In a deal that dwarfs even that of his idol Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen has sold his masters and music publishing to Sony for a whopping $500 million, sources tell Billboard. The publication says the deal may be the biggest payday yet for an individual musical body of work.
Springsteen’s album catalog has sold more than 65 million copies in the U.S. alone. That catalog includes such bestsellers as 1984’s Born in the U.S.A., which has sold 15 million copies, and 1980’s The River, which has sold five million copies.
Billboard estimates Springsteen’s album catalog generated about $15 million in 2020 alone, with his publishing catalog generating about $7.5 million a year.
The publication notes that years ago, Springsteen was granted ownership of his earlier albums as an incentive to re-sign with Columbia, the label for which he’s recorded his entire career.
Last year, Dylan made headlines when Universal Music Publishing Group purchased his catalog for between $375 million and $400 million.
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