Artist Growth Launches Tour Financing Program with Pinnacle Financial Partners

First offering from this strategic alliance provides entertainment professionals streamlined access to capital

Artist Growth, the entertainment industry's leading artist-management platform, and Pinnacle Financial Partners have joined together to launch a new financing program for live entertainers. This innovative, artist-friendly addition to the live-entertainment ecosystem puts more financial power and control into the hands of artists, providing streamlined access to capital without dipping into personal savings or other costly alternatives.

This tour-financing program is the first offering arising from Artist Growth's strategic partnership with Nashville-based Pinnacle Financial Partners, announced in May. That alliance aims to deliver a new model of financial services to the touring industry.

"Our mission has always been to help artists manage and grow thriving businesses, and as capital is at the center of all business, it is a natural service for us to provide to our clients," says Matt Urmy, Artist Growth's founder and Chief Strategy Officer. "This program brings friction-free access to cash to any artist at a participating agency that is touring. Sometimes an artist's tour support budget from the label runs out, and opportunities are lost due to a shortage of cash on hand, or artists have to enter agreements that limit their options in order to access the funding they need. We believe that if artists are working hard on the road playing for their fans, access to capital should not be a problem in today's industry."

The new program, designed to benefit artists at every career level from independent groups establishing a touring presence to arena-level entertainers, allows agencies to upload event routing and confirmed guarantees into Artist Growth. Pinnacle then approves an advance ranging from thousands of dollars into the millions based on tour dates, guarantees, insurance terms and more. This means artists can get capital quickly, without needing to submit the personal financial documents generally required for a bank loan, like tax returns or credit scores.

"This is exactly what we wanted to accomplish when we partnered with Artist Growth," says Andy Moats, Pinnacle's head of music, entertainment and sports. "It's an extension of the work we've done for years to support artists and help them bring their music to the fans. The speed and agility offered by Artist Growth will expand our reach by matching our lending capabilities to the unique needs of musicians on the road. It's a nontraditional business model, and we've built our reputation on understanding that and tailoring our processes to them so we can meet their needs. Our industry expertise combined with the Artist Growth platform is a powerful combination."

The lending program will remain in pilot through at least the third quarter, available only to a small number of invited users. Full access to Artist Growth clients is expected in the fourth quarter.

Artist Growth's cloud-based software is designed specifically for the needs of managing an entertainment tour business, integrating multiple software systems to enable artists and their teams to track finances, inventory, tour schedules, promotions and more. Since its founding in 2012, it has become the music industry's most advanced, all-encompassing platform for music business and tour management. Select teams at Universal Music Group, Red Light Management, and Vector Management, and artists including Jason Aldean already use Artist Growth to track finances, inventory, tour schedules, promotions and more.

Pinnacle's work in the music industry has set a new standard for entertainment banking with a team of bankers who are industry vets, financial experts and passionate music lovers. They have intimate knowledge of the music world and have led the way in leveraging artists' unique assets and potential to design financial products and services just for them. In doing so, they have become the go-to bank for artists, labels, publishers and more. Moats and his team understand the needs of entertainment professionals and have built start-to-finish financial services for every stage of their careers.

Michael Poster, a partner in the New York office of Los Angeles-based Michelman & Robinson, LLP and the lawyer representing Pinnacle in the joint venture with Artist Growth, sings the praises of both entities and adds, "It was our honor to help Pinnacle identify, negotiate and navigate the structural, business, legal and regulatory issues associated with this innovative combination of financial technology and touring. We look forward to representing Pinnacle as this unique program evolves and expands."

"This is only the beginning," Urmy adds. "The potential for integrating financial support for artists into our platform is enormous. Having Andy and his team working side-by-side with our developers is going to bear more fruit and allow our clients to have even greater control over their business."

Pinnacle Financial Partners provides a full range of banking, investment, trust, mortgage and insurance products and services designed for businesses and their owners and individuals interested in a comprehensive relationship with their financial institution. The firm earned a place on FORTUNE’s 2017 and 2018 lists of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in the U.S., and American Banker recognized Pinnacle as the sixth-best bank to work for in 2017.

The firm began operations in a single location in downtown Nashville, TN in October 2000 and has since grown to approximately $22.9 billion in assets as of March 31, 2018. As the second-largest bank holding company headquartered in Tennessee, Pinnacle operates in 11 primarily urban markets in Tennessee, the Carolinas and Virginia.

Additional information concerning Pinnacle, which is included in the NASDAQ Financial-100 Index, can be accessed at www.pnfp.com.