Justin Bieber sells music catalogue for $200 million

Justin Bieber sells music rights for $200 million

The deal with the ‘Never Say Never’ singer was one of the ‘biggest’ for an artist under 70

Justin Bieber has sold 100 percent of his back catalog to the British investment firm Hipgnosis Songs Fund. Hipgnosis purchased the publishing rights, master recordings, and neighboring rights to all of Bieber’s previously released music for a sum of more than $200 million, sources told Variety and Billboard. Per these reports, it’s the largest music-rights acquisition in the company’s portfolio, which also includes full or partial rights to the catalogs of 50 Cent, Blondie, Jack Antonoff, Jimmy Iovine, Justin Timberlake, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Red Hot Chili Peppers, RZA, Shakira, Skrillex, Timbaland, and Tom DeLonge, among others.

“Justin is truly a once in a generation artist and that is reflected and acknowledged by the magnitude of this deal,” Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun said in a statement. “For 15 years I have been grateful to witness this journey, and today I am happy for all those involved. Justin’s greatness is just beginning.”

The deal includes all of Bieber’s 291 songs released before the end of 2021 up to his latest album “Justice.”

Following the sale, Bieber’s master recordings will reportedly still be administered by Universal Music, and the company will still own the master recordings in perpetuity.

Bieber’s catalog is reportedly the largest acquisition for the music rights group and reportedly one of the largest for a musician his age.

“The impact of Justin Bieber on global culture over the last 14 years has truly been remarkable.

“At only 28 years of age, he is one of a handful of defining artists of the streaming era that has revitalized the entire music industry, taking a loyal and worldwide audience with him on a journey from teen phenomenon to culturally important artist.

“This acquisition ranks among the biggest deals ever made for an artist under the age of 70, such is the power of this incredible catalogue that has almost 82 million monthly listeners and over 30 billion streams on Spotify alone.

Justin Timberlake, Neil Young, Kenny Chesney, Leonard Cohen, Nile Rodgers and Nelly Furtado previously inked similar deals with Hipgnosis. Timberlake sold his catalog for a little more than $100 million, and Young 50% of his for about $150 million.

In 2020, Bob Dylan sold his song catalog to Universal Music Publishing for $400 million.

Generally, publishing rights are not as valuable as the actual recorded songs and albums; however, revenue from advertising and movie licensing can provide a significant profit over a period of time, especially for popular artists like Bieber.

In June, Justin Bieber announced he had been diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called Ramsay Hunt Syndrome and postponed the remainder of his Justice tour. He went back on the road a month later, but cut his late-summer South American run short in September, citing exhaustion.

Also, The Doors have sold an exhaustive slate of branding and publishing rights in a “monumental” deal.

Indie publisher Primary Wave Music has acquired rights previously owned by guitarist Robby Krieger and the estate of late keyboarding Ray Manzarek in relation to the band’s publishing catalogue, master recordings, trademarks, merchandising options and income.

The rights owed to drummer John Densmore and late frontman Jim Morrison were not included in the sale, and Primary Wave is yet to reveal how much they paid.

In a statement, Krieger said: “After 58 years, and the most magical of times, I’ve decided to sell my share of The Doors to Primary Wave.

“This will enable me to help the many charities I’ve been involved with, and some new ones too. I know Primary Wave cares about music, art, and about helping legacies go to even bigger levels.

“Our longtime Doors manager Jeff Jampol will still be protecting our legacy in partnership with Primary Wave, so I’m comfortable and happy with the future of The Doors.”

Meanwhile, Manzarek’s widow Dorothy added that the family were “happy” with the agreement.

She said in her own statement: “Ray and I spent a lot of time discussing the future of The Doors’ legacy, and how to handle things after he departed this plane.

“Our family has worked patiently to find the right partners to continue Ray’s lifelong efforts in protecting and promoting his art, and now we are happy to have finally come to an agreement with Primary Wave.

“Under the continued guidance of our manager, Jeff Jampol, Primary Wave will be the right partners in this endeavor to build future generations of new Doors fans.”

The group was first formed in 1965 and stayed together until 1973, reuniting five years later.

With Morrison, they released six studio albums, starting with 1967’s self-titled debut and ending with ‘L.A. Woman’ in 1971.

They continued as a trio after his death, going onto release ‘Other Voices’ and ‘Full Circle’ in 1971 and 1972 respectively, before getting back together for 1978’s ‘An American Prayer’, which saw them set some of their late frontman’s spoken word recordings to music.

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