A new music investment fund with deep-pocketed backers has made itself known.
Raven Music Partners has launched with what MBW understands to be an initial investment of USD $250 million to acquire music rights. The fund’s longer-term goal is to own $1 billion worth of music-related copyrights.
The fund is a joint venture between Raven Capital Management and Aquarian Holdings. The latter firm is an investment company founded by ex-Guggenheim Partners executive Rudy Sahay with $22 billion in assets under management.
Commenting on Aquarian’s expansion in the music M&A space, Sahay explained in a statement today (March 5) that his company “recognized a compelling opportunity in a crowded music royalties’ sector, attracted by the predictable cash flow and the uncorrelated nature of music rights to broader macroeconomic trends”.
Raven Music Partners will operate out of offices in New York, Los Angeles, and South Florida.
According to the official announcement, the new venture plans to “collaborate with independent artists, songwriters, and labels, providing opportunities to expand their reach and influence across audiences”.
Aquarian will serve as the “anchor” investor in Raven Music Partners’ investment strategy, which is backed by an initial catalog of nearly 15,000 music copyrights across country, rock, pop, and Christian music genres, including interests in hit songs such as Whiskey Glasses by Morgan Wallen, All About That Bass by Meghan Trainor, and Say You Won’t Let Go by James Arthur.
Raven Capital, an alternative investment manager with $2 billion in assets under management, is, according to the announcement, best known for its investments “in the intellectual property, credit, and real estate sectors”.
The company’s Co-Founder, Principal, and Portfolio Manager is Jeremy Tucker, who also serves as Chairman of Nashville-based music publisher Endurance Music Group.
We’ve written about Endurance before, in 2022, when it acquired a catalog of country hits written by Jimmie Allen, Ash Bowers and Trent Tomlinson during the trio’s term as Wide Open Music songwriters.
The acquisition served as a follow-on investment to EMG’s purchase of Wide Open Music in 2020.
Endurance Music Group will serve as the affiliate administrator and “on-the-ground presence” in Nashville for the new Raven Music Partners JV.
Raven says that Endurance will provide “active catalog management and adds differentiated sourcing capabilities” for the new venture.
DLA Piper served as legal advisor to Aquarian in connection with the transaction. Winston & Strawn LLP served as legal advisor to Raven Capital in connection with the transaction.
“This investment from Aquarian supports our commitment to serve as trusted stewards of music intellectual property, allowing us to be the buyer of choice for many songwriters and artists.”
Jeremy Tucker, Raven Capital
“This investment from Aquarian supports our commitment to serve as trusted stewards of music intellectual property, allowing us to be the buyer of choice for many songwriters and artists,” said Jeremy Tucker, Founder and Managing Member, Raven Music Partners.
Rudy Sahay, Founder and Managing Partner of Aquarian Holdings, said: “Aquarian is particularly drawn to Raven Music Partners for its disciplined investment approach, differentiated sourcing capabilities, and extensive relationship base within Nashville and the broader music ecosystem.”
“We view music and entertainment royalties as an attractive space to generate long-term, stable returns with meaningful upside potential.”
Rudy Sahay, Aquarian Holdings
Added Sahay: “We view music and entertainment royalties as an attractive space to generate long-term, stable returns with meaningful upside potential.
“We are excited to partner with Raven Music Partners, who has demonstrated a thoughtful approach to the monetization and appreciation of music royalties as well as a commitment to supporting independent artists.”Music Business Worldwide
Article by:Source:
