DLA Piper advises Concord in US$850 million Music Securitization

DLA Piper represented Concord, a leading independent music company, in its US$850 million music securitization through an existing asset-backed security (ABS). Proceeds will be used for future catalog acquisitions, repayment of outstanding notes, fund reserve accounts, pay certain transaction expenses, and other general corporate purposes.

The ABS transaction is backed by royalties from Concord’s catalog of over one million compositions, master recordings, and related assets.

Concord is the world’s leading independent music company, supporting more than 125,000 artists and songwriters whose works are licensed, marketed, and performed globally. Concord's growing catalog of songs, compositions, sound recordings, films, plays, and musicals is one of the most impactful and culturally relevant collections of creative rights in history.

“Concord’s third ABS better enables us to continue making meaningful investments in artists and the remarkable art they create. The DLA Piper team’s expertise and support throughout the process was, once again, exemplary. We are extremely pleased with the results and thankful for the ongoing relationship,” said Amanda Molter, Concord General Counsel.

“We are grateful to work with longtime client Concord on structuring this major music securitization, further cementing Concord as a major player in the music industry and DLA Piper’s reputation in the music ABS space,” said Robert Sherman (Los Angeles), co-chair of DLA Piper’s Entertainment Finance practice who co-led the deal team.

The DLA Piper team was co-led by partner Claire Hall (Los Angeles) and included partners Gerald Rokoff (New York) and Mark Friedman (Baltimore); of counsel Greg Young (Los Angeles); and associates John Wei (Boston) and Rachel Lee and Chalize Taghdiz (both in Los Angeles).

DLA Piper's market-leading international team of media, sport and entertainment lawyers, located throughout the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, advises on M&A, finance, borrowing, investment and corporate issues, production and rights acquisitions, exploiting media rights, staging and exploiting live sports and other events, intellectual property protection and enforcement, regulatory and administrative issues, antitrust and competition law, stadium and arena development and on the resolution of disputes.