Since the music executive Irving Azoff resigned as Live Nation Entertainment’s executive chairman at the end of last year, speculation about his next venture has been something of an industry pastime. Would he go into television? Music publishing? Something digital?
The answer is all of the above, and perhaps more.
On Wednesday, Mr. Azoff, 65, announced the creation of Azoff MSG Entertainment, a multifaceted company backed by $175 million from the Madison Square Garden Company, whose executive chairman, James L. Dolan, is one of Mr. Azoff’s longtime supporters.
The company, of which Mr. Azoff will be chairman and chief executive, will include his artist management business, whose clients include the Eagles, Van Halen, Steely Dan and Christina Aguilera; a television and live event division; a 50 percent stake in Digital Brand Architects, which manages bloggers; and a 90 percent interest in a music publishing venture led by Randy Grimmett, a former executive at Ascap, the 99-year-old performing rights organization.
“We want to be a nimble, quick place where people can get answers,” said Mr. Azoff, who got his start as an artist manager in the 1970s and upon his departure from Live Nation did not mince words about his distaste in working for a publicly owned company.
The Madison Square Garden Company — which is publicly traded — will pay $125 million for a 50 percent stake in Azoff MSG Entertainment, and provide up to $50 million of credit to the company, according to an announcement. Mr. Azoff will also serve as a consultant to the Madison Square Garden Company.
In a joint interview, Mr. Azoff and Mr. Dolan described the mission of the new company as being somewhat loose, saying they see it as a lean, digitally focused company that will address the needs of the evolving music business. They also pointed to Madison Square Garden’s $100 million renovation of the Forum, an arena in Inglewood, Calif., as an example of how their work could benefit the public.
“Over the last 10 to 15 years, the music industry has changed dramatically, and not necessarily for the better,” Mr. Dolan said. “I expect that this venture will address that and find new technologies that will help artists, and new business opportunities that we will invest in together.”
They also view the company as “a high-growth vehicle,” as Mr. Dolan put it, that could expand through acquisitions.
Mr. Dolan joined the board of Live Nation in 2011, the year after that company merged with Ticketmaster and Mr. Azoff became its executive chairman. After Mr. Azoff left, Mr. Dolan resigned from the board and his company divested itself of its 3.9 million shares in the company for $44 million. With Live Nation stock on the rise since January, that stake would be worth about $67 million today.
Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/05/business/media/irving-azoff-starts-new-entertainment-business.html?partner=rss&emc=rss