Create Music Group announced the completion of a $450 million funding round, valuing the Los Angeles–based music and media platform at $2.2 billion. The round includes a mix of new equity and debt capital that will support the company’s continued expansion across media, intellectual property, and technology.
The company remains majority-owned by its founders. Institutional investors Ares Management, 2 Mile, and Flexpoint Ford each hold minority stakes. The financing also included expanded bank support, with Truist Securities and Banc of California serving as joint lead arrangers.
The fundraiser follows Create Music Group’s more than $300 million strategic investment in Nettwerk Music Group. The transaction strengthens Create’s portfolio while allowing Nettwerk’s leadership team to increase ownership and maintain the label’s creative independence.
Nettwerk’s roster includes artists such as Sarah McLachlan, Passenger, and Old Crow Medicine Show. The partnership reflects Create’s strategy of supporting culturally influential labels while helping them scale through the company’s platform and resources.
Founded in 2015, Create Music Group has grown into a digitally native music, media, and technology platform that partners with independent labels, artists, and catalog owners. The company combines proprietary technology, data analytics, digital marketing, and capital deployment to operate and scale creative businesses globally.
Over the past year, the company has invested more than $500 million across acquisitions, advances, and other growth initiatives. Create’s portfolio includes labels and catalog businesses that maintain operational autonomy while benefiting from the company’s shared infrastructure and strategic capabilities.
These businesses include broke., a marketing-driven record label focused on artist discovery; Monstercat; !K7 Music; Cr2 Records; and Mau5trap. Together, they illustrate Create’s strategy of partnering with founders while preserving each brand’s creative identity.
The newly raised capital will support acquisitions, strategic investments, technology development, and global expansion as the company continues building a platform for independent music businesses.
KEY QUOTES
“At a time when the future of media, technology, and creative ownership is being rewritten, we’ve become the definitive platform for the music and media industries’ most visionary entrepreneurs. This capital will not only accelerate our roadmap, expanding our footprint in media, IP and technology, but also empower our partners to build generational businesses that redefine culture and value creation across the global entertainment ecosystem.”
Jonathan Strauss, Co-Founder and CEO of Create Music Group
“The music industry is as dynamic as it has ever been, with rapid growth in new consumption channels and means of creation, which is creating vast opportunities for agile, digital-first companies to reshape the status quo. In that context, this fundraise is an exciting milestone for Create and the product of a lot of hard work from our entire team over many years. The newly raised capital will support continued acquisitions, strategic investments, technology development and global expansion – reinforcing Create’s long-term commitment to building the industry-defining platform for the world’s leading music businesses and entrepreneurs.”
Will Smith, Chief Financial Officer of Create Music Group
