BMG Rights Management and Concord have announced a definitive agreement to combine their businesses. Going forward, the two publishers will operate under the BMG name, with the publishing division named BMG Publishing and its recorded music division called Concord Records — although Concord Theatricals, the company’s theatrical licensing arm, will maintain its own branding.
Concord CEO Bob Valentine has been designated the CEO of the combined company. BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld has been designated the chairperson of the combined company, and will also take over as CEO of Bertelsmann, of which BMG is a subsidiary, as of Jan. 1, 2027. A joint management team will be drawn from both companies. The combined company, of which approximately 67 percent will be owned by Bertelsmann and approximately 33 percent by affiliates of Great Mountain Partners, will have its global headquarters in Nashville with a European headquarters in Berlin. Great Mountain Partners affiliates will also receive a one-time cash payment of $1.16 billion.
Founded in 2008, BMG’s portfolio includes over three million songs and recordings, including the work of artists like Tina Turner, will.i.am, Jason Aldean, Jelly Roll and Paul Simon. Concord supports over 125,000 artists, with a catalog of over 1.3 million works, including numerous plays and musicals available for licensing to Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional and amateur productions alike.
The merger is still subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals. It is expected to close in the latter half of 2026. Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as legal counsel to BMG, with J.P. Morgan serving as financial advisor and Latham and Watkins LLP and Reed Smith LLP serving as legal counsel to Concord. Alston & Bird LLP is advising Great Mountain Partners.
BMG and Concord intend to form a fully integrated, globally scaled company that will offer services in music publishing, recorded music, theatrical rights and digital division to artists, songwriters and partners worldwide. The combined company has announced its mid-term aim to achieve $1.2 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), building from a pro forma EBITDA base of over $730 million in 2026.
In a statement, Valentine said, “We are excited to begin working together to build something truly exceptional. Both companies were founded to support great artistry and with a deep sense of responsibility to the performers, songwriters and playwrights we serve. We share a philosophy grounded in artist development, strategic longterm management of IP and operational discipline. Our greater scale will allow us to invest more in creative talent, global reach, accretive acquisition opportunities and technology, while preserving the nimble, entrepreneurial spirit that artists and songwriters value most. This is not about replicating the major label model; it’s about using scale to strengthen independence.”
Coesfeld added, “We believe this is a truly one-of-a-kind opportunity to bring together two world-class teams and rosters at the right moment, as scale in rights ownership becomes increasingly critical to long-term growth. This transaction accelerates our successful BMG Next strategy by enabling a more ambitious and sustained approach to investing in artists and songwriters, as well as in rights, technology, AI tools and the talent shaping the industry. As one unified business, we will further deepen our position as a preferred global partner to artists, songwriters and platforms, combining scale with the agility and independence they value.”
