Artist First partners with ANote Music to offer public access to live performance rights for the first time

Luxembourg, 13 July 2021–ANote Music, Europe’s leading marketplace for investing in music royalties, is pleased to announce it is partnering with Artist First, a renowned Italian record label, event manager and music distributor, to list what will be the first public offering of an image rights catalogue. Through the listing, ANote’s investor community will have the opportunity to invest in a share of the image rights of Italian rock and pop band Le Vibrazioni, the artist behind the platinum-selling pop song, “Dedicato a te” (“Dedicated to you”). They will then receive a percentage of the band’s compensation for their live appearances throughout their upcoming concert tour that will take place in Italy starting in late 2021, and for all live performances taking place over the next 5 years.

Partnering with a multi-faceted industry player such as Artist First further solidifies ANote Music as an innovate service provider which empowers the entire music industry – adding more creative freedom and independency for many within the music business, while allowing publishers and record labels to maintain a key role in the industry’s ecosystem.

Claudio Ferrante, CEO and managing partner at Artist First: “We’re delighted to be partnering with ANote and supporting their efforts to improve how the music industry is financed. Now more than ever, everyone involved in live entertainment needs to work together as the world begins to emerge from its various states of lockdown. Through ANote’s platform, users will be offered a market first – the ability to invest directly in artists’ image rights. For some time, these have been traded on the private market, but this innovation brings it firmly to the fan’s doorsteps. Le Vibrazioni’s pipeline of events and concerts is strong, and we’re pleased to give their fans the opportunity to share in supporting their return to concert.”

Since 2018, ANote Music has been the first European player to redefine how the music industry is financed, offering entrepreneurial music rights holders the chance to retain their independence through listing a portion of their music rights up for auction. Likewise, investors and music fans have been able to directly own shares of their favourite hits, and then trade and exchange these shares with other investors on ANote Music’s innovative secondary market.

The opportunity for the public to invest in an artist’s image rights from live concerts, performances and public appearances is a market first, and adds yet another level to ANote’s offering. Marzio F. Schena, founder and CEO of ANote Music, said: “Since day one, we have set out to redefine how the music industry is financed. Through increased transparency and public access, we at ANote Music strive to democratise rights throughout the music industry across the board. This partnership with Artist First is another milestone on that journey, as we further serve the industry by opening access to the image rights of Le Vibrazioni, an internationally renowned Italian rock and pop icon, to the masses. This exciting new offering will provide fans the opportunity to connect to their favourite live performances like never before. For the artists themselves and the rights owners it’s the perfect chance to also split the benefits of the tour directly with the fans.”

While the live events industry has had a difficult year due to COVID-19, as restrictions begin to ease, levels of activity are expected to return with 95% of fans planning globally to return to live events when restrictions are lifted, the highest point of confidence since the start of the pandemic according to recent research[1]. During the five years of the listing, Le Vibrazioni is expected to perform in 180 public events/concerts, each of them managed and organised by ANote’s partner Artist First. Through this and potential future listings, ANote is well positioned to support not only the artists and their fans as they reunite in concert, but also the wider industry in general as it looks to rebuild.

The listing has a maturity of 5 years, after which the royalty streams will return to the transferor. The portion of the catalogue listed on the platform, pro-quota generated royalties averaging €45,501.64 in the last 3 years (2018-2020). With a listing valuation of €125,000 the listing is set at an entry multiple of 2.77 over the last 3 years’ average royalties, resulting in an expected yield (yearly IRR, employing constant 3-year average royalties) of 23.59%. Find details around image rights and their associated royalties appended.

[1] Source: 2020 Live Nation Global Impact of COVID -19 on Live Events Benchmark Study https://ses.se/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Supplemental-Fan-Survey-Data1.pdf