Acquisition #5: Diverse POP & R&B Catalog
Description
Invest in this pop and R&B catalog with rising royalties. The last 12 months’ earnings increased 57% compared to the previous time period. This growth can be attributed to new releases and a considerable increase in radio and streaming income.
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Highlighted as the top-grossing title to date (27% of revenue) is “Eenie Meenie” from pop superstar Justin Bieber featuring Sean Kingston. The Platinum-certified single is off My World 2.0, Bieber’s debut 3x Platinum album. Another included Justin Bieber track is “Down To Earth,” from his My World EP.
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Also bringing in 27% of historic income is Madonna’s “Revolver,” featuring Lil Wayne. Off Madonna’s third compilation album Celebration, “Revolver” peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Dance chart. This offering also features “Revolver” the Madonna vs. David Guetta One Love Remix, which won a Grammy for Best Remixed Recording in 2011.
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The highest-earning single in the last 12 months is the new release, “I’m Blessed” from Charlie Wilson featuring T.I. The song is seeing sizable earnings thanks to radio play. “I’m Blessed” had impressive crossover appeal, simultaneously hitting No. 1 on Billboard’s Adult R&B and Gospel charts. The song also just won an ASCAP Rhythm and Soul Award. Accompanying "I'm Blessed" in this catalog is “Smile For Me,” (with Robin Thicke) — both songs are off Charlie Wilson’s 2017 album, In It to Win It.
Other notable tracks in this offering include “Sugar”
by Flo Rida, “This One’s For Me And You” from Johnny Gill featuring New Edition, David Guetta’s “Toy Friend,” and much more.
Key Drivers
Diversity in Song Age & Artists. This catalog contains music with release dates spanning eight years. This provides a diverse income mix between new(er) releases and more mature works. Industry wide, “Catalog Songs” (music released more than 18 months ago) and “Deep Catalog” (music released more than 3 years ago) together represent over 60% of music streamed today.
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Looking at the highest earning track in the last 12 months, “I’m Blessed” (released in December of 2016) brought in 27% of income. It’s followed by an older release from 2010—“Eenie Meenie”—with 14% of royalties. This diversity can help sustain a catalog's earnings moving forward.
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No single song makes up an outsized portion of earnings. For example, the top three-earning songs col6lectively only account for 54% of last year’s income. This means you aren't tied to the success of a single song.
Streaming. According to BuzzAngle’s 2017 Music Report, pop titles were the third-most streamed songs of the year, at 15.6%. Streaming accounts for 14% of this catalog’s last year’s earnings and this income has increased 62% over the prior year. Moreover, radio royalties (53% of earnings in the last year) are also growing at an impressive rate.
As we've said before, songs that experience significant radio play often build a foundation for streaming and other types of income as the radio royalties begin to slow down. The fact that there is growth in radio, as well as the rise from streaming, represents the best of both worlds with this catalog.