Another day, another flood of music industry deals. How does one keep track? In an effort to provide an overview of the latest acquisitions, mergers, joint ventures, licensing agreements and more, Billboard publishes a list of all of the latest pacts that have hit our radar every other Thursday.
To start this week, Republic Records signed a partnership with Nothing Projects Interactive that will see Republic artists included as playable characters in OnlyHands, an upcoming real-time fighting game. In the game, winning a match results in real artist tracks being played, boosting artists’ streams and revenue. Additionally, “artists can drop tracks, cosmetics, or signature moves directly into gameplay,” according to a press release. OnlyHands is slated to launch in Q4 of 2025, with more information, including which Republic artists will take part, to be announced later in the year.
Secretly Distribution struck a global distribution deal with Jack White‘s Third Man Records. Secretly will now handle physical and digital distribution, digital and retail marketing, and technological support for all upcoming releases from Third Man. The first releases under the deal will be new albums from Snõõper and The Belair Lip Bombs; other artists on Third Man include White, Lola Kirke, Sleep and Bobby Weird & Wolf Bros.
Atlantic Music Group inked a joint venture with rock/hip-hop artist Ricky Hil’s Limosa Nostra Records. Through the deal, the companies will jointly put out future releases from Hi along with Limosa Nostra artists, including SosMula (one-half of City Morgue). Hil is currently readying his next album, 10,000 Grams. Hil will continue serving as Limosa Nostra’s CEO, while his manager, Louie Reed, has been appointed president of the label. Sam Cohen, the GM of 10K Projects and senior vp at Atlantic Records, will oversee operations for Limosa Nostra within Atlantic. Finally, Hil’s longtime engineer, Mike Gaydusek, will lead Limosa Nostra Studios as chief engineer.
See the remainder of the latest music industry deals below.
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ElevenLabs/Nvidia
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ElevenLabs, an AI audio startup that has struck licensing deals with Merlin and Kobalt, among others, received an investment from AI chipmaker NVIDIA for an undisclosed amount, ElevenLabs co-founder Mati Staniszewski announced.
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Aria/Contents Technologies
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Aria, a Web3 platform built on the Story blockchain that brings music and more IP rights onchain “as fungible, liquid tokens unlocking access to real-world royalties,” according to a press release, launched Aria PRIME, a new platform that allows the company to tokenize large-scale IP portfolios. On launch, the platform announced a $100 million deal with Contents Technologies — described as a tech-driven music company that holds major stakes in a portfolio of Korean record labels — to tokenize its assets on Story’s Layer 1 blockchain.
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Cxmmunity Media/Live Nation Urban
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Cxmmunity Media, a Black-owned company that encompasses gaming, anime, streaming culture and live experiences, received a six-figure investment from Live Nation Urban via the touring giant’s Black Lily Capital Investment Fund. The partnership and investment will allow Community to expand The Kickback, an “interactive live event blending music and gaming,” which will next take place on Dec. 10 in Atlanta. Community also launched the HBCU Esports League, which has provided more than $2 million in funding to Black students and creators and drawn more than 50 million viewers on Twitch, according to a press release. The Live Nation Urban investment includes “a philanthropic component” via The Cxmmmunity Foundation, the release adds.
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OpenPlay/Toy’s Factory
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Media and rights management platform OpenPlay signed its first partnership in Japan with the label Toy’s Factory. Under the deal, OpenPlay will provide content management services, allowing Toy’s Factory to manage its digital assets, including audio, video, artwork and metadata, on the OpenPlay platform.
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SourceAudio/Music AI
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Synch platform SourceAudio signed a deal with Music AI — which owns the AI music app Moises — through which it will provide Music AI with access to its library of pre-cleared songs for ethical AI training. SourceAudio’s AI dataset licensing program, launched in 2025, boasts more than 14 million songs, 3 million sound effects and 200 sampled instruments. According to SourceAudio, the program has generated more than $10 million in new annual recurring revenue.
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Sonsy/Tuned Global
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Sonsy, the first local music streaming platform for the Mongolian music market, created by Mongol Content LLC, partnered with Tuned Global to launch the service, utilizing Tuned Global’s white-label streaming apps.
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Equal Vision Records/Civilians
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New York indie label Equal Vision Records partnered with Melbourne-based label Civilians to boost Equal Vision’s presence in Australia. The deal launches with new releases from Equal Vision artists Hail the Sun (Oct. 24) and Armor for Sleep (Nov. 7).
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DIO Artists/UnderCurrent Talent
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Benji Sheinman and Andrew Idarraga’s management company, DIO Artists, has merged into UnderCurrent Talent. The firm will continue operating under the DIO name and brand while benefitting from the larger infrastructure, staff and media-brand partnership resources offered by UnderCurrent, which is led by CEO Eric Bogard. DIO’s roster includes Dana and Alden, Foxtide, Never Ending Fall and The Hails.
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Belong
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Nick Holsten’s Belong, a so-called “FanTech” platform that allows music fans to unlock perks, access and “real-world rewards” through their passion — including by being the first to stream a new track or support their favorite artist — raised $1.5 million in a SAFE round from investors including Lakestar, Backwards Capital, Bell Partners AB, Fredrik Hjelm, Fredrik Hult, Troy Carter and Magnus Larsson. Belong also opened an additional $1 million SAFE round that closes at the end of this month.
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Zebralution
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Independent digital distributor Zebralution’s London division signed international agreements with indie labels Gerry Read’s 8 Head, Casa Nueva (home to Uma, SALPA and Rosie Lowe), Alex McCall’s Folded Music (Asta Hiroki, Bon-Psy, Catch92) and independent London hip-hop artist Bawo.
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