# Universal Music Group

> Universal Music Group is a VC fund backing Music and Media and Entertainment. See 39 investments, check sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Santa Monica, United States
- Total investments: 39
- Last investment: Jun 2026
- Lead investor: 18%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/universalmusicgroup/
- X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/UMG
- Website: https://www.universalmusic.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UniversalMusicGroup/

Universal Music Group is a VC fund in Santa Monica focused on Music and Media and Entertainment. Universal Music Group offers music recording, publishing, and merchandising services worldwide. It discovers and develops songwriters, and owns and administers copyrights to musical compositions for use in recordings, public performances, and related uses such as films and advertisements; and sells artist and music branded products through multiplesales points including online, fashion retail, and live performances worldwide.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for Universal Music Group. Shizune tracks 10 team members at Universal Music Group. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/universal-music-group?utm_source=investor_profile

## Round sizes

| Stage | Round size |
| --- | --- |
| Seed | $10k–$4.5M |
| Series A | $3.7M–$67M |

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Music | 18 | 46% |
| Media and Entertainment | 6 | 15% |
| Video | 5 | 13% |
| Mobile | 5 | 13% |
| Internet | 5 | 13% |

71 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Seed | 12 | 31% |
| Funding Round | 8 | 21% |
| Series A | 7 | 18% |
| Series B | 5 | 13% |
| Corporate Round | 4 | 10% |

6 stages tracked in total.

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| United States | 24 | 62% |
| United Kingdom | 6 | 15% |
| Thailand | 2 | 5% |

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jack Fryer | Managing Director - The Square @ Universal Music UK | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/jack-fryer |
| Kade Speiser | General Manager, Commercial Innovation & Artist Strategy | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/kade-speiser |
| Richelle P. Parham | President, Global eCommerce and Business Development | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/richelle-p-parham |
| Boyd Muir | EVP , Chief Financial Officer & President of Operations | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/boyd-muir |
| Cora Creed | Vice President - Business Transformation | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/cora-creed |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Solution One Holding Co. | Solution One Holding Co.,Ltd. provides digital content distribution and YouTube channel management services. |  | Corporate Round | Jun 04, 2026 |  |
| What the Duck | What the Duck (WTD) is an independent record company focused on nurturing enthusiastic, creative musicians in an open setting that promotes their freedom and distinctiveness. |  | Corporate Round | Mar 16, 2026 |  |
| Stationhead | Stationhead is the place for music fans & artists around the world to connect, listen live, and stream together.Find your community:- Listen to your favorite artists and drive streams with a community of fans from around the world- Chat, request, and call-in live from anywhere on the planet- Join live moments with your favorite artistsHost the party:- Start a global station in seconds- Take the mic, play what you want, and reach anyone- Build your communityAssemble, listen, connect, party, talk, and play – on Stationhead. Download the free app today from your iPhone, iPad, and iPod |  |  | Jan 28, 2026 |  |
| R.e.m. Beauty | R e m beauty is established to provide the resources which need to bring most vivid, unlimited, and creative aspirations to reality. |  |  | May 23, 2023 |  |
| R.e.m. Beauty | R e m beauty is established to provide the resources which need to bring most vivid, unlimited, and creative aspirations to reality. |  | Seed | May 23, 2023 |  |
| Music Health | At Music Health we’re passionate about helping people live healthier, longer lives. Our digital experiences empower anyone to manage their own mental health through the power of music. We’re a mission-driven company making music therapy easy, accessible and affordable to all. Our first product is called Vera focused on supporting the 60 millionindividuals living with dementia and their almost 200 million carers by managing the impact of BPSD (behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia: like aggression, agitation or depression). | $1.5M | Seed | Feb 06, 2023 |  |
| PIAS | PIAS is an independent music network and services company. It offers services for licensing, distribution, sales, and marketing of music, film, and comedy. PIAS was founded by Laurent Didailler and Michel Lambot in 1982 and is headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. |  | Corporate Round | Nov 30, 2022 |  |
| VenewLive | VenewLive is a live performance streaming platform delivering on-stage magic to global music fans virtually. |  | Corporate Round | Feb 09, 2021 |  |
| Def Jam Recordings | Def Jam Recordings is a music company based out of 1755 Broadway, New York, New York, United States. Def Jam is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. Def Jam was founded by producers Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons in 1984. The pair helped bring hip-hop into the mainstream with artists including the Beastie Boys and LL Cool J. | $10K | Seed | Jun 01, 2018 |  |
| Pex | Pex specializes in digital rights technology. It ensures transparency and accuracy in attribution by bringing together all stakeholders and industries to license and manage content. Its advanced technology operates at unprecedented speed and scale, enabling transactions that were previously thought impossible. By radically simplifying licensingon a global scale, Pex empowers digital platforms to make real-time decisions about content, enables creators to utilize copyrighted content without fear, and ensures rightsholders can be properly credited and compensated. Pex builds solutions and technologies that are inclusive and equitable. | $7M | Seed | Oct 09, 2017 |  |

10 of 39 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Balderton Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/balderton-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [FirstMark](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/firstmark-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Index Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/index-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Live Nation Entertainment](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/live-nation-entertainment) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Redpoint](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/redpoint-ventures) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Sony Music Entertainment](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/sony-music-entertainment) — VC Fund, 3 deals together

## Similar investors

### Similar industry
- [Warner Music Group](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/warner-music-group) — VC Fund
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- [Goodwater Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/goodwater-capital) — VC Fund

### Similar stage
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## Featured in investor lists
- [Music Investors](https://shizune.co/investors/music-investors)
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## FAQ

### What does Universal Music Group invest in?

Universal Music Group invests primarily in Music, Media and Entertainment and Video startups, most often at Seed and Funding Round stage. Most of the 39 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### What is Universal Music Group's check size?

Universal Music Group typically joins rounds of $10k–$4.5M at Seed and $3.7M–$67M at Series A. These ranges are 10th–90th percentile round sizes calculated from confirmed public funding rounds, so they are a realistic guide to the rounds Universal Music Group participates in.

### How do I contact Universal Music Group?

Public channels for Universal Music Group include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.

### Who are the partners at Universal Music Group?

The team at Universal Music Group includes Jack Fryer (Managing Director - The Square @ Universal Music UK), Kade Speiser (General Manager, Commercial Innovation & Artist Strategy) and Richelle P. Parham (President, Global eCommerce and Business Development), among 10 team members tracked by Shizune. The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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