Big Loud has strategically divested a minority stake in Morgan Wallen‘s recording catalog to Chord Music Partners, marking a significant development in the music industry, as confirmed by Billboard.
According to a representative from Big Loud, “Big Loud has sold a minority stake in Morgan Wallen’s master recording catalog to Chord Music Partners, as part of a strategic investment aimed at expanding the label’s global footprint and fueling long-term artist development.” This deal exemplifies a collaborative effort, executed with the backing of the internal team at Big Loud alongside partners from Chord Music, Republic Records, UMG, PLUS Capital, Eisner, Loeb & Loeb, DLA Piper, Dickinson Wright, and Armanino.
As reported first by The Hollywood Reporter, the estimated purchase price for this significant catalog stake is around $200 million, highlighting the value and potential of Morgan Wallen’s music in today’s market.
Established in 2021, Chord Music Partners was created through a partnership between KKR and Dundee Partners. In February 2024, Universal Music Group (UMG) acquired a 25.8% interest in the company, while simultaneously assuming distribution and publishing administration responsibilities for Chord’s extensive catalog via Virgin Music Group and Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG). Following this transaction, KKR stepped away from Chord, allowing Dundee to increase its ownership stake to 74.2%. Additionally, last March, Big Loud entered into a multi-year distribution agreement with UMG’s Mercury Records and Republic for all future releases.
Representatives from both UMG and Chord Music Partners did not provide immediate comments when approached by Billboard for additional information regarding this deal.
At the time of the UMG acquisition, Chord owned a remarkable portfolio of over 60,000 copyrights, which included notable tracks such as “Dreams” and “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac, “La Grange” by ZZ Top, “Counting Stars” and “Apologize” by OneRepublic, “Redbone” by Childish Gambino, “I Like Me Better” by Lauv, “Pursuit of Happiness” by Kid Cudi, “All Of Me” by John Legend, “Girls Like You” and “Sugar” by Maroon 5, “Halo” by Beyonce, and “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri.
