Hipgnosis Songs Fund delivered another musical asset from the biggest league.
The British company listed today confirmed today (January 13) that it has acquired 100% of the rights to publish music on Shakira’s entire catalog – including the publisher and the author’s share.
The catalog contains 145 songs, making Shakira the best-selling female Latin artist of all time.
In total, Shakira has sold more than 80 million records to date, winning three Grammys and 12 Latin Grammys, in addition to a host of other awards.
She currently has more than 32 million listeners on Spotify, while her official YouTube channel includes 20 billion lifelong plays.
Shakira, Colombia-born Colombia’s first international album, Piesie Descalzos, was released in 1995 and has sold more than four million copies worldwide.
Her first English language album, Dry cleaning service, arrived in 2001 and has sold more than 13 million copies worldwide.
Six singles have been released from Dry cleaning service, including the hits Whenever, wherever, under your clothes and What Do You Call Me.
Since then, Shakira’s global hits like 2006s have included Hips do not lie – her first US number 1 – plus 2009s Wolvin and the official song of the FIFA 2010 World Cup, Waka Waka (This time for Africa).
For the Hipgnosis deal, Shakira was represented by her manager Jaime Levine, plus attorneys David Lande and Mitch Tenzer at the Ziffren Brittenham Law LLP.
“What no one should ever take for granted is that shakira is one of the most serious and successful songwriters of the last 25 years and has written or co-written virtually every song.”
Merck Mercuriadis, Hipgnosis
Merck Mercuriadis, founder and CEO of Hipgnosis Songs Fund, said: ‘This amazing woman from Colombia has developed one step at a time into one of the most famous and influential people in the world. What no one should ever take for granted is that she is one of the most serious and successful songwriters of the last 25 years and has written or co-wrote virtually every song she has ever recorded.
‘She is an excellent creator who has led the charge from the greatest physical success to now greater success in streaming than most of her contemporaries. This is due to the fact that she was a determined force of nature and that she wrote songs that the world is incredibly passionate about. It’s great for us to welcome Shakira, the queen of Latin music and more, to the Hipgnosis family. ”
“I know Hipgnosis will be an excellent home for my catalog – and I’m so happy to work with this company led by Merck, who appreciates artists and their creations.”
Shakira
Shakira said: ‘Being a songwriter is an achievement that I consider to be equal to and perhaps even greater than being a singer and artist. At the age of eight – long before I sang – I wrote to make the world meaningful. Each song reflects the person I was when I wrote it, but once a song appears in the world, it belongs not only to me but also to those who appreciate it. I am humble that songwriting has given me the privilege of communicating with others, of being part of something bigger than me.
‘I know Hipgnosis will be a great home for my catalog – and I’m so happy to work with this company led by Merck, who appreciates artists and their creations and is an ally of songwriters everywhere who are very interested in the continued life of their songs. ”
Since launching in 2021, Hipgnosis has announced the acquisition of Jimmy Iovine’s royalties for production, as well as 100% of Lindsey Buckingham’s publisher catalog, plus 50% of Neil Young’s publisher catalog.Music business worldwide
