- Avex Inc. acquired an 85% majority stake in Brandon Silverstein’s S10 Entertainment, with a signed agreement to reach 100% ownership over time.
- Silverstein remains CEO of both S10 and Avex Music Group, expanding his global strategic role across recorded music, publishing, touring, and investments.
- The acquisition follows Avex’s March 2025 buyout of S10’s publishing catalog, an ongoing $100 million catalog fund, and an administration deal with Bruno Mars.
- Recent milestones include songwriter Kamal Wilson winning the 2026 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for Kehlani’s “Folded,” as well as Billboard’s 2026 Global Growth Award.
Japanese entertainment conglomerate Avex Inc. has acquired an 85% majority stake in Brandon Silverstein’s management firm, S10 Entertainment, with an agreement to reach 100% ownership over time.
Silverstein will continue serving as CEO of both S10 and Avex Music Group, maintaining his role as an equity partner and board member.
Under his expanded mandate, Silverstein will guide global music strategy across recorded music, publishing, live entertainment, touring, and investments. Avex Inc., led by CEO Katsumi Kuroiwa, reported approximately $1 billion in annual revenue in its latest fiscal year.
Silverstein originally founded S10 in 2017 as a management joint venture with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. Over the years, Silverstein previously managed major pop artists including Normani and Anitta, while guiding S10’s client list alongside acts like Big Sean and Myke Towers.
The buyout builds on a multi-phase partnership. In March 2025, Avex acquired S10’s publishing catalog, which held over 22 global No. 1 songs and 50 billion streams, featuring hits by Justin Bieber, Drake, Tate McRae, Doja Cat, Post Malone, and Rihanna.
Since Silverstein became CEO of Avex Music Group, the company established a global publishing administration partnership with Bruno Mars and launched a $100 million catalog acquisition strategy.
Creative achievements include S10 writer Kamal Wilson taking home the 2026 Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for co-writing Kehlani’s hit single “Folded”. In June 2026, Kuroiwa and Silverstein also accepted Billboard’s Global Growth Award in Tokyo.
Backed by S10’s integration, Avex is pairing Western signings with continued investment in global pop groups XG and ONE OR EIGHT.
Takeaways
Avex’s majority takeover of S10 Entertainment represents a deliberate bridge between Western talent management and Asian entertainment capital.
For Avex, a Tokyo-listed powerhouse generating nearly $1 billion annually, the deal accelerates a transition from a regional Japanese giant into a borderless music company.
Instead of letting a traditional Western major label absorb S10, Brandon Silverstein gains corporate-level financing, equity, and catalog-buying power while keeping executive independence.
With cross-market acts like XG already breaking out globally, this integrated setup creates a direct pipeline: routing top American songwriters and management clients into Asian markets while simultaneously pushing Asian pop projects directly onto Western charts.
Can Silverstein’s hitmaking network help push Avex acts like XG and ONE OR EIGHT higher up the U.S. Billboard charts? Does full corporate backing give S10 a major advantage over traditional independent management agencies when pitching top-tier pop stars?
