Riptide team, from left: VP creative Dan Silver,; partner Mark Ross; president Rich Goldman; and CEO Kealty Haldeman. (Photos/collage by David R. Fenner)

Synch house Riptide Music Group has secured a $4 million expansion investment from entertainment scion Mark Ross, who joins as a partner in the company, which provides music for advertising, trailers, TV shows, videogames and multi-media, productions in addition to rights management.

Ross is the son of Steve Ross, a beloved figure in the industry who parlayed his investment in New York City parking lots into the media empire that became Warner Communications,  which he founded and ran as CEO before merging with Time Inc. in 1989 and becoming CEO of Time Warner, Inc. He died in 1992 at age 65.

The move comes at a time when production music and libraries are hot investment trends, with BMG purchasing Hollywood’s Immediate Music and AXS.  Riptide president Rich Goldman and CEO Keatly Haldeman said they will use the warchest to fund expansion, acquiring music and signing and developing new songwriters, producers, and recording artists.

In the course of a three-decade career Mark Ross has been involved in multiple facets of the music and film businesses and served as executive director of Quincy Jones Productions, where he worked for 20 years. He’s had a hand in projects by artists including Michael Jackson, Bob Dylan, Herbie Hancock, Paul Simon, Alicia Keys, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder, among many others.

His connections and breadth of knowledge should prove useful at Riptide, whose recent placements include commercials for Apple, Carl’s Jr., and Google Chromecast as well as film campaigns for John Wick 2, Valerian and the City Of a Thousand Planets and Get Out!.

Riptide’s pop development unit, Incubator, scored a win this past year with Atlantic Records artist Terror Jr.’s hit single “Come First,” which has generated more than 85 million Spotify plays. Incubator also scored singles for Armada Records, Revealed Recordings and CR2.

Additionally, Riptide has further developed its DIVER division, which is focused on record label and artist sync services. DIVER exclusively represents Dine Alone Records, Canada’s largest indie label, for worldwide sync representation. The DIVER roster is filled with new label releases, providing music supervisors and brands with access to current touring and buzz artists.

“Mark is passionate about music publishing, and we look forward to working with him,” Haldeman said in welcoming Ross to the fold, noting that his cash infusion will help the company better serve its roster of music creators and expand globally.

Goldman added that both he and Ross “cut our chops in recording studios and as music producers, which enabled us to bond immediately. Mark’s a music guy to the core, and he brings a world of knowledge, relationships and enthusiasm and shares our vision in the unlimited potential of Riptide Music Group.”

Dan Silver, Riptide’s VP of Creative, said, “This new partnership with Mark Ross fuels a broader reach for us to brands, studios, and music supervisors with our various catalogs. It will also help us to increase our artists’ value in the marketplace, which will ultimately broaden the audiences for those artists. Mark’s investment, depth of experience, and extensive industry relationships are sure to power an energetic new growth phase for Riptide.”

Ross began his career as a tape librarian at Atlantic Studios. In addition to running Quincy Jones Productions he also managed his own label imprint at Universal Records. He was an early backer of the seminal independent film firm InDigEnt. Currently, Ross is an advisor and investor in Music Audience Exchange, a technology company that helps consumer brands and music artists form mutually beneficial partnerships.

Based in Culver City, Calif., Riptide Music Group was formed in early 2014 by the merger of Riptide Music and indie synch firm Pigfactory. RMG is  comprised of five operating units: Riptide Rights looks after publishing and master rights for administration and sync representation; Riptide One, a carefully curated catalog of independent artists, bands, producers and composers, master and  publishing controlled 100% by Riptide; Pacifica Music Library, a modern production music library focused on current popular music styles; DIVER, a boutique catalog of label-signed, active and touring artists; and Incubator, Riptide’s pop and urban songwriter, producer and artist development division.