British rock band Pink Floyd has reportedly sold its recorded music catalog, along with its name and likeness rights, to Sony Music for $400 million. The legendary rock band had come to an agreement after decades of fighting among band members. This deal only includes recorded music rights, not songwriting.
Pink Floyd's music catalog is one of the most valuable in contemporary music with albums such as "Dark Side of the Moon," "The Wall," "Wish You Were Here," "Animals," "Meddle," "Piper at the Gates of Dawn" and "More."
Pink Floyd's music catalog has reportedly been in play for years. The band nearly closed a deal in 2022 for $500 million, but infighting among band members killed the deal. Specifically, Roger Waters' comments against Israel and Ukraine and being
in favor of Russia made
it difficult for the deal
to close.
In 2022, Pink Floyd released its first new music in almost three decades to raise money for the people of Ukraine. "Hey Hey Rise Up" features Pink Floyd members David Gilmour and Nick Mason, with vocals from Ukrainian singer Andriy Khlyvnyuk of the band BoomBox.
Pink Floyd was founded in London in the mid-1960s and helped forge the U.K. psychedelic scene before releasing influential 1970s albums such as "The Dark Side of the Moon," "Wish You Were Here" and "The Wall."
Waters, an original member, quit in 1985, and the remaining members of Pink Floyd last recorded together in 1994 for the album "The Division Bell."
With the Sony deal in place, the label — and not the band — will now bear the responsibility for the next Pink Floyd release, a 50th-anniversary edition of Wish You Were Here that is expected to arrive in 2025.