Dan Gilbert has added an interesting twist to his expansive portfolio.
Business Insider reports that he's invested $40 million in Rap Genius, a web site that decodes and annotates rap lyrics.
Rebecca Borison of Business Insider writes:
It all began when Ilon Zechory, one of the three cofounders, introduced himself to Gilbert at a Detroit Lions game this past Thanksgiving. Both of Gilbert's sons, who were with him at the game, had heard of Rap Genius, and Zechory and Gilbert got to chatting about running a company. One thing led to another, and Zechory was invited to visit Gilbert in his office the next week.
Zechory showed up and gave his pitch about Rap Genius. Gilbert was impressed and asked to meet with all three cofounders in Cleveland. The talks then moved towards a possible investment, but it was quickly put on hold thanks to a minor crisis with Google.
Rap Genius eventually overcame its troubles with Google, and in February Gilbert offered to lead a $40 million investment, valuing the company at several hundred million dollars. Rap Genius kept the deal under wraps for a few months to coincide with the arrival of the site's new domain name, Genius.com. And now the news is out.
We first saw this item on the Motor City Muckraker. -- A.L.