Sony Music Entertainment is reportedly buying the Pink Floyd catalog

The deal is valued at $400 million

Pink Floyd has reportedly sold his catalog and name/likeness to his longtime label Sony Music Entertainment for approximately $400 million. Digital Music News and the Financial Times report news of the long-awaited sale by parties with knowledge of the matter. Neither the band nor the label have publicly commented on the matter as of press time.

The deal has been in the works for several years, but was rumored to have been scuttled by Roger Waters’ comments on world politics, including despairing comments about the United States.

Pink Floyd has long been associated with politics. His tenth studio album, Animalsis a concept album that focuses on the socio-political conditions in Britain in the mid-1970s and represents a change from the style of the band’s previous work. The album was developed from a collection of independent songs into a concept describing the apparent social and moral decay of society, comparing the human condition to that of animals. Inspired by George Orwell’s Animal Farm, the album depicts the different classes of people as animals, with pigs at the top of the social chain, descending to sheep as a mindless herd who follow what they are told, and dogs as business bosses they get fat with the money and power they have over others. Although 1977 was a long time ago, the album’s narrative still resonates today, as our social and economic situation reflects the situation back then. Earlier this year Animals 2018 Remix received a Dolby Atmos release on Blu-ray and digital formats.

The news follows Sony’s acquisition of Queen’s recording catalog earlier this summer for more than $1 billion, marking the largest music acquisition in history. Previously, Sony acquired the rights to the recorded catalogs and releases of Bruce Springsteen for $500 million in 2021 and Bob Dylan for $400 million in 2020. The company has not yet publicly confirmed any of its acquisition deals.