Jeez, what started out as a slow morning turned into quite a busy afternoon. A friend tipped us on this a couple of days ago and after a few inquiries, we’ve now received clarification/confirmation on the matter from Droga5 itself. No, David Droga did not sell his whole operation to talent agency William Morris Endeavor for something well into the nine figures (some are reporting less than half of what we heard), but the latter has indeed acquired a minority stake in Droga5. In a statement, Droga himself says, “Droga5 has always endeavored to be the most influential creative agency in the business, with ideas that move our clients and our industry forward. This partnership will exponentially accelerate our ability to realize that ambition.”
Despite the minority stake acquisition, the management of Droga5’s agency operations will not change according to the parties involved. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Adding to the mix, might as well throw in the statements from WME’s head honchos Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, who say, “Droga5 is best-in-class across the board—from its management to its creative output. Through this investment, we will be able to join the best artists and storytellers from all verticals, and we look forward to creating new opportunities for our collective clients.”