‘Peaches’ singer Justin Bieber is reportedly closing in on a sweet deal for the sale of his music catalog.
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Per Billboard, the performer is on the cusp of selling his interests/share in his rerecorded music and publishing catalogs to Hipgnosis Songs Capital in a deal north of $200 million.
It’s claimed that the deal, which would include the acquisition of JB’s biggest hits such as ‘Baby’ and ‘Love Yourself,’ is set to complete within the next few days.
Should the pact proceed, it will see Bieber become the latest major name to sell interest in their music catalog to Hipgnosis – following in the footsteps of stars such as Shakira and Justin Timberlake.
Though a star since his teens, Bieber’s catalog – at just over a decade old – is actually considered by some critics to be in its infancy (compared to more robust offerings from more seasoned superstars).
This in turn renders it a risky investment – according to some – given that the catalog ultimately hasn’t proven its potency and commercial vitality over the course of time. Put simply, it’s essentially untested.
Historically, young catalogs tend to therefore attract smaller acquisition sums. Yet, in Bieber’s case, this could arguably be offset by some of the marquee smashes he has in his arsenal. Thus making the notion of “sell now rather than risk it by waiting” a plausible rationale to cash out.
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It’s important to stress that there’s no confirmation as to what Bieber’s motivations to sell are. But this may provide reasonable insights.
Whatever the case, this seemingly inevitable deal is yet more confirmation that the music business is shape-shifting in a major way.
Once defined by the sales of recorded music, the onset of digital and the contemporary proliferation of streaming platforms have seen revenue streams for artists diversify in earnest.
Indeed, now income (and income potential) from touring and endorsements significantly trumps that of music. And it looks like an increasing number of artists have internalized this memo and are making moves accordingly.