American rock band Linkin Park, launched a venture capital firm, after parting ways with their management team last year.
The “Numb” hitmakers split from their outside management team and brought their business in-house through their Machine Shop Company. They then decided to team up with Harvard Business School professor Anita Elberse, and three of her students to launch a semester-long study which lead into forming Machine Shop Ventures.
Linkin Park vocalist, Mike Shinoda said, “Our goal was to build an internal team of diverse talent to support the non-traditional endeavours, the band plans to pursue in the coming years.”
During their research, the group studied how music innovators including Jay Z, Beyonce and Jared Leto ran their various ventures. They transformed the business into a multi-pronged innovation model based on four verticals: video content, global brand partnerships, merchandise and venture capital, research noted.
Executive Vice President Kiel Berry said, “To be clear, we are still in the music business, but creating and selling music, now plays more of a supporting role in our overall business mix."
“Of course we’ll play the shows and meet with fans, as we have always done. But along with continuing to make great music, today’s Linkin Park is now better positioned to operate in the ever-evolving cultural and business landscape,” he said.
