Photo Credit: Influence Media Partners
Influence Media Partners scores $360 million in debt financing via an inaugural private securitization collateralized by royalties from its portfolio.
Influence Media Partners — a leading music and entertainment company focused on partnering and investing in top music talent — has secured approximately $360 million in debt financing through an inaugural private securitization.
This securitization is collateralized by music royalties from a portion of its total portfolio. The issuance attracted funding from investors like Nuveen, PPM America, Aflac, Pacific Life, and accounts managed by HPS Investment Partners.
The transaction was led by Goldman Sachs and Truist Securities, acting as Co-Structuring and Joint Placement Agents, as well as BlackRock as a Joint Placement Agent. Lynn Hazan, co-managing partner at Influence Media, oversaw this effort on behalf of the company. Prior to joining Influence, Hazan spent over 20 years as part of the C-Suite of Sony Music as GM and CFO.
Attorneys who advised Influence Media in the transaction include Latham & Watkins serving as Securitization Counsel, Schulte Roth & Zabel (SRZ) as Corporate Counsel, and Alter, Kendrick & Baron (AKB) as Music Counsel.
“Securing this funding is a testament to Influence’s thoughtful, disciplined and highly strategic vision that prioritizes artist partnership and strong collaboration. Our strategy has allowed us to amass an exceptional roster of catalogs and artist partners who are the heartbeat of Influence Media,” said Lynn Hazan.
“This new round of financing will enable us to continue expanding our portfolio, unlock new opportunities, and join forces with even more incredible talent. We are grateful to our partners at Goldman, Truist, and BlackRock for their relentless commitment to this accomplishment.”
“BlackRock was thrilled to partner with Influence as both a long-term investor and placement agent in this transaction. We continue to be impressed by the team’s financial discipline and underwriting. Additionally, the high-quality roster of institutional investors in this deal is a testament to the strength of the platform that Lylette, Lynn, and Rene have built,” said Hilary Thorndike, Managing Director at BlackRock.
Founded in 2019, Influence Media’s investment strategy is built on “modern evergreens,” songs and diverse artists with a strong potential for long-term impact on pop culture. Leveraging strategic relationships with funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and Warner Music Group, among others, Influence has invested in over 30 catalogs from a range of successful cross-genre artists and songwriters. Influence’s innovative partnership with Enrique Iglesias marked the company’s first ever NIL deal.
The latest round of capital also follows the launch of Influence’s new independent frontline record label, music publishing, and distribution company, SLANG.