The Deals: The Spinners Jump Into Reservoir; Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Sells Music Catalog Stake

Reservoir Media acquired the catalogs of four of the founding members of the R&B and pop vocal group The Spinners. The deal includes the master royalty income streams for Henry Fambrough as well as the estates of late members Billie Henderson, Pervis Jackson and Bobbie Smith. Formed in 1954, the group earned a total of six Grammy nominations, 30 Billboard Hot 100 hits and 40 placements on Billboard‘s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, including six No. 1s; their biggest hits include “It’s a Shame,” “I’ll Be Around” and “Could It Be I’m Falling In Love.” The group is slated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November.

Multimedia Music acquired a 50% stake in a catalog of music publishing and music master rights from the film music library of Steven Spielberg‘s Amblin Partners, including for films including 1917, Green Book, The BFG, Bridge of Spies, The Post, Office Christmas Party, Thank You For Your Service and The Girl on the Train, featuring music from composers such as John Williams, Thomas Newman, Danny Elfman, Alexandre Desplat, Rachel Portman, Mark Isham and Rob Simonsen. Under the deal, Multimedia Music and Amblin will “pursue new initiatives to increase value by maximizing income collections and sourcing new uses for the catalog in commercials, trailers and television shows,” according to a press release. Multimedia Music was represented in the transaction by Selverne Kelley Bradford and DLA Piper.

The estate of Joe Cocker partnered with Irving Azoff‘s Iconic Artists Group to “acquire, develop and expand” the singer’s “rich musical legacy to new generations,” according to a press release. Cocker’s output includes his cover of The Beatles‘ “With a Little Help From My Friends,” his cover of Billy Preston‘s “You Are So Beautiful” and “Up Where We Belong,” his duet with Jennifer Warnes that hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in November 1982 and also won him a Grammy.

Warner Music Group (WMG) and Polygon Labs announced the launch of a music accelerator program aimed at empowering “the next generation of innovation” at the crossover between Web3 and music by supporting developers launching music-related projects and dApps on the Polygon network, according to a press release. “Ideal applicants” include companies and entrepreneurs whose focus includes areas like “fostering artist-fan communities, establishing decentralized music production and distribution systems, innovating ticketing solutions, exploring music-related merchandise and digital/physical collectibles and integrating music with interactive technology and gaming” the release adds, while noting that “the most competitive candidates will actively engage with or implement their concepts on the Polygon blockchain protocols.” Selected projects will receive funding from both WMG and Polygon Labs and be eligible for support including mentorship, networking and marketing and promotion. Applications, which can be submitted here, will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Downtown Neighboring Rights announced a partnership with the estates of Meat Loaf and Miles Davis. Under the deal, Downtown Neighboring Rights will represent Meat Loaf’s entire catalog, while the Miles Davis deal will cover recordings from his 50-plus-year career. Meanwhile, the company announced the launch of its new royalties and rights management platform, powered by FUGA technology, which enables the maximizing of incomes from clients’ repertoire and offers features across catalog management, metadata enrichment, CMO deliveries and more.

Armada Music’s recently-launched BEAT Music Fund, which is focused on acquiring rights in the dance music industry, acquired King Street Sounds as well as the master and publishing catalog of dance duo Chocolate Puma’s René ter Horst and Gaston Steenkist. The deal follows BEAT’s recent acquisitions of KMS Records’ master recording catalog and ARTY’s master and publishing catalog. King Street Sounds represents artists including Dennis Ferrer, Kerri Chandler, Louie Vega and Blaze; under the deal, BEAT will look to “reinvigorate” the catalog by “optimizing” and promoting it, according to a press release. King Street will continue to release new music and operate as a sub-label under Armada Music, with King Street founder/owner Hisa Ishioka remaining at the helm as an A&R consultant. BEAT’s Chocolate Puma acquisition also includes the 1991-2011 releases of René et Gaston, Klatsch, Jark Prongo and Riva.

Notes Live signed a 10-year deal with AEG Presents for the upcoming $55 million outdoor music coliseum Sunset Amphitheater in Colorado Springs, Colo. Under the deal, the venue will present roughly 40 concerts a year in the 8,000-capacity venue, which is located in the Polaris Pointe development. AEG Presents will exclusively book the acts and run day-to-day operations at the venue, which will continue to be owned by Notes Live. The Sunset Amphitheater is slated to open next year.

Music funding platform RoyFi and found.ee, Downtown’s digital marketing and advertising platform, unveiled “Market to Recoup,” a new partnership that will provide access to advance recoupment for artists “at an accelerated pace,” according to a press release. The initiative gives RoyFi creators access to nearly 10% back from every dollar spent on found.ee advertising, allowing their advances to recoup at a quicker speed by automatically accounting their found.ee advertising toward what they owe. RoyFi creators can use found.ee’s self-service marketing platform and live reporting dashboard to receive full transparency over their own first-party data and access to digital marketing tools including tailored interactive ads, customizable landing pages and remarketing capabilities. They will additionally be able to use found.ee to reach more fans in a more economical manner via interactive HTML5 ad units and connected TV pre-roll video ads.

Interscope Geffen A&M Records announced a strategic partnership with Josh Marshall‘s record label, Mogul Vision. The first music to be released under the deal is the debut EP from singer-songwriter gigi, How to Catch a Falling Knife. Marshall has also signed rapper Rubi Rose, who is expected to release new music later this summer.

Singer Rosanne Cash and producer John Leventhal formed the record label Rumblestrip Records and partnered with Thirty Tigers for distribution. The label will be home to special projects, archives and reissues, including the first vinyl pressing of Cash’s album The Wheel, remastered for its 30th anniversary; the label will also look to sign “unknown or undervalued artists,” according to a press release. Cash’s longstanding partnership with Blue Note Records will remain intact for her upcoming solo releases.

Audacy announced a “strategic content distribution and monetization partnership” with radio aggregator TuneIn, allowing the second-biggest broadcast company to stream its 250-plus radio stations and podcasts to 200 platforms, including Tesla, Bose and Xbox, plus the TuneIn app and website. – Steve Knopper

Seat Unique, an online marketplace for premium tickets to live events, raised a 7 million pound ($8.83 million) Series A round led by London-based Nickleby Capital, with participation from existing investors including Richard Flint and Simon Murphy. The funding round comes on the heels of ticket sales on the platform surpassing 30 million pounds ($37.86 million) and partnerships with over 40 venues, clubs and promoters in the United Kingdom. The money will be used to enhance Seat Unique’s product offering, expand its reach into new sectors and markets and expand and strengthen its partnerships with event organizers and venues.

DJ/producer AC Slater is bringing his record label, Night Bass, to Create Music Group. The first release under the deal is Slater’s third studio album, Together, which is slated to drop on June 16. “We are thrilled to deepen our relationship with AC as we work to expand the global audience for him and all of the artists on Night Bass,” said Create Music Group senior vp of global corporate development and M&A Eric Nguyen in a statement.

AI-powered music tagging and search company Cyanite partnered with Pond5, a marketplace for royalty-free stock videos, music tracks, sound effects, images and more. Under the deal, Cyanite will use its AI technology to improve tagging of Pond5’s catalog and “enrich existing metadata with a more consistent and objective music language in order to improve search recall and relevance,” according to a press release.