Songs, Music Publisher of Lorde and Diplo, Bought by Kobalt
- 6 years ago
Songs, Music Publisher of Lorde and Diplo, Bought by Kobalt
In a closely watched music deal, one upstart is buying another for the rights to a catalog
of fresh pop hits like Lorde’s “Royals” and the Weeknd’s “Can’t Feel My Face.”
Songs Music Publishing, a 13-year-old company that has made itself a contender by signing songwriting deals with young hitmakers like Lorde, Diplo, Desiigner
and DJ Mustard, has agreed to sell its assets to Kobalt, which has challenged the major music publishers through aggressive deals with writers.
The results are an extraordinary music publishing company.”
The deal is the latest sign of a frothy market for music rights, as streaming has bolstered the business
and lifted valuations of music catalogs — particularly those for music publishing, the side of the business that deals with songwriting.
Mr. Pincus — whose father was the prominent investment banker Lionel Pincus — started the company
with $5 million of his own money; he eventually raised its capitalization to $20 million
Kobalt acquired Songs through its subsidiary Kobalt Capital, which buys music copyrights on
behalf of investors; last month, Kobalt Capital announced that it had raised $600 million.
In another closely watched process, Carlin America, which contains evergreen hits like “Viva Las Vegas”
and “Fever,” is in the midst of a deal to sell itself for $245 million.
In a closely watched music deal, one upstart is buying another for the rights to a catalog
of fresh pop hits like Lorde’s “Royals” and the Weeknd’s “Can’t Feel My Face.”
Songs Music Publishing, a 13-year-old company that has made itself a contender by signing songwriting deals with young hitmakers like Lorde, Diplo, Desiigner
and DJ Mustard, has agreed to sell its assets to Kobalt, which has challenged the major music publishers through aggressive deals with writers.
The results are an extraordinary music publishing company.”
The deal is the latest sign of a frothy market for music rights, as streaming has bolstered the business
and lifted valuations of music catalogs — particularly those for music publishing, the side of the business that deals with songwriting.
Mr. Pincus — whose father was the prominent investment banker Lionel Pincus — started the company
with $5 million of his own money; he eventually raised its capitalization to $20 million
Kobalt acquired Songs through its subsidiary Kobalt Capital, which buys music copyrights on
behalf of investors; last month, Kobalt Capital announced that it had raised $600 million.
In another closely watched process, Carlin America, which contains evergreen hits like “Viva Las Vegas”
and “Fever,” is in the midst of a deal to sell itself for $245 million.