Bruce Springsteen Sells His Music Rights To Sony For $500 Billion

Bruce Springsteen has reportedly sold the rights of his entire music catalog to Sony. The deal includes both the masters of Springsteen’s recorded music, which he sold to Sony Music, and his work as a songwriter, which he sold to Sony Music Publishing.

The deal includes over 300 songs, 20 studio albums, 23 live LPs, and more. Among these are major hits such as Springsteen’s 15-times platinum album, “Born in the U.S.A.,” as well as his five-times platinum album, “The River.”

The combined deal cost an estimated $500 million. Sources believe that this is the most expensive music rights purchase in history. As of now, no official announcement from Sony or Springsteen has been made about the deal.

Recently, there has been a spike in the purchasing of artists’ music and publishing catalogs. This trend owes to the rise in music streaming, in which investors find promising revenue potential. Investors also hope to profit from film and TV licensing, merchandise and the royalties from cover versions and performances.

In May, Sony Music chief executive Rob Stringer said that the company spent more than $1.4 billion on acquiring music rights in the previous six months.

Other recent artists who have sold their music catalogs include Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, David Bowie, Shakira, Neil Young and Paul Simon. Last year, Dylan sold his publishing catalog to Universal Music Publishing group for a reported $300 million. Nicks sold a majority stake in her catalog for a reported $100 million.

Singer-songwriter Springsteen has worked with Sony’s Columbia Records for the entirety of his 50-year music career. Now 72, the New Jersey native has sold more than 150 million records and won 20 Grammys. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, and is known by many as one of the most successful rock musicians of all time.