Let me congratulate Don Jazzy and the team at Mavin Global for a great moment as the world’s leading music company, Universal Music Group, acquires a majority stake of Mavin Global with the deal valuing Mavin at close to $200 million.
“Universal Music Group (UMG), the world leader in music-based entertainment, today announced a majority investment in one of the world’s most dynamic and exciting independent record labels, Mavin Global (Mavin). The deal remains subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close by the end of Q3 2024,” UMG said in a statement.
Founder of Mavin Records, Don Jazzy, who will continue to run Mavin, said about the acquisition, “I’m proud of the artists, careers and brand we’ve built that have made Mavin the force it is today. In this historic partnership with UMG, we will continue that mission in Africa and across the globe.”
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Sir Lucian Grainge, Chairman & CEO of Universal Music Group, said, “Our criteria for identifying partners is straightforward: great artists, great entrepreneurs, great people. With Don Jazzy, Tega, the Mavin Global team and their artist roster, we’ve found ideal partners with whom to grow together. Mavin’s brilliant artists have been catalysts in the transformation of Afrobeats into a global phenomenon and we’re thrilled to welcome them into the Universal Music Group family.”
Nigeria is at an inflection point on entrepreneurial capitalism as we’re exporting not just skills (via technical startups) but also talent (via music and movies), and this is just the beginning. Mavin joins ROK which a French giant, Canal+ Group, acquired a few years ago, as some of the major entertainment industry exits in Nigeria.
Congratulations Michael Collins Ajereh, our Umuahia-born music mogul.
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It’s not clear in my head whether to clap or worry, but it’s all good. It also shows that something homegrown can also command better value, so it must not be fintech and its constituents. This should have helped naira to appreciate if news affects our economy, but we must keep believing.
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Good read at Tekedia!
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