BMG is turning up the heat in the already fierce catalog acquisitions market.
Off the back of acquiring a range of rights from Tina Turner last month, today (November 30) the company has announced that it has acquired the entire recordings catalog of Mötley Crüe.
BMG hasn’t put a price on the latest deal, but the Bertelsmann-owned company says the Mötley Crüe buyout is its “largest single catalog acquisition” since it was founded in 2008.
The phrasing there is significant: MBW understands the Mötley Crüe deal is smaller than BMG’s biggest-ever company acquisition, BBR Music Group, which it bought for USD $103 million in 2017.
As such, our sources indicate, the Mötley Crüe acquisition lands firmly in the high eight-figure (i.e. somewhere around $90 million) region, but didn’t break the $100 million barrier.
BMG has made the Mötley Crüe buyout with its own capital, rather than relying on its $1 billion-plus alliance with KKR, which was announced earlier this year.
It is BMG’s third large-scale acquisition this year, following the Turner deal and the buyout of Mick Fleetwood’s recorded music royalty stream back in January.
The Mötley Crüe agreement includes the band’s entire recorded output spanning their 40-year career, totaling nine studio albums from their 1981 debut Too Fast For Love through to 2008’s Saints of Los Angeles, as well as several Platinum-selling live albums and compilation sets.
The deal comes two years after the successful Netflix Mötley Crüe biopic, The Dirt, was released.
In a statement, Mötley Crüe said, “It feels amazing to be collaborating with our new partners at BMG. Their extensive track record of success in Rock made them the perfect home to continue preserving and growing our musical legacy, ensuring we always stay at The Top.”
Allen Kovac, manager Mötley Crüe, said, “After working side by side with BMG for well over a decade, the relationship we have developed and success we’ve accomplished over the years made this a very easy transition to entrust with this treasured Rock catalog. Working with BMG in any capacity, whether that’s publishing or records, has always been a great experience.”
BMG CEO Hartwig Masuch said, “This is more than just a significant transaction. It’s a new chapter for an extraordinary catalog. Few bands understand the myth and the magic of Rock like Mötley Crüe do.
“In an increasingly competitive rights acquisition market, artists need to be convinced that a buyer will do the right thing with their work. I am delighted that Mötley Crüe have decided BMG will be the best custodians of their musical career.”
“In an increasingly competitive rights acquisition market, artists need to be convinced that a buyer will do the right thing with their work. I am delighted that Mötley Crüe have decided BMG will be the best custodians of their musical career.”
Hartwig Masuch, BMG
In June 2022, Mötley Crüe will kick off their previously-postponed (due to the COVID-19 pandemic) 30+ date headlining US stadium tour, marking the group’s return to the stage for their first major concert run since 2015.
Working closely with the band and its management, BMG‘s global catalog team will embark on a plan to re-promote the band’s work beginning in 2022.
Michael Kachko, BMG’s LA-based SVP, Catalog Recordings, said, “Mötley Crüe stand among the pantheon of Rock legends, the band’s legacy is tremendous and their fans avid. You can be sure that we will lavish all the respect and love for the music that BMG is recognized for to deliver current and future fans the best experience we can.”
Thomas Scherer, BMG President, Repertoire & Marketing, New York and Los Angeles, said, “With expert management at the helm, Mötley Crüe have long owned their own recordings. It is an honor and a privilege for BMG to be entrusted with this catalog. They are the perfect fit for our global digital and physical expertise in Rock.”
Together, Mötley Crüe have sold over 100 million albums worldwide with seven Platinum and multi-Platinum albums, nine Top 10 albums, 22 Top 40 Mainstream Rock hits, six Top 20 Pop singles, three Grammy nominations, a New York Times best-seller, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The catalog includes the 6x Platinum-certified Dr. Feelgood (‘Kickstart My Heart’, ‘Dr. Feelgood’), 4x Platinum-certified Shout At The Devil (‘Shout At The Devil’, ‘Looks That Kill’), Girls, Girls, Girls (‘Wild Side’; ‘Girls, Girls, Girls’), and Theatre of Pain (Smokin’ In The Boys Room’, ‘Home Sweet Home’), the Platinum-certified Too Fast For Love (‘Live Wire’, ‘Take Me To The Top’), as well as the 2x Platinum-certified Decade of Decadence ’81-’91 (‘Primal Scream’) and Platinum-certified Greatest Hits collections.
Mötley Crüe and manager Allen Kovac and Chris Nilsson of 10th Street Entertainment were advised in the transaction by Tim Mandelbaum, Cynthia Katz, and the law firm of Fox Rothschild.Music Business Worldwide
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