Music Catalog Deals: Michelle Garramone on Seller Preparation

Incomplete financial records and unclear objectives can undermine music catalog deals before buyers submit an offer, according to Symphonic’s Michelle Garramone. Her assessment places seller preparation at the center of establishing a supportable price.

Garramone, who works with catalog buyers and sellers, argues that owners should establish what a transaction must achieve before approaching the market. A sale can cover part of a catalog rather than the entire collection.

How buyers assess value

Buyers assess a catalog’s earnings and the likelihood that those revenues will continue, Garramone says. Incomplete or disorganized records can make it harder for them to substantiate the value a seller expects.

She argues that buyers can reach a price quickly using the information supplied, but missing data can contribute to a gap between their offers and the owner’s expectations.

The source cites two measures of catalog market activity:

• Citrin Cooperman valued 566 music catalogs at nearly $13 billion in 2025, with established sound recording catalogs maintaining multiples above 17 times earnings.
• MIDiA Research reported that catalog funds generated $1.6 billion in publishing revenue in 2025, an increase of 14.9 percent.

Garramone says buyers are assessing risk more precisely than a few years ago. Their investment mandates and factors such as rising interest rates also influence pricing.

Preparing the sale documents

Garramone recommends an independent valuation as an initial step. The process can help owners organize a data room and identify missing records before seeking offers.

Her preparation framework includes:

• Complete financial statements, with the relevant agreements mapped to them.
• Checks for gaps in royalty registrations.
• All agreements needed to support the rights being offered.
• A Schedule A identifying the tracks included in the sale.

She identifies Citrin Cooperman and Virtu as valuation resources. Their services carry fees, which she argues may be justified if the work supports a stronger transaction value.

Other third-party tools can provide an indication of catalog value. Garramone advises against using Claude or ChatGPT for valuation, while suggesting they can help organize material.

She recommends professional assistance with both valuation and the preparation of sale documents.

Setting a supportable asking price

Garramone describes speaking with an owner who had neither obtained a valuation nor disclosed a target price. The owner intended to wait for a buyer’s offer or a broker’s estimate.

Without an independent assessment, she argues, the owner lacked a basis for evaluating an offer or testing whether their own expectations were realistic.