen Allen, Va. in October. The Henrico Sports & Entertainment Authority board of directors, which oversees the center, approved an initial five-year contract in July, with the option to extend it annually for up to five additional years. Under the deal, ASM Global will provide staff and oversee the venue’s day-to-day affairs, including managing the box office, contracting with vendors, handling maintenance, event management, food and beverage concessions and licensing and permits. The Henrico Sports & Entertainment Authority will continue leading on scheduling to make sure the venue, which boasts a capacity of 3,500, is available for county events including high school graduations and tournaments. ASM Global will help to fill off-peak times with local programming including sports clinics, leagues and camps.
Also in ASM Global news, the company secured venue operations and management rights for Connect Conference Centre (known as C3 and formerly known as Opportunity Pavilion) in its second Dubai-based deal after the Coca-Cola Arena. Located in Expo City Dubai, C3 will host a number of events for the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) which runs from Nov. 30-Dec. 12.
Lastly at ASM Global, the company renewed its management deal with the 475,000-square-foot Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland for five years. Forthcoming plans at the venue include the creation of a Sky Lounge with a view of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Lake Erie.
Dreamus, a Korean entertainment company and subsidiary of Korean multinational SK Planet that handles distribution and events for K-pop artists including Twice, Psy and MissA, is now using the cryptocurrency and blockchain platform Avalanche. Under the partnership, users of Dreamus’ ticketing app OK Cashbag can now buy Avalanche-backed tickets, allowing Dreamus “to build a ‘Blockchain Ticket Total Solution Service,’” according to a press release. The company will use Avalanche to enable easy digital transactions, get around scalpers, stop secondary market abuse and address issues around counterfeit tickets. Dreamus plans to launch a secondary ticketing marketplace later this year.
House music label Defected Records partnered with demo submission platform LabelRadar, which is under the umbrella of The Beatport Group’s music services division. Under the deal, Defected and its sub-labels (including D4Dance, DFTD, Glitterbox, Big Love, Soulfuric, Nu Groove, Classic, 4TTF, DVINE Sounds, Stay True Sounds and The Remedy Project) will now field demo submissions from artists around the world via LabelRadar’s streamlined process. This marks the first time in Defected’s history that the label has allowed demo submissions.
Amazon Music is the exclusive livestream partner of this year’s Life is Beautiful Music and Art Festival, which returns to Downtown Las Vegas for its 10th anniversary Sept. 22-24. Sponsored by JBL and Boost Infinite, the livestream will be available on Prime Video and the Amazon Music channel on Twitch starting at 5 p.m. PT each day of the festival.
Afterparty, a platform that scales one-to-one fan interactions for creators, has raised $5 million in funding in a round led by Blockchange Ventures with participation from existing investors Acrew Capital, Act One Ventures and Tamarack Global along with new investors Wilson Sonsini and Vinny Lingham. Afterparty will use the funding for product development, including AI voice, photo and video messaging. The new AI platform, dubbed Afterparty AI, will give fans “24/7 on-demand access to conversations with their favorite creator’s AI,” with images and videos created with the platform becoming “one-of-a-kind collectibles unique to each fan who generates them – all of which are verified on the blockchain and can easily be shared on social platforms,” according to a press release. Each interaction and piece of content fans share becomes a “point of access” to exclusive experiences allowing them to connect with creators one-to-one.
Live Music Society, a non-profit that has given over $3 million in grant funding to small venues and listening rooms across the United States since 2020, has partnered with international music residency The House of Songs to reestablish the latter’s presence in Austin. Under the deal, House of Songs — which has brought together artists from over 30 countries for songwriting sessions — will establish a new hub in Austin after pulling out of the city during the pandemic.
Levellr, a company that helps artists use messaging tools like Discord to reach fans, raised a $1 million pre-seed round led by Crush Ventures. The company’s clients include Fred again.., Pink Pantheress, Gorillaz, Swedish House Mafia and Maisie Peters. The money will be used to hire additional employees and grow into new verticals including sports and gaming.
Music rights and metadata management software platform Orfium signed an agreement with Japanese entertainment company Avex to manage its music catalog on YouTube. Under the deal, Orfium will work to maximize the monetization of Avex’s repertoire using its AI-based matching technology.
Music financing service RoyFi teamed with earthprogram, a quasi-record label and provider of business development solutions for the music industry. Under the partnership, artists can apply to access funds directly through RoyFi via the new earthprogram website, allowing a “consistent through line of support and career development from the beginning of consultancy with earthprogram through capital provision and financial literacy education with RoyFi,” according to a press release.
Instrument brand Gibson and its charitable foundation, Gibson Gives, partnered with Purdue Polytechnic Institute’s School of Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) program that will provide experiential learning to students in MET’s guitar lab. Via Gibson Gives, Gibson will gift guitars from its collection to be showcased in the class’ lab; provide direct monetary support to the Purdue guitar lab to ensure it remains operational throughout the year and facilitate the hiring of undergraduate teaching assistants; assist in providing essential lab supplies and materials required to design and manufacture stringed instruments; and provide insights and experiences from Gibson’s trained luthiers and executives throughout the semester. Support will extend at least through the 2023-24 academic year.