Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde Sells Catalog to Hipgnosis Songs
Capping a week that has seen the company acquire Big Deal Music Group and appoint several new top officers, Hipgnosis Songs announced that it has acquired the music catalog of Chrissie Hynde, founding member, lead vocalist and primary songwriter of pioneering rock band The Pretenders.
Hipgnosis has acquired 100% of Hynde’s music publishing catalog of 164 songs, including publishing and writer’s share (PRS) from the Pretenders and her other projects. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Hynde’s influence as a female rock frontperson is beyond measure, yet it is all built upon her formidable catalog of hits. While the Pretenders — which has always been built around the Ohio-born Hynde and her songs — have released 11 albums since they formed in London in 1978, the bulk of their hits date from their first few years: “Brass in Pocket,” “Talk of the Town,” “Message of Love,” “Back on the Chain Gang,” “Middle of the Road,” “2000 Miles,” “Don’t Get Me Wrong,” “My Baby,” “I’ll Stand By You” and more. The group’s latest album, “Hate for Sale,” was released earlier this year.
Hynde was represented by manager Ian Grenfell at Quietus Management, lawyer Andrew Myers at Clintons and accountant Pat Savage at YMU.
Hipgnosis Songs founder Merck Mercuriadis said, “This is very personal for me. Chrissie is one of my favorite songwriters of all time and The Pretenders are one of my favorite bands of all time. Her importance cannot be overestimated and she has been a powerful role model for women and men all over the globe for 40 years. I’m proud to say I have been a vegetarian, now vegan for 35 years thanks to the influence of Chrissie, and as a result I have four grown children that have never had meat pass through them. That’s the power of great songs and music when combined with genuine integrity. She has this powerful effect on her audience which is why they remain so devoted and committed after 40 years and why new generations of fans are constantly attracted to her. I’m delighted to welcome her and her wonderful songs to the Hipgnosis family.”
Hipgnosis Songs recently released its annual report, which showed its revenues soaring in its first full year of business, climbing to $81 million in the 12 month period ended in March 2020 from around $8.9 million in the preceding period. The firm, which has been on an unprecedented acquisition binge of hit songwriter and producer catalogs — been buying up catalogs by hitmakers ranging from Timbaland and Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart to Jack Antonoff and Jeff Bhasker — began trading on the London Stock Exchange in July of 2018. Between March 2019 and March 2020, the company spent nearly $700 million to acquire 42 catalogs.
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