MNRK Music Group
Formerly |
|
---|---|
Type | Subsidiary |
Industry |
|
Founded | January 1987 | (as Koch Records)
Founder | Michael Koch |
Headquarters | 200 Varick St., New York City , United States |
Key people | Chris Taylor (President and CEO)[1] |
Products | |
Parent | The Blackstone Group[2] |
Subsidiaries |
|
Website | www |
MNRK Music Group (formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had been acquired by the present-day Entertainment One (eOne) in 2005. In April 2021, after the acquisition of eOne by Hasbro, the company announced that it would sell eOne Music to The Blackstone Group.
It owns the libraries of Artemis Records, Dualtone Records, Death Row Records, and Last Gang Records, as well as the production music company Audio Network and live events company Round Room Entertainment.
History[]
eOne as a whole has its origins in the music distributor Records on Wheels, which was acquired by the Canadian retail chain CD Plus in 2001 to expand its wholesale business.[3] Darren Throop joined the company after CD Plus acquired his record store chain Urban Sound Exchange. The combined company later became known as ROW Entertainment, with Throop as president and CEO.[4][5] In June 2005, ROW acquired the American independent music distributor and home entertainment publisher Koch Entertainment, including its label Koch Records.[6][5] Koch was renamed E1 Music in 2009.[7] It acquired IndieBlu Music, parent of Artemis Records and V2 Records North America, in 2010.[8]
In 2013, eOne acquired the library of defunct hip-hop label Death Row Records.[9] In January 2016, eOne acquired Dualtone Records.[10] In March 2016, eOne acquired Canadian label Last Gang Records, and hired its founder, music industry lawyer Chris Taylor, as global president of eOne Music.[1][9]
In 2016, eOne acquired the management firms Hardlivings and Nerve Artist Management.[11][12] In November 2016, eOne Music hired Ted May, the former senior international marketing managing of Universal Music UK, as director for its UK division, operating from eOne's offices in London.[13] In March 2018, eOne Music acquired the live event production company Round Room Entertainment.[14]
In April 2019 eOne purchased the British music production library Audio Network for $215 million.[15][16] In 2019, Amelia Artists partnered with eOne's management division.[17] Later in 2019, eOne partnered with the Latin management and marketing group Entotal.[18] In November 2020, it signed AMPED Distribution as its new physical distributor in North America.[19]
In April 2021, following the acquisition of its parent company by toy and entertainment company Hasbro,[20] eOne announced that it would divest its music business to the private equity firm The Blackstone Group for $385 million, in order to focus more on its film and television entertainment businesses.[21] The sale was completed in June, and the unit continued to use the eOne branding until September 2021;[2] when the company was subsequently renamed MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch").[22]
On February 9, 2022, MNRK sold the rights to the Death Row Records brand (but not its catalog) to rapper Snoop Dogg.[23]
See also[]
- List of MNRK Music Group artists (list includes artists signed to or distributed by Koch)
- MNRK Music Group discography
References[]
- ^ a b "Chris Taylor Joins Entertainment One to Lead Music Business as President, Entertainment One Music". Entertainment One. March 8, 2016. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2016.
- ^ a b Vlessing, Etan (June 29, 2021). "Hasbro Closes eOne Music Business Sale for $385M". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ "CD Plus links up with Records On Wheels". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ "From Barrington Street record dealer to international deal broker".
- ^ a b "How the CEO of Canada's eOne built a global entertainment giant". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ "CIMA: ROW Entertainment Buys KOCH Entertainment". Canadian Independent Music Association. Archived from the original on March 23, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
- ^ "Koch Renamed E1". Home Media Magazine. January 30, 2009. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
- ^ Chris Walsh (April 29, 2010). "E1 Acquires IndieBlu". Billboard. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
- ^ a b "'We're very well-funded - and we're looking at everything out there'". Music Business Worldwide. June 15, 2017. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
- ^ Jones, Rhian (January 21, 2016). "Entertainment One acquires Nashville's Dualtone Music Group". Music Business Worldwide. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
- ^ Jones, Rhian (September 8, 2016). "ENTERTAINMENT ONE MUSIC ADDS HARDLIVINGS MANAGEMENT TO ROSTER". Music Business Worldwide. Music Business Worldwide. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
- ^ "ENTERTAINMENT ONE ATTRACTS NERVE TO ITS ARTIST MANAGEMENT DIVISION". Music Business Worldwide. Music Business Worldwide. November 1, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
- ^ "HITS Daily Double : Rumor Mill - TED MAY JOINS eONE ONE TO LEAD U.K. OPS". HITS Daily Double. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
- ^ Newman, Melinda (March 26, 2018). "Entertainment One Acquires Round Room Entertainment: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
{{cite magazine}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Vlessing, Etan (April 11, 2019). "Entertainment One Acquires U.K.-Based Audio Network for $215M". The Hollywood Reporter. The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
- ^ DiGiacomo, Frank (March 13, 2020). "eOne Music's Chris Taylor On New Owner Hasbro, Rapid Expansion and Why They Won't Sell Death Row". Billboard. Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2020.
- ^ "Amelia Artists, Management Home to Tegan and Sara, Links With eOne". Variety. Variety. August 2, 2019. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
- ^ "Entertainment One Teams With Latin Music Management Company Entotal". Variety. Variety. December 10, 2019. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
- ^ "AMPED inks North American physical distribution deal with Entertainment One". Music Business Worldwide. November 3, 2020. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
- ^ Leight, Elias (August 23, 2019). "A Toy Company Now Owns Death Row Records". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- ^ Turner, Nick; Shaw, Lucas (April 26, 2021). "Hasbro to Sell EOne Music Unit to Blackstone for $385 Million". BNN Bloomberg. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
- ^ DiGiacomo, Frank (September 27, 2021). "eOne Music Is Now MNRK Music Group; Chris Taylor Remains President/CEO". Billboard. Retrieved January 10, 2022.
- ^ Tapp, Tom (February 9, 2022). "Snoop Dogg Buys Death Row Records Brand Just Days Before Super Bowl Halftime Showcase". Deadline. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
External links[]
- MNRK Music Group
- The Blackstone Group companies
- American independent record labels
- Smooth jazz record labels
- Jazz record labels
- 2021 mergers and acquisitions