Primary Wave Music Publishing has acquired a majority stake in the publishing catalog of legendary singer, songwriter and Fleetwood Mac member, Stevie Nicks.
Primary Wave’s partnership with Nicks will see the publisher acquire a majority stake in her publishing copyrights, as well as representing the Grammy winner in brand alliance and brand marketing opportunities. The company will also partner with Kobalt on administration for the catalog.
Citing people familiar with the deal, The Wall Street Journal reports that Primary Wave bought an 80% interest in the copyrights, which its sources state are valued at approximately $100 million.
Additional terms of the deal include a strategic publishing alliance with the singer that will allow her to sign new songwriters to a joint venture.
Nicks will also now have access to Primary Wave’s entire marketing, branding, Broadway, Film/TV, and digital strategy teams, as well as their licensing and synch departments.
The deal includes many of Nicks’ classic hits as frontwoman for Fleetwood Mac including the platinum hit Landslide, the Grammy nominated Edge of Seventeen and Stand Back, as well as Dreams, which recently saw a resurgence thanks to a viral TikTok video posted this October.
Dreams, the second single off Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 album Rumours, recently went Top 10 on Billboard’s streaming chart, saw another 16 million streams bringing it to over a half billion plays on Spotify alone, and gave Stevie the No.1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 Songwriters chart thanks to her writing credit on the classic hit.
Named one of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of all Time by Rolling Stone, Stevie Nicks is the only woman to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice – the first time in 1998 as a member of Fleetwood Mac and then again in 2019 as a solo artist.
Over the course of her unprecedented career, she has received eight Grammy Award nominations and two American Music Award nominations as a solo artist, as well as another five Grammy nominations and a win for Album of the Year as a member of Fleetwood Mac.
She is the only woman to have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice and has collectively sold more than 140 million albums.
In October 2020, Stevie Nicks 24 Karat Gold The Concert was released at select cinemas, drive ins and exhibition spaces around the world for two nights only.
The sold-out film offered audiences a virtual front row seat to the magic Nicks brought on her sold-out 24 Karat Gold Tour.
Nicks also recently released her first new music in six years with the song Show Them The Way, which also featured a Cameron Crowe directed video.
“To say we’re excited to welcome the incredible Stevie Nicks to the Primary Wave family would be a dramatic understatement.”
Larry Mestel, Primary Wave
CEO & Founder of Primary Wave Music Publishing, Larry Mestel said: “To say we’re excited to welcome the incredible Stevie Nicks to the Primary Wave family would be a dramatic understatement.
“If Primary Wave were starting our company today, Stevie Nicks would be one of the shining pillars, a true legend among legends.”
“She is a groundbreaking artist, and the longevity of her iconic career comes from writing songs, instantly recognizable and critically acclaimed, that stand the test of time.”
Sheryl Louis, Stevie’s long-time manager, and Jamie Young, her attorney, negotiated the deal on behalf of Stevie Nicks.Music Business Worldwide
