Posted on: March 31, 2008 in Music
Live Nation: Meet the new boss, same as the old boss
Live Nation just signed a 12 year deal with U2 , as the group walks away from Universal Music. This is hot on the heals of Madonna’s defection from Warner Bros. last year, which saw her sign a 10 year deal with Live Nation, worth $120 million.
As CD’s are on their way (quickly) to cultural irrelevance, Live Nation is on a tear signing up artists for deals linked to merchandising and tour dollars - one of the areas in the music industry that is experiencing growth (live nation revenues grew 12.8% last year).
In even bigger news, top grossing touring act The Rolling Stones are rumored to be in discussions with Live Nation. The Stones contract with EMI comes up for renewal this summer.
Slightly unsettling is the emergence of a new monopolistic gate keeper in the Music Industry. Nothing new, of course…
Update: Jay-Z just signed up with Live Nation too, for $150 million!
Quote:
“I’ve turned into the Rolling Stones of hip hop.”
Nice…