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Berlin (AP) - Bob Dylan did it, shortly afterwards Neil Young, now Shakira and Mick Fleetwood.
Many others in the second tier of pop celebs are also throwing concerns overboard.
More and more musicians are parting with their song rights - because record sales and, in times of the Corona, also concert revenues are now collapsing, while revenues from the audio streaming and TV series boom are becoming all the more valuable for the industry.
"Many musicians have no idea how rich they actually are," says Hartwig Masuch from the major label BMG according to the "Financial Times".
Nonetheless: even well-heeled pop and rock heroes have long been raking in the easily earned money - despite the possible allegations of greed and treason from idealistic fans.
For example, US song poet and Nobel Prize laureate Bob Dylan (79) spoke in December of around 300 million dollars (almost 250 million euros), which he received from the world's leading label Universal for his complete oeuvre with 600 recordings (including classics such as “Blowin ' In The Wind ”and“ Knockin 'On Heaven's Door ”).
The folk pioneer had previously controlled the music publishing rights himself, but is said to have been negotiating a sale for a long time.
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Dylan and his peers do not openly admit that giving rights to a serious buyer at an advanced age is a relief.
But it can be accepted.
And: Rock veterans also want to have their own legacy well organized - and bring their music to the start for future generations of listeners.
Mick Fleetwood (73), drummer and founder of Fleetwood Mac, has just sold his shares in the catalog of the 1970s megaband to BMG - “three months after the Fleetwood Mac classic“ Dreams ”captured TikTok and thus millions of new fans worldwide “As the company proudly wrote about the deal on Thursday.
A purchase price was not mentioned here either.
The Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young (75), who continues to be a very active rock warrior, has sold 50 percent of the rights to 1180 songs to the British company Hipgnosis Songs Fund.
“There will never be a“ Burger Of Gold ”- with these words via Twitter, Hipgnosis boss Merck Mercuriadis promised a sensitive approach to his new property - alluding to Young's world hit“ Heart Of Gold ”.
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They work together "to make sure that everyone gets to hear them (the songs) on Neil's terms."
The fund manager wrote, not without pathos, that it was about “shared integrity, ethics and passion, born of a belief in music (...)”.
Mercuriadis owns (and cultivates with such euphoric expressions) the image of a pop fanatic who wants to do everything for the best of his clientele.
He has worked in the industry for 40 years, including the manager of Beyoncé, Elton John and the Pet Shop Boys.
The 57-year-old also celebrated his latest coup with a Twitter greeting: "Welcome to the Hipgnosis family, Shakira."
The Colombian artist (43), from whom his company acquired the entire catalog with 145 songs and world hits like “Hips Don't Lie” according to a statement on Thursday, is “one of the most serious and successful songwriters of the last 25 years”.
Hipgnosis had recently announced the purchase of publishing rights from the former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham (“Go Your Own Way”, “The Chain”).
According to a BBC report, the London music investment fund spent a billion pounds (a good 1.1 billion euros) on songs by Mark Ronson, Chic, Barry Manilow and Blondie.
Such songs are "as valuable as an investment as gold or oil," the British broadcaster quoted the manager Mercuriadis as saying.
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Hipgnosis (named after the designers of the iconic Pink Floyd record covers of the 1970s) is said to have more than 57,000 songs in its portfolio, with new acquisitions as diverse as Nikki Sixx, Chrissie Hynde, LA Reid and RZA.
The fund reached billions in value after its rapid shopping spree in 2020, wrote the website "Music Business Worldwide" in December.
The investments should be worthwhile: Timeless pop hits are something of an anchor of stability in the Spotify / Apple / Deezer era with massively growing audio streaming (and especially in view of the turbulent music market in the Corona crisis).
In addition, there are advertising as well as TV and streaming series that rely on authentic background music - and whose makers leaf out money for song rights.
But there are also artists who struggle with the business model.
For example, the song catalog of Taylor Swift (31), one of the world's biggest pop stars at the moment, was sold for over $ 300 million, according to media reports.
"This was the second time that my music was sold without my knowledge," the US singer recently complained in a protest statement.
Now she is recording her older songs anew - that is "exciting and creatively fulfilling".
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210115-99-34578 / 3
Billboard Articles
Tweet Hipgnosis / Shakira
Tweet Hipgnosis / Young
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BBC report on Hipgnosis / Young
Report of the "Financial Times" (December 2020)
Music Business Worldwide Report (December 2020)