Create Music Group acquires MusicForPets, plans $10m investment to expand in the ‘music for pets’ space

Photo credit: Chris Polk
Pictured left to right: Wayne Hampton, Co-founder, Chief Business Development Officer, Create Music Group; Jonathan Strauss, Founder and CEO, Create Music Group (with Monty); Amman Ahmed, Founder, Music For Pets (With Hugo); Alexandre Williams, Co-founder, Chief Operating Officer, Create Music Group (with Bowie).

Playlists offering music designed specifically for pets are gaining popularity on streaming services and US-based music and media company Create Music Group is now investing in the space.

Create has acquired Music For Pets, a company that makes music and entertainment for specifically for dogs and cats. 

Music For Pets has gained popularity through its franchises Relax My Dog, which has 1.47 million subscribers on YouTube, and Relax My Cat which has over 800,000 YouTube subscribers.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but Create Music said it is planning to invest an additional $10 million over the next 36 months into the music for pets space.

Founded in 2017 by entrepreneur Amman Ahmed and his business partner Ricardo Henriquez, Music For Pets claims to serve more than 20 million pets around the world who listen to more than 12 million hours of music each month, according to a press release on Thursday (June 29).

Inspired by his dog’s anxiety due to neighborhood noises in El Salvador, Henriquez started composing music specifically designed to soothe pets.

Create Music Group, established in 2015, operates as a record label, distribution company, and entertainment network. The company has leveraged its owned IP and its media and technology platform to generate over 15 billion music streams per month on DSPs.

Its subsidiaries include Label Engine, a music distribution platform, and Flighthouse, a digital entertainment brand focused on Gen Z, boasting over 300 million social media followers.

The deal marks the latest in Create Music’s string of acquisitions following its purchase of a majority interest in The Nations, a portfolio of curated music YouTube channels, and viral marketing agency VRTCL in 2022.

In 2021, the company acquired India-based distribution and rights management firm, Nirvana Digital. In 2019, it made a strategic investment in management and digital agency, Homemade Projects.

“Amman and Ricardo have tapped into an enormous and surprising new audience for music & entertainment, our family pets,” said Jonathan Strauss, Founder and CEO of Create Music Group. 

“The Music for Pets platform fits perfectly into our business model as we continue to reinvent what it means to be a modern music company by building and investing into entertainment businesses that have a direct meaningful relationship with their audience and fans and have complete ownership of all IP.”

Jonathan Strauss, Create Music Group

“They have built Music For Pets into a beloved brand that reaches an audience of millions across multiple DSPs all over the world. The Music for Pets platform fits perfectly into our business model as we continue to reinvent what it means to be a modern music company by building and investing into entertainment businesses that have a direct meaningful relationship with their audience and fans and have complete ownership of all IP.  This market is massive and there is a reason that Amman and Ricardo’s company has been nicknamed ‘Petflix.’”

Ahmed said: “We hear from pet owners all over the world that Relax My Dog and Relax My Cat have made a huge positive impact on their pets’ overall emotional health.”

“Our mission is to make the world’s pets happier, and we’re excited to take this next step with Create Music Group.”

“Create has built an unparalleled distribution network for music and entertainment, including a network of owned  brands on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok that will give our music a huge opportunity to be heard by even more pets and their owners around the world.”

Amman Ahmed, Music For Pets

Ahmed added: “Create has built an unparalleled distribution network for music and entertainment, including a network of owned  brands on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok that will give our music a huge opportunity to be heard by even more pets and their owners around the world,”

“We’re thrilled to be working with Jonathan, Alexandre [Williams] and Wayne [Hampton] as we chart the next phase of growth for Music for Pets.” 

Music Business Worldwide