Shamrock Capital, a Los Angeles-based investment firm with a $1.9bn portfolio under management, is about to spend big in music.
You may remember that Shamrock raised $250m in 2016 to spend on IP across movies, TV, music publishing, recorded music, video games and more.
This fund, the Shamrock Capital Content Fund, now holds an interest in more than 800 films, 1,000 television episodes, and 5,000 music compositions.
Perhaps the biggest headline for music that emerged from this fund came in 2018, when Shamrock acquired a music publishing catalog owned by Stargate – the writers behind hits for Rihanna, Beyoncé, Katy Perry and more.
Today (July 21), Shamrock has announced that it has raised a further $400m in committed capital for a fresh fund which it will use to “continue investing in entertainment intellectual property rights”.
The capital behind Shamrock Capital Content Fund II has been raised from a mixture of pension funds, sovereign wealth, endowments and foundations, family offices and financial institutions.
Shamrock’s new $400m fund will rival other well-funded acquisitive entities in music, including UK-based Hipgnosis Songs Fund, which recently raised a further $300m to spend on music, having splashed over $1bn on M&A to date.
“We are very pleased to announce the close of our second content-focused fund,” said Patrick Russo, Partner at Shamrock Capital.
“The market’s response to Fund II speaks to the strength of our strategy, particularly at a time when investors are seeking alternative investments with uncorrelated returns. We are grateful for the support of our many LPs and look forward to continuing to successfully execute on this unique strategy.”
“The market’s response to Fund II speaks to the strength of our strategy, particularly at a time when investors are seeking alternative investments with uncorrelated returns.”
Patrick Russo, Shamrock Capital
Steve Royer, Managing Partner at Shamrock Capital, noted: “The closing of Fund II builds upon Shamrock’s long-term multi-fund strategy that leverages our strength and expertise across the global media, entertainment and communications sectors.”
Shamrock also announced that in connection with the close of Shamrock Capital Content Fund II, Jason Sklar has been promoted to Partner and Andrew Landenberger to Principal.
“The promotions of both Jason and Andrew alongside the close of Fund II are extremely well deserved as they have each played critical roles in our growth and success,” continued Russo. “Their continuous commitment to excellence will no doubt contribute to the success of our next fund and the firm overall in their new roles.”
Jason Sklar has been with Shamrock since 2015 and focuses on the firm’s content acquisition strategy.
Prior to joining Shamrock, Sklar was an Executive Director with J.P. Morgan’s Entertainment Industries Group.
He also has prior experience at Bank of America and Arthur Andersen LLP.
Sklar graduated magna cum laude from the University of Arizona and earned an MBA from the USC Marshall School of Business.
Andrew Landenberger is also focused on the content acquisition strategy and has significant experience in film and television content.
Before joining Shamrock in 2016, Landenberger was Vice President of Corporate Finance at MGM Studios where he specialized in financial planning and reporting, valuations and M&A. He also previously worked as a consultant at Ernst & Young.
Landenberger graduated magna cum laude from UCLA.Music Business Worldwide
