If the sale takes place, it will be the biggest deal of its kind in the history of recorded music.
Sony Music is reportedly in talks to buy the music catalogue of the rock band Queen, including hits like Bohemian Rhapsody, Radio Ga Ga and Another One Bites The Dust.The BBC understands that negotiations are still under way and may not result in a sale.
Earlier this year, Sony also acquired a 50% interest in Michael Jackson’s music from the late singer’s estate - at a cost of at least $600 million .Queen are more popular than either of those artists, with 52 million monthly listeners on Spotify - compared to 41 million for Jackson and 20 million for Springsteen.
It was even the 20th-biggest seller of 2023, beating new releases by Ed Sheeran and the Rolling Stones. The deals provide immediate financial security to the artists and their estates, while the rights holders hope to profit by building new revenue streams for the music via film and TV licensing, merchandise, cover versions and performance royalties.
The investment fund Hipgnosis, which owns the rights to music by artists from Beyoncé to Barry Manilow, recently agreed to a $1.6bn takeover by the private equity firm Blackstone, after months of turmoil over the company’s governance and management structure.Despite that, Queen's catalogue is highly sought after, simply because of the longevity of their music.
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