This is an excerpt from the booklet “The Complete Guide to Music Catalog Sales” by Silvino Edward Díaz, Esq., music attorney and Chair of the Entertainment Law Group at EPGD Business Law (Miami, FL).
The sale of music catalogs has long been a practice in the industry. Simply look back at 1969 at when Beatles members Paul McCartney and John Lennon sold their interests in Northern Songs—which held their copyrights—to ATV Music for about $58.9 million (adjusted for inflation). By 1985, Michael Jackson purchased publishing rights to thousands of titles owned by ATV, including 251 Beatles songs, for around $200 million (adjusted for inflation). By 1995, MJ sold 50% of ATV for $100 million, while the other half was sold in 2016 for $750 million.
Why have catalog sales increased in the past years?
Before 2018, the music catalog market was relatively small—under $1 billion of annual deal volume—but increased by 2020. Over $5 billion was spent on music rights acquisitions in 2021, with some sources estimating it closer to $7 billion. This rise occurred for many reasons, a “perfect storm” so to speak: a COVID-era need for alternative music income; public data availability (Spotify streams, YouTube views, etc.); historically low interest rates; private equity investor interest; and growing sources of income due to technology.
As to COVID alternative incomes, in 2020, due to lockdowns, income from live events such as concerts was severely impacted. Thus, artists were forced to find alternate revenue streams, such as selling their music catalogs.
Regarding public data, increased use of YouTube, Spotify and iTunes for music consumption provides a credible source of data and reporting on song performance. This allows for a more precise determination of value with respect to catalogs.
As to interest rates, in 2020, interest rates and inflation were at historic lows due to the pandemic. Central banks, like the U.S. Federal Reserve, slashed interest rates to stimulate economic activity. Investors were then disincentivized from leaving their money in traditional fixed income assets such as bonds and treasuries, since rates are low and don’t pay much. They were more willing to consider alternative, riskier forms of investments, but still searched to earn returns on their cash without a high risk of losing their principal. Enter music rights catalogs.
Private equity investors also wanted in. Surrounded by lower inflation and interest rates, investors began trekking from traditional assets to alternative investments uncorrelated to those in their portfolios. Music seldom correlates to broader economic activity, and is thus viewed as a non-correlated diversified asset. Investors’ interest was also piqued by the recurring nature of music royalties: a source of predictable, recurring income, collected by several different distributors, with income paid periodically to rights holders. This attractive predictability is typically found in asset classes such as real estate and bonds.
Further, the music industry is growing due to rising streaming service prices, higher royalty rates, and new monetization methods from emerging platforms. Recorded music rights will likely continue to benefit from partnerships with gaming and technology companies—like Epic Games, Bytedance, Roblox—in addition to the emergence of novel Web3 use cases, such as non-fungible tokens. In fact, recorded music industry revenues increased 18.5% in 2021.
What are some recent notable deals in the past years?
One of the most notable music catalog deals in history is when Sony Music acquired 50% of Michael Jackson’s catalog in 2024 for $600 million. This is considered one of the largest ever acquisitions for a single musician’s catalog, valuing all of Jackson’s musical assets at around $1.2 billion.
In 2019, the master recordings for Taylor Swift’s first six albums were sold for a reported $300 million to music executive Scooter Braun’s investment holding company Ithaca Holdings after acquiring Swift’s former label Big Machine Label Group. Swift publicly objected to the sale, saying she had tried but was unable to purchase her masters herself, and proceeded to rerecord and rerelease the albums. Ithaca later sold the masters for an estimated $300 million to investment firm Shamrock Capital Advisors, who sold the masters back to Swift in 2025 for an undisclosed sum.
Also in 2020, Universal Music Group acquired Bob Dylan’s songwriting catalog—including both its publisher and writer shares—for more than $300 million. Dylan received 25 times what his songs generated annually.
In 2023, Dr. Dre sold several music assets to Shamrock Capital and Universal Music Group for around $200 million. This included royalties from two solo albums; his share of N.W.A. artist royalties; his producer royalties; and the writer’s share of his song catalog. That year, Hipgnosis Songs Capital acquired Justin Bieber’s writer’s share, artist’s share of neighboring rights, and recorded‑music royalties for about $200 million (Bieber’s recorded music masters are still owned by Universal Music Group). Also that year, Katy Perry sold her music catalog to Litmus Music for a reported $225 million, including hits like “Firework,” “California Gurls” and “I Kissed a Girl.”
In the Latin American industry, Hipgnosis bought 100% of Shakira’s publishing catalog—spanning 145 songs—in 2021. While Hipgnosis owns all of the publisher and writer’s shares of Shakira’s catalog, Sony and other labels still own her master‑recording rights. Meanwhile, in 2024, Concord acquired a portion of Daddy Yankee’s publishing rights and master recordings for approximately $217.3 million, including hits like “Gasolina” and “Despacito.”
If you have questions or would like to discuss the purchase of music assets, please contact EPGD Business Law in Miami, Florida, at (786) 837-6787 or email us to schedule a consultation.
EPGD Business Law is located in beautiful Coral Gables. Call us at (786) 837-6787, or contact us through the website to schedule a consultation.
