David Bowie’s estate sells publishing rights to ‘entire body of work’ to Warner Chappell Music
- Warner Chappell Music did not reveal financial terms of the agreement, but trade publication Variety said the price tag was upwards of US$250 million
- The announcement comes days before Bowie’s birthday on January 8, when he would have turned 75, as well as the sixth anniversary of his death on January 10
David Bowie’s estate has sold the publishing rights to his “entire body of work” to Warner Chappell Music, the company said on Monday, the latest massive deal of the recent song rights purchasing boom.
Warner Chappell did not reveal financial terms of the agreement, but trade publication Variety said the price tag was upwards of US$250 million.
The deal includes hundreds of songs spanning Bowie’s six-decade career, including Space Oddity, Changes, Life on Mars? and Heroes.
“All of us at Warner Chappell are immensely proud that the David Bowie estate has chosen us to be the caretakers of one of the most groundbreaking, influential, and enduring catalogs in music history,” said Guy Moot, head of WCM, in a statement.
“These are not only extraordinary songs, but milestones that have changed the course of modern music forever.”
The new deal means Warner now houses Bowie’s work as a songwriter as well as a recording artist.
Warner Music Group has handled much of Bowie’s recorded catalog since 2013, last year adding his recordings from 2000 to 2016 to the fold.