Private equity group KKR is considering getting out of the catalog business, according to a report in the Financial Times.

KKR has hired Raine Group to evaluate options for its music assets: A block of 62k songs purchased in October 2021 for $1.1b, the FT reports. KKR, which once helped bankroll BMG, jumped into the sector by buying a majority stake in the catalog of Ryan Tedder; the catalog now includes hits by Lorde and The Weeknd and songs by ZZ Top and John Legend. KKR has not bought any music assets for at least a year.

The executive behind KKR’s leap into music push, Nat Zilkha, left the company at the end of 2021 and has remained an adviser.

With money becoming more expensive due to higher interest rates, music publishing royalties have become less attractive to investors. Has the tide turned on buying song catalogs turned? Stay tuned.

scoop: KKR has hired Raine to evaluate options for the music it bought just a few years ago.
KKR in 2021 paid $1.1bn for a catalogue of 60k+ songs, when music valuations were at historic highs & interest rates were low.
w/ @EricGPlatt
https://t.co/73gGObXsDT
— Anna Nicolaou (@annaknicolaou) December 12, 2023