Armada Music catalog fund BEAT has announced the acquisition of King Street Sounds and the Chocolate Puma catalogue. Photo credit: Matty Adame
A little over two months after launching the BEAT Music Fund, billed as the “first-ever dance music investment company,” the company announced the acquisition of the King Street Sounds label and catalog from DJ and production duo Chocolate Puma.
Armada Music’s BEAT, which stands for Best Ever Acquired Tracks, emailed Digital Music News today about its purchases, exact financial terms of which have not been publicly disclosed. However, BEAT is expected to spend a total of $100 million on music IP over the next two years, the company announced in April.
Additionally, the acquisitions are the latest in a series of recent intellectual property acquisitions that have been shown to continue to be completed for the foreseeable future. Of course, the Pinnacle Financial Partners-backed BEAT launched with a plan to provide $500 million, and according to executives, the EDM-focused operation aims to “announce at least one new deal every month this year.”
As previously mentioned, the first of these tracks in June will feature the entirety of New York dance label King Street Sounds. King Street Sounds was founded by Hisa Ishioka and is wholly owned by Hisa Ishioka. The company operates (in addition to the eponymous label) Nite Grooves and Street King with an artist roster including: Kerry Chandler, Louie VegaAnd Groove Assassinto name just a few.
Described as “BEAT’s largest acquisition since inception,” the King Street purchase extends to the decades-old label’s “past and current catalog of master recordings and publisher catalogue,” officials have clarified. In the meantime, BEAT will seek to “revitalize the catalog through optimization and promotion,” the parties said.
Going forward, King Street Sounds is poised to release new music while also serving as a sub-label of Armin van Buuren’s Armada Music, with Ishioka staying on board as A&R consultant.
“We are excited about this alliance between King Street Sounds and Armada Music,” Ishioka shared in part. “For over 30 years we have been passionate about bringing people the best house music. With this new partnership, we look forward to our continued growth and to seeing this great dance music alive and thriving.”
As part of the aforementioned Chocolate Puma catalog deal, members of the Netherlands-based duo, René ter Horst and Gaston Steenkist, have sold their releases and masters – with the transaction specifically covering their releases from 1991 to 2011. These works include “i wanna be you” “give it up,” And “who do you love now?
“It’s clear that Maykel has a genuine love for our music and is genuinely passionate about giving our creations the attention they deserve,” shared ter Horst and Steenkist, who have released music under different names. “It is with confidence and confidence that we give BEAT responsibility for our musical legacy. We are excited about this new chapter.”
Finally, in his own remarks, Maykel Piron, CEO of BEAT and Armada Music, described the acquisitions as “a big step” for the former company.
“The partnership with King Street Sounds and Chocolate Puma is a big step for BEAT as we seek to nurture and grow the most respected catalogs in dance music,” Piron explained in part. “We look forward to working with Hisa, René and Gaston to represent their heritage in dance music and to the extensive opportunities these partnerships bring to BEAT, Armada and these iconic catalogues.”