The legendary British band, Pink Floyd, has officially sold the rights to their recorded music, name, and likeness to Sony Music. As per an October 2 report from Variety, it is one of the biggest music deals to date and has been signed for an estimated sum of over $400 million.
The move comes after years of feuds, disputes, and infighting among the surviving band members - David Gilmour, Syd Barrett, Roger Waters, and Nick Mason. While Sony Music now holds all rights to the band's music catalog from the past five decades, the songwriting rights remain with the band members.
Pink Floyd's music catalog comprises 15 albums, including some of the biggest classics like - Animals, Dark Side of the Moon, Meddle, More, The Wall, Wish You Were Here, and more. It also features 12 compilation albums, three EPs, and over 222 songs.
Pink Floyd had been planning to sell their music catalog since 2022
Pink Floyd reportedly had been on the hunt for buyers interested in acquiring the rights to their music and assets since late 2022. At the time, the band was eyeing the golden figure of $500 million and was in close talks with major companies such as BMG, Hipgnosis, and Warner Music.
The plans, however, seemed to be in jeopardy as the potential buyers backed off in the aftermath of the band's bassist and co-founder, Roger Waters's interview with Rolling Stones. Speaking at the October 2022 interview, Waters allegedly made controversial comments about the United States, Russia, Israel, and Ukraine.
Among numerous controversial claims, Waters also spoke about how Russia's invasion of Ukraine was the result of NATO's provocations.
“Because it’s an unnecessary war. And those people should not be dying. And Russia should not have been encouraged to invade the Ukraine after they tried for 20 years to avoid it by suggesting diplomatic measures to Western governments,” he said.
Coming on the head of the ongoing talks about the sale of Pink Floyd's music catalog, the interview triggered a fury of internal conflicts among band members.
A heated conflict came to light in February 2023, when David Gilmour's wife, Polly Samson, took to X. She was seemingly infuriated by Waters and called him an anti-Semitic, misogynist, and a Putin apologist.
While Gilmour supported his wife's comments, Roger Waters refuted them all as he called them “incendiary and wildly inaccurate.”
According to a March 2023 report from Variety, the buyers considered the deal dead as the band members “just couldn’t get along.” The rising tax rates, sinking value of the British pound, and tax issues only complicated the matter.
Pink Floyd, however, managed to recover from the impending conflicts as the band members found common ground recently. The band began the talks with Sony Music in early fall and was nearing closure by mid-September. The two parties officially signed the deal this week.
As of the writing, neither Sony Music nor Pink Floyd has shared any official comments about the $400 million deal.
Pink Floyd is reportedly the seventh music group whose catalog and other rights have been acquired by Sony Music. The global establishment also owns the rights to the music catalogs of the Queen, Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, and more.
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