Common takes 49% stake in [PIAS]

Enterprise Information Offers Labels & Publishers High Tales

By Chris Cooke | Revealed on Wednesday 30 November 2022

Common Music has taken a 49% stake in [PIAS], a key unbiased music firm which encompasses a community of labels in addition to its distribution and providers division, which rebranded as [Integral] in early 2021.

[PIAS] introduced a strategic partnership with Common in June final yr, underneath which the key would entry the indie’s distribution and label providers experience, whereas [PIAS] would get entry to Common’s sources so “to additional develop its international providing and strengthen its place because the main unbiased providers supplier”.

On the time [PIAS] co-founder Kenny Gates stated: “Virtually 40 years since Michel Lambot and I launched [PIAS] we’re as keen and pushed as we ever had been and stay wholly dedicated to offering unbiased labels and artists with a platform to achieve a worldwide viewers. This new, considerably unconventional, strategic settlement with UMG will assist each corporations maximise the various alternatives we all know can be found, whereas not compromising our independence in any respect”.

Beneath the newest growth of that partnership, Common turns into a major shareholder within the [PIAS] enterprise. Nevertheless, the proudly unbiased music group may be very eager certainly to emphasize that [PIAS] will “stay absolutely unbiased and its founders Kenny Gates and Michel Lambot will retain majority management of the corporate – Common Music Group could have no seats on the corporate’s board”.

On that growth of the partnership, Gates stated this morning: “As of late we’re competing with finance and tech giants, and a accomplice like Common Music Group offers the extra assist for us to compete and develop”.

“Common made it clear that they like us, they belief us and so they want us, as a result of they’ll’t do what we do and so they worth it extremely”, he added. “For Michel and I that is our life’s work and an ongoing journey and I’m excited concerning the prospect of this new chapter within the lifetime of [PIAS]. This transfer makes us stronger and secures the way forward for our model, our employees and our companions whereas sustaining management of our future”.

In the meantime, co-founder Lambot acknowledged: “We now have loved a superb relationship with the Common Music Group workforce since we introduced our strategic international alliance with them final yr. Kenny and I are celebrating our firm’s fortieth anniversary this yr and we’re nonetheless as formidable as we had been once we began out about rising our international presence and offering a world class service to the unbiased music group”.

Talking for the Common aspect of this deal, the mega-major’s boss Lucian Grainge stated: “The boldly unbiased and music-centric tradition that Kenny and Michel have constructed over the past 4 a long time has supplied an important inventive community to so many artists”.

“Whereas a lot of the previous was centered on ‘majors versus indies’, it’s clear that as we speak, the necessary divide in our trade is about these dedicated to artist improvement versus these dedicated to amount over high quality”, he went on. “We share Kenny and Michel’s ardour for creating artists and transferring tradition, and we recognise {that a} wholesome music ecosystem wants corporations like [PIAS] who’re dedicated to amplifying one of the best voices in unbiased music”.