Folk legend Bob Dylan has sold his entire publishing catalog to Universal Music for an estimated $300 million, which the New York Times described as one of the largest acquisitions of a single artist’s publishing in history. This deal reportedly includes “100 percent of his rights for all the songs of his catalog, including both the income he receives as a songwriter and his control of each song’s copyright.”
This deal includes around 600 songs from Dylan’s catalog, including some track’s he co-wrote and The Band’s “The Weight,” the only song he didn’t write but owned the rights to. This deal does not mention any future songs that the artist will write and record.
“To represent the body of work of one of the greatest songwriters of all time — whose cultural importance can’t be overstated — is both a privilege and a responsibility,” Jody Gerson of Universal’s publishing division said in a statement to BrooklynVegan.
Dylan has previously amassed the entirety of his catalog, with the exception of his first seven songs including “Song for Woody” and “Talkin’ New York,” which were recorded when he signed his deal with Leeds Publishing. The company sold the rights to these tracks in 1964 to MCA, which is now Universal.
The iconic artist is still making music to this day and released his first album in eight years Rough and Rowdy Ways back in June. Although the performer was snubbed during the Grammys this year, the handwritten lyrics for his 1963 classic “Blowin’ In The Wind” sold for nearly half a million dollars.
Leave a Comment