In a wild turn of events, Death Row Records is now owned by Hasbro, the gargantuan toy and board game company that is behind My Little Pony, Furby, Monopoly, G. I. Joe, and many more classic children’s enterprises.
Death Row Records is, of course, the West Coast rap label that was founded in 1991 by Suge Knight and put out major releases from Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Tupac. It's strange to think about Hasbro, which is synonymous with childhood innocence, now is in possession of one of the most gangster labels in the history of music.
But Death Row Records — and other labels, including Last Gang and Dualtone — are now part of Hasbro after the company bought the Canadian studio Entertainment One for a whopping $3.8 billion because the company owns the lucrative 'Peppa Pig' and 'PJ Masks' franchises.
On Monday (Dec. 30), Brian Goldner, Hasbro chairman and chief executive officer, announced the acquisition of Entertainment One, which owns Death Row Records, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $3.8 billion. The deal was made last summer, but now it's officially been closed.
“We are excited about what we can do together and see tremendous opportunity for shareholder value creation through this acquisition,” said Goldner via a press release. “Our businesses are highly complementary with substantial synergies and a great cultural fit. The addition of eOne accelerates our blueprint strategy by expanding our brand portfolio with eOne’s beloved global preschool brands, adding proven TV and film expertise, and creating additional opportunities for long-term profitable growth. We are pleased to welcome the incredibly talented eOne team to our Company.”