Tina Turner sells back catalogue rights for £225 million
BMG is calling the deal its largest acquisition ever
Tina Turner has become the latest artist to sell the rights to her back catalogue, having struck a lucrative new deal with BMG.
A statement released by BMG said yesterday (October 5) that the company will become “a partner in all of Tina Turner’s music interests.” The deal is described as its single largest artist acquisition ever.
The $300 million (£225 million) deal sees BMG acquire Turner’s artist’s share of her recordings, her writer’s share of publishing and her neighboring rights. BMG has also secured rights to her name, image and likeness for brand partnership, merchandising and sponsorship usages.
Turner’s sizeable solo discography encompasses ten studio albums including the 5x platinum ‘Private Dancer’, and 72 singles including six US top ten hits. Altogether, she has sold over 100 million records.
Warner Music will remain Turner’s record label, and will maintain the share in her records that it has held since she first went solo in the early 1980s.
“Like any artist, the protection of my life’s work, my musical inheritance, is something personal,” Turner said. “I am confident that with BMG and Warner Music my work is in professional, reliable hands.”
BMG CEO Hartwig Masuch added: “We are honored to take on the job of managing Tina Turner’s musical and commercial interests. It is a responsibility we take seriously and will pursue diligently. She is truly and simply, the best.”
Turner follows a slew of high-profile artists to have sold the rights to their back catalogue in recent months. In December 2020, Bob Dylan’s deal with Universal for his songwriting catalogue also fetched $300 million.
One of the most prolific acquirers of artists’ rights is Hipgnosis Songs, who said in July that they have spent at least $1 billion (£720 million) across deals with artists including Blondie and both Lindsey Buckingham and Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac.
They also now own Interscope Records co-founder Jimmy Iovine’s worldwide producer royalties and half of Neil Young’s songs, with the second deal thought to be worth $150 million (£110 million).
In August, the three youngest of Prince’s six siblings sold a controlling stake in the rights to the late musician’s intellectual property to New York independent music publisher and talent management company Primary Wave.