Photo Credit: Influence Media Partners
One bidding war later, Influence Media Partners has officially wrapped its more than $600 million deal for “substantially all” the assets of Anthem Entertainment.
BlackRock-backed Influence reached out with word of the massive transaction’s close today, after shedding light on the IP-heavy deal over the summer. All told, the agreement is said to encompass north of 24,000 released songs and another 60,000 or so “additional unexploited works,” per the purchaser.
This includes but certainly isn’t limited to tracks popularized by The Weeknd, Britney Spears, Rush, Timbaland, Chantal Kreviazuk, and Nelly Furtado, to name a few.
Anthem’s extensive country holdings – referring to stakes in the work of Beth and Luke Laird’s Creative Nation, Matt Alderman, Marty Robbins, Mark Holman, Jordan Davis, and Kelly Archer, among many others – are also worth reiterating.
The list is, of course, far from comprehensive, and the multitude of recordings and compositions at hand (besides the above-noted price tag) seems an apt reminder that gargantuan catalog plays are still very much on the table.
While not exactly a revelation – 2026 has delivered blockbuster deals involving the IP of Sia, Miranda Lambert, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Iron Maiden – the fact is significant given the considerable number of already-wrapped investments.
Moreover, as compiled by DMN Pro’s Music IP Acquisition Tracker, smaller-scale sales are likewise continuing to materialize, and the all-important name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights are attracting investments as well.
And with plenty of catalog capital earmarked but as-yet-undeployed – while investor-to-investor transactions are apparently on the table – the dealmaking volume could hold steady for the foreseeable future.
Closer to the present, Influence isn’t solely zeroing in on IP. This afternoon, the New York City-headquartered company formally announced its interest in talent agency In Search Of (ISO) Entertainment.
Founded by UTA vet Mike Lee and PATH Talent co-founder Darren Yan, ISO is in its own words working to connect with talent “earlier and build the audience with them” as opposed to solely partnering with “fully formed” clients.
The agency also reps brands as well as creators, its website shows, and on the music side, its roster currently features Evan Fallon, Sơn Tùng M-TP, and Nya Bird, among several others.
“Creators and livestreamers aren’t following the paths that film, TV or even music talent took,” said Ram Kolluri, Influence’s head of investments and strategic partnerships. “They build audiences directly, move culture in real time and earn across more channels than any generation before them. Representation needs to work differently for them, and that’s what ISO is built for.
“For IMP, this extends our focus on premium music and entertainment IP into the creator economy, where much of the next generation of cultural value is being built. Excited to support Mike, Darren and the whole ISO team on what comes next,” he concluded.