Photo Credit: David Hwang / CC by 2.0
The Weeknd closes a $1 billion-plus catalog deal with Lyric Capital in which the artist and his team maintain creative control over his body of work.
After rumors over the summer that The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) was seeking $1 billion for his catalog, a deal has finally materialized with Lyric Capital Group. The deal—which is notably unconventional—covers the artist’s entire catalog through 2025 and sees his team maintaining creative control over his work.
“From the beginning of the meeting, it was clear to all at Lyric that Abel would not sell his catalog. He wanted to be more innovative and creative in the way we established a partnership,” explained a rep for The Weeknd. “To that end, through this venture, we constructed and launched a new business model with Abel and his iconic catalog whereby Abel and his team have the freedom to executive their creative vision with the entirety of his rights, both publishing and masters. This unique catalog deal sets a new standard for artist equity and control.”
Because the deal is unconventional, the rep added that it is impossible to calculate a royalty multiple. That said, reports from Bloomberg, Billboard, and Variety sources previously stated the assets would go for at least $1 billion based on the approximate $55 million in net label and publisher share, implying an 18.2 times multiple.
“There is no ABS or securitization deal here,” said the rep. “Lyric created a first-of-its-kind structure with direct input from Abel and his team, which includes a first-of-its-kind ‘Royalty Backed Note’—produced by Lyric, ft. Partners Group—that drastically enhances the artist-friendly theme that underpins this partnership.”
“I couldn’t be more excited about what Lyric, Abel and team have created together,” said Ross Cameron, Lyric founding/co-managing partner. “From our first meeting, it was clear to me that we were sitting around the table with individuals that were going to change the way an artist thinks about his assets, music, and legacy. The collaboration resulted in a first-of-its-kind partnership between an artist and Lyric, and we are beyond thrilled about this new venture.”
The deal applies only to The Weeknd’s music masters and publishing through 2025, and will not include any future releases. The artist continues his partnership with XO/Republic/Universal Music Group (UMG), and his publishing catalog continues to be administered by UMG. Half of The Weeknd’s publishing rights were already owned by Chord Music Partners, backed by UMG and Dundee Partners.
Even without the exact numbers confirmed, the deal is estimated to be one of the biggest involving a single artist’s catalog in history—especially for a contemporary artist. The only larger publicly acknowledged single-artist deal was Sony Music’s Queen catalog acquisition last year for around $1.27 billion.
