2024-02-13 13:45:16
There was Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Sting… Now there is Michael Jackson. Until then, the record for selling music rights to a star was held by rock star Bruce Springsteen. Sony Music had bought its biggest musical hits for an amount of around 500 million euros. But the Japanese firm took out the checkbook once more and paid a colossal sum for acquire half of the catalog of Michael Jackson, who died in 2009. If Sony has not revealed the official amount, several American media, including Variety et Billboardspeak of an amount ranging from $600 to $900 million.
According to Variety, discussions would be held between Sony and a potential financial partner. If the acquisition were to go through, Sony would hold 50% of its rights, as well as those of the Broadway show, MJ: The Musical and the future biopic Michael. According to Billboard, Michael Jackson’s entire music catalog is valued at between $1.2 and $1.5 billion. This means, for example, that this total value exceeds that claimed for that of Queen. In the deal, Sony would also have negotiated 250 titles which were not written by the “King of Pop”.
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READ ALSO After Bob Dylan and Springsteen, Sting also sells his musical catalog for a considerable sum
A profitable operation for Sony?
These would be songs written or performed by Jerry Lee Lewis, Jackie Wilson, Curtis Mayfield, Ray Charles or Percy Sledge. Last year, Billboard had already established that Michael Jackson’s musical universe brought in $75 million to his heirs each year. Sales and streams of the star’s albums continue to grow since 2020, increasing from 1.07 million to 1.74 million last year. Enough to bring in big money for Sony. And outside the United States, Michael Jackson’s popularity is perhaps even greater, with a 38.3% increase in streams.
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Neither Sony nor the heirs of the American star wished to respond to requests from the American media. Still according to Billboard, over the years, Sony has already paid more than two billion dollars to its heirs under different contracts. Among the most lucrative albums, there is of course Thriller (1982) which was certified 30 times platinum. In January 2023, Justin Bieber had already sold his entire catalog to Hipgnosis, just like Dr. Dre to Universal Music and Shamrock Holdings.
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