Square to Buy Jay-Z’s Tidal Music Service for Nearly $300M

Shares of Square were falling on Thursday after Wall Street learned that the company has agreed to acquire rapper Jay-Z’s Tidal streaming service for $297 million in a cash and stock purchase.

The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2021 and Square is not expecting Tidal’s financial results to have a material impact on consolidated revenue or gross profit in 2021.

Rapper Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter, who acquired Tidal for $56 million in 2015, will join Square’s board of directors.

“New ideas are found at the intersections, and we believe there’s a compelling one between music and the economy,” Square CEO Jack Dorsey tweeted. “Making the economy work for artists is similar to what Square has done for sellers.”

Dorsey had also tweeted, “Square is acquiring a majority ownership stake in TIDAL through a new joint venture, with the original artists becoming the second largest group of shareholders, and JAY-Z joining the Square board. Why would a music streaming company and a financial services company join forces?!”

“Given what Square has been able to do for sellers of all sizes and individuals through Cash App, we believe we can now work for artists to see the same success for them, and us,” tweeted Dorsey.

“Square created ecosystems of tools for sellers & individuals, and we’ll do the same for artists. We’ll work on entirely new listening experiences to bring fans closer together, simple integrations for merch sales, modern collaboration tools, and new complementary revenue streams.”

“I said from the beginning that Tidal was about more than just streaming music, and six years later, it has remained a platform that supports artists at every point in their careers,” said Jay-Z in a press statement.

“Artists deserve better tools to assist them in their creative journey. Jack and I have had many discussions about Tidal’s endless possibilities that have made me even more inspired about its future. This shared vision makes me even more excited to join the Square board. This partnership will be a game-changer for many. I look forward to all this new chapter has to offer!”

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.