Paul Simon, who’s sold an interest in his body of work to BMG. Photo Credit: Jake Edwards/BMG
About 27 months after Sony Music Publishing purchased Paul Simon’s publishing catalog, the artist has sold “his royalty income in Simon & Garfunkel recordings as well as his neighboring rights income” to BMG.
The Bertelsmann-owned music company and the Newark-born musician unveiled their deal today, via a release that was emailed to DMN. While the involved parties opted not to disclose the “substantial” transaction’s precise financials, execs did take the opportunity to emphasize the sizable number of streams that Simon & Garfunkel hits such as “The Sound of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson,” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” have racked up.
More broadly, BMG also underscored that it had during 2022 closed north of 45 music-IP investments, with its deals during the past two years extending to the work of Harry Nilsson, Mötley Crüe, John Lee Hooker, John Legend, Mick Fleetwood, and Tina Turner, to name some.
Driving home the point, incoming BMG CEO Thomas Coesfeld (who’s set to replace Hartwig Masuch next month) made clear his belief “that BMG provides the best home for the greatest artists.”
“We are delighted to have secured the agreement of Paul Simon for BMG to acquire his royalty interests in Simon & Garfunkel recordings and his neighboring rights income,” communicated Coesfeld, whose company owns The Hollies’ recorded catalog. “This is a significant transaction. Our ability to secure this deal demonstrates once again that BMG provides the best home for the greatest artists.”
And in remarks of his own, Thomas Scherer, BMG’s president of repertoire and marketing for Los Angeles and New York, relayed: “In any list of the true greats, Paul Simon stands as one of the pillars of popular music history. We will play our part to ensure his music continues to be honored and respected.”
Though 81-year-old Paul Simon didn’t provide a statement for BMG’s announcement message, the veteran act revealed last month that he had lost nearly all hearing in his left ear – seemingly rendering future live performances unlikely.
Back to the catalog space, Pimco– and KKR-partnered BMG isn’t the only company that’s continuing to purchase music IP, with June’s first three weeks alone having likewise delivered plays and/or raises from Primary Wave, Beyond Music, Anthem Entertainment, Peermusic, and CTM Outlander. Additionally, reports have suggested that Universal Music Group is plotting an over billion-dollar buyout of Queen’s body of work.