The music catalogue of the cult band Queen could soon change hands. Sony Music’s negotiations are still ongoing – and involve a record sum of up to one billion dollars.
Between their formation in 1970 and the death of their singer Freddie Mercury (1946-1991) in 1991, the British rock band Queen developed into a real hit machine. With songs like “We Will Rock You”, “Another One Bites the Dust” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” they wrote music history around the world. Now, according to reports, their mega hits are changing hands as a package and could bring in a record sum.
The music giant Sony Music is currently negotiating with another investor to purchase the cult band’s entire music catalog. In addition to the music rights, this mega deal could also include other marketing opportunities such as merchandising. A potential purchase price of up to one billion US dollars is being discussed.
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As the magazine further reports, the remaining band members Brian May (76), Roger Taylor (74), John Deacon (72) and the estate of Freddie Mercury are equal shareholders in Queen Productions Ltd, which, according to company information, generated sales of 52 million dollars in 2022.
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In recent years, some well-known music greats have sold their songwriting catalogs. For example, Bruce Springsteen’s (74) back catalog was sold to Sony for an estimated $500 million in 2021, while Warner Music spent around $250 million on songs by David Bowie (1947-2016) in 2022.
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
