Triller gets into the live streaming business with the acquisition of Verzuz

By Emmanuel Legrand

Triller Network, the parent company of short video app Triller, has acquired livestreaming platform Verzuz for an undisclosed amount. Verzuz founders Swizz Beatz and Timbaland, who started the service as an Instagram Live series last year, will join Triller as shareholders. They will also be part of the Triller Verzuz management team.

  "There is no more disruptive and innovative brand in music today than Verzuz," said Bobby Sarnevesht, Executive Chairman and co-owner of Triller. "Both Triller and Verzuz share the ‘artist first, music first’ vision. We view this acquisition as more of a partnership than an acquisition, as Swizz, Timbaland and the other 43 artists who are all becoming shareholders and partners in Triller Verzuz from this day forward become our voice."

  Swizz Beatz and Timbaland said the acquisition was "a momentous occasion not only for Verzuz and Triller but the music business as a whole.” 

A game changing deal

  They added: “By putting Verzuz in the Triller Network ecosystem and expanding the Verzuz brand to be side by side with the powerful Triller app, we will be able to continue to grow and evolve the music business as a whole, as we have been doing. To have partners in Triller who share our vision, specifically to celebrate and elevate the amazing artists who continue to shape culture around the world and give the consumer more direct access, is game changing.”

  A large number of artists who supported Verzuz have become shareholders in Triller Network. It includes John Legend, DMX, Alicia Keys,2 Chainz, Rick Ross, Too$hort, Patti LaBelle, D’Angelo, Ludacris, RZA, Nelly, Gladys Knight,T-Pain, LilJon, Jill Scott, among others. The platform has accumulated over 5 billion impressions since its launch in 2020.