By selling her music rights for $225 million, the pop star saw her wealth take off like a firework.
Pop superstar Katy Perry sold her music rights to Carlyle-backed Litmus Music on Monday for $225 million. With her sale, her net worth increases to approximately $340 million, making her one of the richest women in the United States.
Perry sold her interests in master recording royalties and publishing rights to the five albums she released from 2008 to 2020, One Of The Boys, Teenage Dream, PRISM, Witness and Smile, according to Billboard and Variety. Litmus, founded in August 2022 by music industry veterans Hank Forsyth and Dan McCarroll, with $500 million from the Carlyle Group, has wasted no time buying music rights. In August, Litmus bought the rights to country star Keith Urban's catalog and in June, music producer Benny Bianco sold the rights to his hits, which include songs by Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Camila Cabello, to Litmus. Representatives for Litmus Music declined to comment to Forbes on the details of Perry's sale.
The transaction is one of the biggest music sales of 2023. In January, rapper Dr. Dre reportedly sold a portion of his royalties from solo albums, his work with NWA and other sources of music income for more than $200 million. of dollars. Justin Bieber sold his publishing rights and royalties to his master recordings that same month for a similar amount.
Perry, 38, is not on Forbes' 2023 list of the richest self-made women in America, which was released in June, although she is surely a contender for next year's. At the time, Forbes had estimated her net worth at less than $200 million, based on her income from touring, recording, and her role as an American Idol judge. (The minimum to be on the 2023 list was $225 million.) With her highest net worth, she would join the ranks alongside other wealthy musicians, including Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Madonna, Beyoncé, Celine Dion, Dolly Parton and Barbra Streisand.
Perry entered the music scene in 2008 with her debut single “I Kissed A Girl.” The song peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for seven weeks. Eight other Perry hits would also reach the top spot, including “California Gurls,” “E.T,” and “Firework.” In 2015, she appeared on the cover of Forbes as the third highest-earning artist that year. Having raked in $135 million before taxes, she made more than Taylor Swift, Rihanna and Miley Cyrus combined. That same year she performed at the Super Bowl halftime show.
“I'm proud of my position as a boss, as a person who runs my own company,” Perry told Forbes at the time. “I am an entrepreneur. …I don't want to shy away from it. In fact, I want to grab him by the balls.”
