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Joining a growing group of artists who are selling their catalogues of music for considerable fees, mega-star Justin Bieber is the latest artist to sell the rights to his songs in a deal worth US $200 million – the biggest deal yet for any artist of his generation.
Hipgnosis Songs Capital has since acquired the rights to Bieber’s 290-song back catalogue, which include hits like “Baby” and “Sorry”. For the company, it means they will receive payments from every time a Justin Bieber song is played in public. It also means you’ll probably be hearing more Bieber tracks played throughout films, TV and commercials if the company choose to lease his songs out.
Justin Bieber has sold his entire music catalog for over $200 million. pic.twitter.com/38e0AVL5E3
— Pop Base (@PopBase) January 24, 2023
Hipgnosis, a US$1 billion venture between private equity firm Blackstone and the British Hipgnosis Song Management, also owns the rights to other artists’ catalogues, such as Justin Timberlake, Leonard Cohen, Kenny Chesney, Nelly Furtado and Shakira, in a time when more and more artists are looking to make a hefty sum off their lifetime of work. Hipgnosis, now owning a large catalogue of hit songs from an array of young artists, have invited big institutional investors to share in the proceeds, floating on the London Stock Exchange in July 2018. The value of evergreen songs is undeniably high, and one that will continue a return on investment – especially if you now own Justin Bieber’s music catalogue.
Music mogul Merck Mercuriadis, the founder of Hipgnosis, has spent a reported US$2bn on music deals since 2018.
“This acquisition ranks among the biggest deals ever made for an artist under the age of 70,” said Mercuriadis. “At only 28 years of age, he is one of a handful of defining artists of the streaming era that has revitalised the entire music industry.”
“The impact of Justin Bieber on global culture over the last 14 years has truly been remarkable.”
The act of an artist selling their entire music catalogue is trending in recent years, especially among artists who might be nearing the end of their careers. Take music legends Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, for example. Both artists respectively sold their back catalogue rights to Sony – it was reported Springsteen received US$500m for his life’s work.
