Square is acquiring a 'significant majority' of Jay-Z's Tidal in $297M deal

The music streaming service will operate independently under Square.

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Carrie Mihalcik

March 4, 2021 6:59 a.m. PT

2 min read

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Square , the mobile payments company run by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey , is joining forces with Tidal. In a press release and series of tweets on Thursday, Dorsey said that Square is acquiring a majority ownership stake in Jay-Z's music streaming service and that the rapper and music producer is expected to join the Square board when the deal closes.

"I'm grateful for Jay's vision, wisdom, and leadership," Dorsey wrote in a tweet on Thursday. "I knew TIDAL was something special as soon as I experienced it, and I'm inspired to work with him."

I’m grateful for Jay’s vision, wisdom, and leadership. I knew TIDAL was something special as soon as I experienced it, and I’m inspired to work with him. He'll now help lead our entire company, including Seller and the Cash App, as soon as the deal closes. https://t.co/YRfYjcWJQx pic.twitter.com/xBtq2xfwue
— jack (@jack) March 4, 2021

Tidal aims to be the go-to music service for audiophiles, with a lossless hi-fi audio stream if you subscribe to the higher-cost premium service. You can also get access to exclusive music content and first dibs on some concert tickets. The service costs $10 a month, or $20 a month if you want the hi-fi plan. Tidal says it offers a catalog of more than 70 million songs and 250,000 high-quality videos.

Tidal will operate independently under Square, according to the release. Square says its financial tools will "help musicians find new ways to support their work and make better decisions" through Tidal.

"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, the stage name for Shawn Carter, in the release. "Jack and I have had many discussions about Tidal's endless possibilities that have made me even more inspired about its future."

Square will pay $297 million in a mix of cash and stock for a "significant majority ownership stake," with existing artist shareholders being the remaining stakeholders, the company said.