Music booms with high-profile sales

The sector has witnessed an upward trend despite the pandemic

New York: The pandemic has left the performance industry reeling, but music publishing, a normally under-the-radar side of the business, is roaring thanks to a frenzy of high-profile music catalog sales.

The royalty streams of songwriting copyright portfolios can prove lucrative for the long haul, and increasingly are enticing investors even as other industries tank under the pandemic’s weight.

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In many cases, the transactions have come at staggering prices: Bob Dylan sold his full publishing catalog for a reported sum of $300 million to Universal Music Publishing Group, while Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac sold a majority stake in her catalog reportedly for $100 million.

Neil Young and the duo behind Blondie inked deals for undisclosed amounts, as did Shakira. Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood, both also of Fleetwood Mac, each recently announced sales that include publishing copyrights to hits including the 1977 song “Dreams,” which recently enjoyed a streaming renaissance after going viral on TikTok.

The owners of a song’s publishing rights receive a cut in a number of scenarios, including radio play and streaming, album sales, and use in advertising and movies.

The “fantastically positive” sales trend began well before 2020, but rapidly escalated even as other sectors suffered due to Covid-19, said Nari Matsuura, a partner at the firm Massarsky Consulting, which valuates catalogs for lenders and music publishing groups along with private equity and music funds.

Meanwhile, many artists unable to tour have looked to monetize their other assets, namely songwriting catalogs, as the valuations of their work continue to rise.”We have seen names, these incredibly iconic artists… (who) we never imagined would sell,” Matsuura said.

For David Crosby — the star singer-songwriter and founding member of both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills and Nash, who said late last year he was selling his own catalog — it’s mostly because the pandemic has halted live performance, which many artists depend on.

“The main reason is simply that we’ve all been sort of forcibly retired, and can’t do anything about it,” he told AFP via video chat from his California home.

The company leading much of the business is Hipgnosis Songs Fund, a British investment and management company introduced on the London Stock Exchange in July 2018.Other major players include Primary Wave, which struck the Nicks deal, along with funds including Tempo Investments, Round Hill and Reservoir.