I'm surprised the number is this low! Queen sold their catalogue for $1.27bn and while RHCP are clearly not on their scale I thought they were pretty high up there, especially given how long they've been active.
and as mentioned elsewhere, RHCP is still young enough to crank out a few more albums and tour. Bruce Springsteen kept cranking until his 80s and sold the catalog for $500M
I assume the band is basically tapped out and ready to rest on laurels
This is one of the reasons we can't have proper soundtracks in video games or non AAA TV shows anymore or re-releases of old TV-shows anymore.
I just feel bad for all the pension fonds backing this Bain Capital PE joint venture who will have an off chance of making back their investments with the current state of IP and AI trends.
As a record maker, I'd say record making is under attack from Suno about as much as novelists are under attack from Chat GPT. Both still require a crafts person to steer the tools, if they're to be used at all.
Yes there will be slop, but neither Suno nor GPT are close to making coherent work with creators with taste and good judgement.
Whilst I feel all creative passions should be appropriately rewarded, I would say musicians are the best rewarded out of all the ones that can be done in your bedroom. Authors and artists earn far less but still do it. Surely at the end of the day you play music whether you get paid or not.
Sometimes I feel like I don't have a partner
Sometimes I feel like my only friend
Is the city I live in, The City of Angels
Lonely as I am, together we cry
It always makes me a bit sad that everyone knows RHCP but less so their early stuff. Blood sugar sex magik is a funk masterpiece. Didn’t help that for years Spotify used the singles versions of the tracks so the levels were all over the place and it was basically unstreamable.
PSA: this article is re-reporting the original story at:
> Rumours of the Chilis selling their catalogue first arose last year, with sources telling Billboard that the rockers were allegedly seeking around $350 million. Now, The Hollywood Reporter reports[1] that the band has finally made a deal with Warner Music Group, with the label paying over $300 million for all of the band’s master recordings.
Re: the "low price", they'd already sold their publishing right in 2021 for $140MM, so this is the master rights they sold for 300. By comparison, Springsteen sold both his together to Sony in 2021 for $500MM.
Good for them. I have a memory of first seeing them in their video True Men Don't Kill Coyotes† around 1984? and thinking "wow these guys are terrible". In hindsight, they were very 90s and pretty ahead of their time.
Wow, I just a saw a YouTube video of Flea's house for sale in the LA suburb of La Crescenta for sale. Super nice house. Strangely I also saw Steve Vai's house for sale in LA at the same time. Also super nice house.
I have such a love/hate with this band. They have some great songs. Great musicians. John Frusciante is one of my favorite guitarists. But they are such cheeseballs, and in the case of Anthony Kiedes, pretty creepy.
As someone not in the industry, what exactly does it mean? The band no longer can perform the music? They no longer get royalties? They no longer can profit at all from the music? They no longer have control over where/how it's sold? Or, something else? What exactly is Warner/Bain buying?
49 comments
[ 2.6 ms ] story [ 54.0 ms ] threadand as mentioned elsewhere, RHCP is still young enough to crank out a few more albums and tour. Bruce Springsteen kept cranking until his 80s and sold the catalog for $500M
I assume the band is basically tapped out and ready to rest on laurels
Which be exactly why it makes sense to sell
Hard to see a world where the value goes up. Best case it stays stable, worst it decreases
I just feel bad for all the pension fonds backing this Bain Capital PE joint venture who will have an off chance of making back their investments with the current state of IP and AI trends.
Not exactly saying this is the reason for their sell, but I'd imagine a lot of professional musicians are feeling the desire to exit the industry.
[1] https://www.npr.org/2026/05/02/nx-s1-5804489/music-listeners...
Yes there will be slop, but neither Suno nor GPT are close to making coherent work with creators with taste and good judgement.
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
Give it away, give it away, give it away now
I can't tell, if I'm a king pin or a pauper
Sometimes I feel like I don't have a partner Sometimes I feel like my only friend Is the city I live in, The City of Angels Lonely as I am, together we cry
> I tried to say
> CRAZY BIG BOB IS HAVING ANOTHER CRAZY SALE THIS MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!!!
> so don't wait for Dani, come on down and say "I love you" to a pre-owned Nissan!
It always makes me a bit sad that everyone knows RHCP but less so their early stuff. Blood sugar sex magik is a funk masterpiece. Didn’t help that for years Spotify used the singles versions of the tracks so the levels were all over the place and it was basically unstreamable.
> Rumours of the Chilis selling their catalogue first arose last year, with sources telling Billboard that the rockers were allegedly seeking around $350 million. Now, The Hollywood Reporter reports[1] that the band has finally made a deal with Warner Music Group, with the label paying over $300 million for all of the band’s master recordings.
[1] https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-industry-news/...
† https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC3j1pNXhSU
The band must be past peak popularity, with listens continuing to decline year after year.
Most copies, including the copies on Streaming Services for Califonication are genuinely unlistenable. [0].
[0] - https://web.archive.org/web/20221117074108/https://dr.loudne... [1] - https://web.archive.org/web/20221117074109/https://dr.loudne... [2] - https://web.archive.org/web/20221117074108/https://dr.loudne...