Jump to content

Matt Pincus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matt Pincus
Born
Matthew Storrs Pincus
NationalityAmerican
Alma materColumbia University (BA, MBA)
OccupationMusic Publisher
Known forFounder and CEO of Songs Music Publishing
SpouseSarah Min
Parents

Matthew Storrs Pincus[1] is an American music publisher and investor who founded Songs Music Publishing.[2] He is also the current bassist of the band New York City Hardcore Band Judge.[3]

Early life and education

[edit]

Pincus is the son of Lionel Pincus, co-founder and chairman of private equity firm Warburg Pincus. His mother, Suzanne Storrs, was Miss Utah in 1955 and a television actress, who was married to Lionel Pincus until her death in 1995. He is a graduate of Columbia University, where he received his B.A. in 1995 and M.B.A. in 2002.[1][2][4][5] He has a brother, Henry Pincus, who is an actor and also attended Columbia.[6][7][8]

Career

[edit]

At age 17, he joined the New York hardcore band Judge, where he played bass.[3][9]

In college, Pincus interned at various record labels, including EMI and Jive Records. He was also a campus representative for Atlantic Records and worked as an assistant editor at the New York magazine after college.[10]

Having graduated from Columbia Business School, Pincus worked at EMI as a strategy associate. In 2004, he invested $5 million of his own money into Songs Music Publishing with Ron Perry, a fellow EMI alum. The two initially targeted Christian rock and hard rock musicians before looking into more commercial acts including Ted Leo and the Pharmacists and Conor Oberst.[11] Under Pincus' leadership, the label represented a clientele of 300 artists, including chart-topping musicians such as Lorde, Diplo, and The Weeknd.[12][13]

In 2015, he testified before the United States Senate to demand a revamp of the country's system for calculating songwriter royalties and warned against the encroachment of Big Tech on the music publishing industry.[14][15][16] In a partnership with Barry Weiss, Pincus co-founded a new independent label, RECORDS.[17]

In 2017, Pincus and Perry were named to the Billboard magazine's Power 100 list, which ranks the most influential businesspeople in the music industry.[18] He sold the company in December 2017 for $160 million to Kobalt Music Group.[19]

In 2018, Pincus joined LionTree as executive-in-residence and took up an advisory role at Snap Inc.[20]

He has been a member of the board of directors of the National Music Publishers' Association, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, Songwriters Hall of Fame, the financial services startup HIFI,[21][22] and the music creation platform Splice, of which he is also an investor.[2][23][24][25]

Personal life

[edit]

Pincus is married to Sarah Min, former managing editor of Domino, a shopping publication of Condé Nast.[1]

After his father died, he and his brother sued Princess Firyal, accusing her of taking advantage of their father's deteriorating mental and physical state by spending extravagant sums to decorate a 14-room duplex in the Pierre Hotel.[6][26][27]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Sarah Min and Matthew Pincus". The New York Times. 2005-09-25. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  2. ^ a b c "Matt Pincus". National Music Publishers’ Association. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  3. ^ a b "JUDGE's Matt Pincus Is Getting Old Punk and Hardcore Bands Paid for Their Song Streams, Finally". www.vice.com. 4 February 2016. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  4. ^ Fabrikant, Geraldine (2009-10-12). "Lionel Pincus, Who Helped Bring Investors to Private Equity, Dies at 78". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  5. ^ School, Columbia Business (2017-10-25). "Second Century Circle". Alumni. Retrieved 2021-08-28. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  6. ^ a b Durkin, Erin. "Wall St. titan Lionel Pincus dies; estate feud rages between two sons and Jordanian princess". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  7. ^ "Henry Pincus | Lionel Pincus | 311 West 4th Street". The Real Deal New York. 2014-07-08. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  8. ^ "Columbia Spectator 8 March 1991 — Columbia Spectator". spectatorarchive.library.columbia.edu. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  9. ^ Kamiński, Karol (2012-07-13). "JUDGE interviewed by Double Cross Zine". IDIOTEQ.com. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  10. ^ "Matt Pincus". National Museum of American History. 2018-04-10. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  11. ^ "Meet the Banking Scion Who Helped Lorde Top the Music Charts". BloombergQuint. 30 June 2017. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  12. ^ Aswad, Shirley Halperin, Jem; Halperin, Shirley; Aswad, Jem (2017-12-08). "Songs Music Publishing Sold to Kobalt for $150 Million". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ "SONGS Music Publishing Signs Worldwide Co-Publishing Deal with The Weeknd". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  14. ^ Pincus, Matt (March 10, 2015). ""How Much for a Song?: The Antitrust Decrees that Govern the Market for Music"" (PDF). Senate Judiciary Committee. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  15. ^ Pincus, Matt (2015-03-13). "It's Time for Real Transparency in Digital Music (Guest Blog)". TheWrap. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  16. ^ "SONGS Music CEO Matt Pincus: Why Music Publishing's Two-Class System Could Spell the End for New Indie Firms". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  17. ^ Christman, Ed (February 17, 2015). "Barry Weiss To Join Forces With SONGS Publishing On New Label". Billboard. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  18. ^ "No. 92: Matt Pincus & Ron Perry | Power 100". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  19. ^ Sisario, Ben (2017-12-08). "Songs, Music Publisher of Lorde and Diplo, Bought by Kobalt". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  20. ^ "SONGS Founder Matt Pincus Joins Snapchat & LionTree". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  21. ^ "How Music's Business Managers Are Tracking Revenue -- And Getting Their Artists Bi-Weekly Paychecks". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  22. ^ "Matt Pincus-backed HIFI launches to help artists 'actually see what they're earning – and what they're worth'". Music Business Worldwide. 2020-07-01. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  23. ^ "The Songwriters Hall of Fame Announces Newly Elected Board of Directors | Songwriters Hall of Fame". www.songhall.org. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  24. ^ "Music-making platform Splice raises $57.5m, with ex-SONGS boss Matt Pincus backing company". Music Business Worldwide. 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  25. ^ Shaw, Lucas (21 February 2021). "Want to Make a Hit Record From Your Bedroom? Ask Splice". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2021-08-28.
  26. ^ "Lionel Pincus Passes Away But His Sons and Princess Continue to Duke It Out in Court". Vanity Fair. 2009-10-12. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  27. ^ "PRINCESS & PLEA: STOP TAKING OUR DAD'S MILLIONS!". New York Post. 2009-08-05. Retrieved 2021-08-29.