Rod Stewart banks US$100 million for song catalog

NEW YORK: Rod Stewart, the singer whose hits include “Maggie May,” is the latest artist to sell the rights to his music, The Wall Street Journal said Thursday.

The paper said Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group acquired Stewart’s interests in his recorded music and publishing catalog, as well as some rights to his name as likeness, for a tidy sum of nearly US$100 million.

News of the sale comes less than a week after reports of a blockbuster deal reached by Sony to acquire half of Michael Jackson’s recording and publishing catalog rights from his estate.

Details of that transaction are scant, but reports from Billboard and The New York Times say it is likely the largest valuation of a single musician’s assets.

The Times, citing people briefed on the deal, said it valued Jackson’s assets at US$1.2 billion or more, a valuation Billboard said meant Sony was paying at least US$600 million for the stake.

Music rights in recent years became a hot market after a flurry of sales that saw the likes of Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Nicks and Neil Young cash in on their catalogs.

The burgeoning market appeared to cool somewhat, but the Stewart and Jackson deals are clear indications demand remains.

According to the WSJ, Azoff’s Iconic has raised more than US$1 billion in new capital to put towards catalog acquisitions.

Music catalogues are attractive as an asset class that investors see as having long-term value in the age of streaming.

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

Recording rights govern reproduction and distribution. — AFP