A live performance from jazz guitarist Mike Stern, who released an album entitled Echoes and Other Songs via Mack Avenue in September 2024. Photo Credit: Tore Sætre
Exceleration Music has acquired Mack Avenue Music Group, including the 26-year-old jazz label group’s extensive catalog and active roster.
Exceleration formally announced that deal today, following its 2021 relaunch of jazz label Candid Records. Under the Exceleration banner, Candid has made its catalog available via streaming services, put out several reissues, and released new recordings from acts such as Eliane Elias.
Now, those operations are set to expand with the addition of Gretchen Carhartt Valade-founded Mack Avenue, which itself owns Rendezvous Music, Artistry Music, MaxJazz, Brother Mister Productions, and Strata-East Records.
(Described as a key proponent and backer of Detroit jazz by local reports, Valade, the granddaughter of workwear brand Carhartt’s founder, passed away in late 2022 at the age of 97.)
Per the purchasing party, Mack Avenue “will be integrated” into Candid to create “Exceleration’s overall jazz group.” And as part of the reorganization, Mack Avenue’s president of over 23 years, Denny Stilwell, is poised to lead the newly minted unit.
Also part of the team are “other key executives” from Candid as well as Mack Avenue, per Exceleration, which opted against diving into the personnel particulars here.
But the Redeye Worldwide parent did emphasize plans “to leverage its robust distribution, marketing, and technological resources” in an effort to bolster Mack Avenue’s “global impact.”
“We’re thrilled to welcome Denny, his team, and the incredible Mack Avenue artist roster into the Exceleration family,” added Exceleration partner and co-founder John Burk.
“The combining of Mack Avenue and Candid Records represents an important step in our mission to build the ultimate independent label home for today’s greatest jazz artists,” Burk proceeded. “Together, we will continue to honor the labels’ remarkable heritages while providing the resources and expertise to help our artists reach new heights.”
Though recent years’ acquisition explosion (extending to both song rights and entire companies) hasn’t delivered an abundance of deals specifically in the jazz arena, the genre isn’t without high-profile transactions.
That includes Reservoir Media’s February 2023 catalog agreement with Sonny Rollins, to name one major example.
In the bigger picture, despite the many already-wrapped IP acquisitions, catalog funding announcements and sales, as compiled by DMN Pro’s one-stop Music IP Acquisition Tracker, seem to be off to a strong enough start in 2025.
Technically, that start refers to just a handful of purchases, among them Warner Music’s buyout of the DWA and Extravaganza catalogs as well as the mentioned Reservoir’s deal for Lastrada Entertainment’s publishing.
However, Influence Media Partners this week scored $360 million in debt financing via its inaugural royalties securitization, and Warner Bros. Discovery (which had reportedly been exploring a possible music-IP sale for years) today unveiled a catalog JV with Cutting Edge.