Primary Wave Acquires Kobalt Music Group in Major Publishing Industry Deal

Primary Wave announced Monday it is acquiring Kobalt's worldwide operations, its catalog of owned copyrights, and digital collection company AMRA, a transaction that reshapes the independent publishing landscape and plants a direct challenge to the major label conglomerates that have long dominated the business.

Neither Kobalt nor Primary Wave disclosed financial details of the acquisition, though Billboard previously reported that the deal could be worth as much as $1.5 billion. With Primary Wave valued in the region of $6 billion, the consolidated company could control assets exceeding $7 billion, according to Billboard estimates.

Francisco Partners acquired around 90% of Kobalt in 2022 in a deal that reportedly valued Kobalt at $750 million. Under Francisco Partners' ownership, Kobalt grew revenue to $794.4 million in the year ending June 2024, and launched a $700 million-plus rights acquisition joint venture with Morgan Stanley. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC served as financial advisor.

The deal brings together Kobalt, which typically accounts for about 35% of the top songs and albums each year in the U.S. and UK, and Primary Wave, a 20-year-old firm whose clients include Bob Marley, Prince, Stevie Nicks, James Brown, The Doors and many more. Kobalt's roster includes Roddy Ricch, Max Martin, Karol G, Andrew Watt, Phoebe Bridgers, The Lumineers, Gunna, Justin Quiles, Foo Fighters and Paul McCartney.

Primary Wave CEO and founder Larry Mestel pointed to his longstanding relationship with Kobalt's leadership as central to the deal. "Over the many years Laurent and I have known each other I have always been impressed by the remarkable team he has built, as well as the extraordinary growth Kobalt has experienced under his leadership," said Mestel, adding the acquisition would "provide a very significant amount of capital to Kobalt for continued growth."

The agreement will see Kobalt, under the continued leadership of Laurent Hubert and its current management team, remain a separate, stand-alone entity. Kobalt CEO Hubert said: "Primary Wave understands our vision of independence and the importance of our 'creator first' mindset driven by service, technology, and creativity."

Upon the close of the deal, Kobalt founder Willard Ahdritz will step down from his role as Chairman of the Board. Ahdritz reflected that he founded Kobalt 25 years ago with "a clear vision: creators deserved better," and that the company succeeded in "empowering songwriters and creators to retain their rights, and helping establish music royalties as a recognized asset class along the way."

The operational implications of the deal are significant. Primary Wave had been dependent on other publishing administration platforms for its collections, with many of its music publishing acquisitions tied up in publishing administration deals. Owning Kobalt would give Primary Wave its own publishing administration platform and AMRA, the global music collection organization that collects mechanical and performance royalties directly from digital service providers, cutting out fees paid to local collection societies and sub-publishers and improving profitability for Primary Wave's publishing assets.

Brookfield and Primary Wave have been partners since 2022, when Brookfield struck a $2 billion deal with Primary Wave to fund music rights acquisitions. Brookfield, as a strategic partner with Primary Wave, is making a new investment as part of the transaction.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in Q3 2026. The deal lands amid a wave of independent music company consolidation, with BMG also reported to be in discussions to acquire Concord in a separate transaction valued at up to $7 billion.