Even in the afterlife, Michael Jackson continues to make history.
According to Variety, the late legendary pop singer’s estate could be preparing to sell half of his music catalog in a deal that would potentially become the largest to date within the music catalog industry.
NPR reported in 2016 that Sony Corporation would pay Michael Jackson’s estate $750 million for his 50 percent stake in Sony/ATV music publishing.
The story behind Jackson’s ownership rights stemmed from his relationship with Paul McCartney who once advised a young MJ that in order to get a return on his investment as an artist, he needed to own the publishing of his hit songs.
At the time, Jackson joked that one day he would “own” McCartney’s songs.
And eventually, he did, when he outbid the former Beatles member for the publishing rights to the majority of the Beatles’ catalog for $47 million, according to History.
Now, along with Sony, “A financial source tells Variety that Primary Wave Music already owns a stake in Jackson’s publishing catalog, although details are unclear.”
And while sources have not confirmed the financial partner involved in the alleged deal, Variety suggests that Eldridge Industries and Shamrock, who have been behind massive catalog acquisitions of music by artists like Bruce Springsteen and Dr. Dre, could be at the forefront of the deal.
According to a 2018 earnings report, Sony also acquired the Michael Jackson estate’s 25.1 percent stake in EMI Music Publishing for $287.5 million — which further explains why the alleged deal on the table could potentially become the biggest one to date.
At this time, reps for the Jackson estate, co-executors John Branca and John McClain, Sony, and Primary Wave have yet to make a statement on the speculations.
