Red Hot Chili Peppers are reportedly closing in on an agreement to sell their recorded music catalog. According to Bloomberg, the band has been negotiating the deal for several months.
“The Red Hot Chili Peppers are finalizing an agreement to sell their recorded music catalog to Warner Music Group in a deal that values the masters at $300 million to $325 million,” Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw reported. “This was supposed to be done months ago. Billboard first reported the band was shopping the masters in February, and the Financial Times said Warner was in talks to buy it back in July.”
The negotiations allegedly sparked a bidding war, with Anthony Kiedis and co.’s catalog attracting interest from multiple parties willing to pay far more than originally anticipated. Despite the surge of offers, the band’s advisory team has kept a firm grip on the process.
“Other parties have tried to get in on the talks, promising more than Warner — one entity floated as much as $375 million,” Shaw noted. “Yet the band, advised by lawyer Eric Greenspan and manager Guy Oseary, hasn’t let anyone else see the books.”
RHCP are the latest high-profile act to sell their catalog. In September, reports surfaced that Jack White had agreed to sell a stake in his catalog to Sony Music, a deal covering recordings from across his career — including his work with The White Stripes, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather, and his solo projects.
Last year, Queen sold their catalog to Sony Music for over $1 Billion. Bruce Springsteen recently sold his entire music library for approximately $500 million, while Pink Floyd sold theirs for $400 million. Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, KISS, Neil Young, and Slipknot have also made similar deals.
