Media & Entertainment Acquisitions in North Carolina

Parella Motorsports Holdings (the owner/operator of SpeedTour) has acquired Racing America, a digital-first motorsports media and streaming platform. The deal, completed under the ownership of Velocity Capital Management (with support from the Texas Permanent School Fund), combines live-event promotion with Racing America's digital production and streaming capabilities to create an integrated grassroots motorsports media and events platform headquartered in North Carolina.

Perfect Game has acquired Triangle Top Gun Sports LLC from owner Wes Gregory, bringing roughly 4,000 travel baseball teams under Perfect Game’s national platform. The deal expands Perfect Game’s market leadership and geographic footprint across the Carolinas and will integrate Triangle Top Gun’s tournament operations into Perfect Game’s nationwide events and scouting network.

Knighthead Capital Management, LLC has acquired a minority stake in LEGACY MOTOR CLUB, a NASCAR Cup Series racing team co-owned by Jimmie Johnson and Maury Gallagher. The strategic partnership positions LEGACY MC to expand its competitive presence, global brand recognition, commercial partnerships and fan engagement while Johnson assumes majority ownership and Gallagher moves to an ambassador role.

Opry Entertainment Group (a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties) has acquired a majority interest in Charlotte-based Southern Entertainment, a live events, hospitality and production company that produces festivals including Carolina Country Music Fest, Barefoot Country Music Fest, Lovin' Life Music Fest and Greenville Country Music Fest. The founders (Durkin and Pedlow) will remain in leadership roles as OEG integrates artist-development programs and looks to expand festival offerings and geographic reach.

Adams Outdoor Advertising acquired all of Cook Brothers Corporation's billboard assets — 17 display faces along I-95 in Dillon County, South Carolina — effective September 19, 2024. The deal expands Adams' out-of-home coverage in the Florence/Dillon corridor; financial terms were not disclosed.

Exceleration Music has acquired Redeye, the US-based digital and physical distribution and music services company, in a deal that also includes Redeye’s in-house labels Yep Roc and Sundazed and publishing company Riff City Sounds. Redeye founders Glenn Dicker and Tor Hansen remain shareholders and will continue to lead the business, while Exceleration provides additional resources to expand distribution, label and publishing services globally.

Liberty Media Corporation agreed to acquire greater than 90% of QuintEvents, valuing the company at $313 million; the deal is being funded with cash on hand and Quint will be attributed to Liberty’s Formula One Group tracking stock. Quint, a Charlotte-based provider of official ticketing, hospitality and travel experiences for major sports and entertainment events, will continue to operate separately while partnering with Liberty/Formula 1 to expand premium fan and corporate experiences.

WTWH Media, LLC has acquired the QSR and FSR magazine brands from Journalistic, Inc., expanding WTWH's B2B media footprint in the restaurant, retail and hospitality sectors. The transaction adds the trade publications to WTWH's existing portfolio of web sites, events and industry publications and supports the company's strategy to broaden its foodservice and hospitality offerings.

S&A Cherokee’s Cherokee Media Group acquired Wake Living magazine in mid-March 2022 to expand its regional publishing footprint across Wake County, North Carolina. Stuart Weiss, founder/CEO of Wake Living, will remain involved as a consultant while Cherokee Media Group will manage and publish the title beginning July 2022.

Monkey Knife Fight (MKF), a leading North American daily fantasy sports platform, has acquired fellow DFS operator FantasyDraft. The acquisition will allow MKF to absorb FantasyDraft's assets and user base, consolidating MKF's position among the top three DFS sites in North America; financial terms were not disclosed.

Healthline Media has acquired PsychCentral, a long-running online mental health publisher founded in 1995 by Dr. John Grohol. The acquisition expands Healthline's portfolio of digital health properties and strengthens its mental health content and advertising reach; terms were not disclosed and Dr. Grohol will remain on as a consultant.

Sanwire Corporation, through its wholly owned subsidiary Intercept Music, signed a definitive letter of intent to acquire 100% of North Carolina-based Art is War Records. After closing, AIW Records will operate under Intercept Music, which will provide promotion, marketing and distribution services to the label's roster and capture artists' royalties while expanding Intercept's service offerings.

Naylor Association Solutions, a portfolio company of RLJ Equity Partners, has acquired TechMedia, the producer of the Digital Summit conference series. Brookside Mezzanine Partners provided subordinated debt to support the transaction; TechMedia co-founders Eric Gregg and Scott Hedrick joined Naylor's management team following the acquisition.

Greybull Stewardship, a long-term investment partnership, has made an equity investment in Capstone Event Group, a Raleigh-based operator of road race events. The capital will support CEG's growth and expansion of its race portfolio across North America; terms were not disclosed and CEG's CEO Charlie Mercer will remain in place.

ChyronHego has acquired Newsroom Solutions, a Charlotte-based provider of data-driven ticker and specialty graphics used by hundreds of U.S. TV stations. The deal strengthens ChyronHego's live-TV news production software suite by adding real-time data presentation capabilities and expands Newsroom Solutions' access to ChyronHego's global product and customer base.

Wilmington plc has acquired the trading assets and assumed certain liabilities of Financial Research Associates LLC (FRA), a U.S. conference and networking provider focused on healthcare and finance, for up to $20.6 million. The deal strengthens Wilmington's networking capability within its Finance and Insight divisions and expands the Group's presence in North America; FRA's founding management will remain with the business.