Universal Music Group to Acquire Indie Label Group [PIAS]

The founders of indie label group [PIAS] have announced they are selling the remaining shares they hold in the company to Universal Music Group (UMG), making the music giant the firm’s majority shareholder.

In an announcement on Tuesday (Oct. 15), Kenny Gates said he and his [PIAS] co-founder Michel Lambot were selling their shares to UMG, which acquired a 49% stake in the company in 2022, to “allow us to offer a truly global distribution and services platform to the independent music community.”

Financial terms were not revealed for the deal, which expands upon a strategic global partnership between the two companies that began in 2021. When UMG acquired the 49% stake in [PIAS] for an undisclosed sum the following year, Gates and Lambot retained majority control of the company.

Ownership of [PIAS] now appears to be fully in the hands of UMG, although representatives of the European indie label group and UMG declined to expand upon the information contained in Tuesday’s press release.

Details that have been confirmed as part of the new arrangement include the merger of Virgin Music Group and [PIAS]’s services division [Integral], which provides physical and digital distribution services to more than 100 indie label partners including ATO, Beggars Group and Secretly Group. 

The newly combined teams will provide “independent entrepreneurs with world class services and access to a bespoke, stand-alone international distribution network,” said [PIAS]. Reps for the firm and UMG declined to comment when asked if the merger would result in any job losses.

The [PIAS] Label Group, which includes the indie labels Play It Again Sam, harmonia mundi, Spinefarm, Source and partner imprints such as ATO, Heavenly, Mute and Transgressive, will remain completely autonomous, said the company. Artists signed to or distributed by those labels include Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Kneecap, Sofiane Pamart, Sleep Token, Arlo Parks and Black Pumas.

“I am selling my shares not my soul,” said Gates, who will remain CEO of [PIAS] and sit on the Virgin Music Group main board and advisory group, in a statement. 

“Since agreeing [to] a strategic alliance with UMG in 2021 we have found them to be supportive and engaged partners who have added real value to our offering,” continued Gates, describing the decision to relinquish the founders’ remaining shareholdings in [PIAS] as a “pragmatic one.”

The company’s existing leadership team will continue to steer day-to-day operations “and nothing will change culturally or commercially for our existing clients and partners,” said Gates, who co-founded [PIAS] with Lambot in Brussels, Belgium, in 1983. 

Lambot said that despite initially having “some concerns” about partnering with UMG in 2021, the experience has surpassed his expectations.

“Our relationship to date has been fruitful, convivial and everything we hoped it would it be,” he said. “This new phase, which will see us working even closer together promises to be an exciting new era for [PIAS], our staff, our partners and the artists we represent.”

“I’ve known Kenny and Michel for decades, beginning in the 80s when we were all signing bands from emerging scenes in Europe,” added Lucian Grainge, chairman/CEO of UMG, in a statement.

“Since that time, Kenny and Michel have built [PIAS] into a company that stands for authenticity and the best in independent music,” Grainge added. “And it is those qualities that are not only important to me personally but that also make [PIAS] a perfect fit for UMG’s entrepreneurial and creative culture.”

“We are delighted by all that’s been accomplished over the past three years together, and we look forward to working with Kenny and Michel and their entire team, including their family of artists and labels, to further build [PIAS]’s legacy,” said UMG executive vp/CFO/president of operations Boyd Muir. “Their experience and insights have significantly helped to grow this dynamic area of our business. Completing the acquisition of [PIAS] Label Group and [Integral] reinforces our best-in-class label services operations and enhances our ability to support the independent artist and label community globally.”