Warner Music buys Bruno Mars, Adele songs in $450 million deal

Warner Music Group has acquired a controlling stake in Tempo Music, the owner of a catalog of song rights spanning recordings by Bruno Mars, Adele and Wiz Khalifa.

The deal values Tempo at $450 million, according to a person familiar with the matter. Warner is buying the stake from private equity firm Providence Equity Partners with cash and by assuming Tempo’s debt, said the person, who asked not to be named discussing confidential terms.

Warner helped form Tempo with Providence back in 2019 as the value of music catalogs was soaring. Tempo then acquired thousands of songs, or in many cases, writers’ share of the rights to a song. The deal adds to a growing race among major music companies to acquire more intellectual property. Sony Group Corp. and Universal Music Group have pursued a similar strategy of acquiring catalogs.

Tempo “has assembled a thoughtful, well-rounded catalog and I’m excited to dig into new opportunities and unlock more value for these songs,” Guy Moot, co-chair and chief executive officer of Warner’s publishing group, said in a statement. Publishers represent songwriters while record labels work with the recording artists.

New York-based Warner Music reports its December-quarter earnings later on Thursday and its shares are up 3.5 per cent this year.