Cherry Lane is one of the leading independent names in music publishing, representing the likes of Black Eyed Peas, Wolfmother and John Legend, and the catalogues of Elvis, John Denver, The Sex Pistols, Quincy Jones and movie studios like DreamWorks and Lionsgate.
Specifics of the deal are not known, though some speculate BMG, owned by German media giant Bertelsmann and equity types KKR, might have paid up to $100 million for the Cherry Lane business.
Confirming the deal, BMG’s CEO Hartwig Masuch told CMU: “We chose to acquire Cherry Lane given its highly-regarded, service-oriented approach with its artist/songwriter clients, its extensive catalogue of legendary songs, and its breadth of relationships within the music, television, and filmed entertainment communities”.
Cherry Lane’s CEO Peter Primont added: “Having already established itself once as a leader in the music publishing industry over several decades, BMG, via its partnership with KKR, has quickly begun to take on a leadership position again on a global basis. We are excited to be part of the team that will continue to grow the business at this important juncture in music publishing’s evolution”.
As previously reported, there has been speculation that BMG might bid to get some or all of the EMI Music Publishing catalogue should it come up for sale later this year, if and when current owners Terra Firma default on their bank loan to Citigroup. Terra Firma needs to show to the bank this week how it plans to meet its May deadline to pay about £120 million in fees relating to the loan, and it’s thought the likes of BMG and backers KKR will be watching carefully for indications as to whether or not EMI will go under the hammer before the summer.
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