Deals
KKR, BMG Acquire Songwriter John Legend’s Music Catalog
- Companies strike deal for copyrights, royalties from his music
- High valuations are pushing more and more musicians to sell
John Legend joined the growing list of superstars cashing in on the boom market for music rights, selling a catalog dating back to his first album to an alliance of KKR & Co. and BMG.
The songwriter and performer sold both the copyrights as well as the rights to receive royalties from music he wrote from late 2004 through early last year, according to a regulatory filing. DL Music IP LP, an affiliate of San Francisco-based KKR Credit Advisors (US) LLC, and BMG Rights Management (US) LLC each purchased a 50% stake in the catalog. Financial terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed.