Katy Perry Music Catalog Sale: Details of the $225 Million Rights Deal Revealed

Katy Perry stands out as one of the leading pop icons of her generation, boasting multiple Grammy nominations and a plethora of chart-topping hits. The singer made her breakthrough with the 2008 sensation “I Kissed A Girl”and has achieved remarkable success, selling over 143 million albums worldwide.

In September 2023, Katy Perry joined legendary artists such as Bob Dylan and David Bowie by selling her music rights, securing millions in the process. The rights were acquired by Litmus Music, a company established by Capitol Records president Dan McCarroll, for an estimated $225 million.

The agreement with Litmus Music covers Katy Perry’s five studio albums released from 2008 to 2020, which include “One of the Boys,””Prism,””Teenage Dream,””Smile,”and “Witness.”However, the master recordings of these albums will continue to be owned by Universal Music.

Commenting on the acquisition, McCarroll, who has a long-standing relationship with Katy Perry, stated:

“Katy Perry is a creative visionary who has made a significant impact across music, television, film, and philanthropy. I’m incredibly honored to be partnering with her again and to help Litmus manage her extraordinary catalog.” (via Variety)

Hank Forsyth, the co-founder and CEO of Litmus, also expressed his excitement about collaborating with Katy Perry, describing her music as “essential and integral to the global cultural landscape.”

“We believe this reflects our team’s capability to collaborate with the world’s top artists. Katy’s iconic songs have not only achieved remarkable commercial success but have profoundly influenced pop culture,” added Matt Seattle, Managing Director at Carlyle, the firm that backs Litmus Music.

Other Artists Who Have Sold Their Music Rights

David Bowie was a pioneer in this arena, securing a deal with Prudential Insurance Company of America back in 1997. Known as Bowie Bonds, this agreement quickly transformed him into a financial powerhouse, allowing him to earn approximately £44 million from selling the rights to his hits before 1990.

In 2020, Bob Dylan sold his music catalog to Universal Music for an estimated £322 million, and he further earned £161 million by selling the master recordings to Sony.

Justin Bieber also opted to sell the rights to his music prior to December 2021 for around £162 million. Other notable artists who have followed this trend include Timberland, Shakira, Justin Timberlake, Iggy Azalea, Neil Young, Barry Manilow, Blondie, Stevie Nicks, Chrissie Hynde, the Beach Boys, and Sting.

Artists Like Taylor Swift and Pink Floyd Who Retain Their Music Rights

Artists like Taylor Swift, Alice Cooper, and the band Pink Floyd are major figures in the music industry who have declined lucrative offers to maintain ownership of their music catalogs. Taylor Swift notably re-recorded several of her hits after her previous recordings were acquired by former manager Scooter Braun when he purchased Big Machine Records in 2019.

Alice Cooper has openly admitted to rejecting multi-million dollar offers to protect his life’s work for his family. Additionally, while there were rumors that Pink Floyd planned to sell their entire catalog for a staggering £403 million, the deal failed to materialize due to internal disagreements among the band members.

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