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Irving Azoff’s legacy brand business does deal with The Beach Boys
By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 19 February 2021
A legacy brand business set up by veteran artist manager Irving Azoff has announced a big old deal with The Beach Boys. It does include some music rights, although this transaction isn’t really like the other big catalogue acquisitions of late. The alliance between the band and Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group is more about capitalising on the potential of the Beach Boys brand.
The deal involves Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and the Carl Wilson estate, who say in a joint statement: “The Beach Boys and our songs have been one of the great joys of our lives. For more than half a century, we’ve witnessed generations of fans from all corners of the world come together to celebrate our music, dancing and singing along to the songs that we have loved and performed for decades”.
“As we look towards the upcoming 60th anniversary of The Beach Boys”, they added, “we wanted a partner to help expand opportunities for our brand, while continuing to preserve our tradition as a band whose music transcends the test of time. We are confident that Irving and Iconic are the ideal partners and are confident that The Beach Boys’ ongoing legacy is in the best possible hands”.
Much of The Beach Boys music catalogue is actually controlled by Universal Music. But the CEO of Universal Music Enterprises, Bruce Resnikoff, welcomed the deal. He was quoted by Variety as saying: “We have the original recordings, and we have the publishing, but our ability to do the most with this band relies on the ability to work with the band. Iconic will represent the band in a way that will only enhance, I think, the value for everybody”.
Announcing the deal, Azoff said: “The Beach Boys are an American treasure. I am honoured that The Beach Boys have entrusted Iconic to preserve and grow their legacy. And I’m THRILLED that the Beach Boys want to stay invested in the growth of the incredible cultural brand they created”.
Meanwhile, co-founder and CEO of the Iconic Artists Group, Olivier Chastan, added: “Ever since hearing the opening guitar notes of ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’ as a teenager, The Beach Boys have been one of the permanent soundtracks of my musical life. To be entrusted as the custodian of this incredible art and legacy is both humbling and thrilling. I want to thank Brian, Mike, Al, and the Carl Wilson family for their belief in Iconic’s unique mission”.
Although no details about the value of the deal have been made available, Bloomberg’s sources reckon that “the total value of the assets is $100 million to $200 million”.
