TIDMSONG
RNS Number : 7929A
Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited
24 January 2020
24 January 2020
Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited ("Hipgnosis" or the "Company")
Acquisition of Music Catalogue
The Board of Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited and its Investment
Adviser, The Family (Music) Limited, are pleased to announce that
the Company has acquired a music catalogue from 3 times Ivor
Novello award winning British songwriter and producer, Brian
Higgins. Over the last 25 years Brian Higgins has produced and
co-written in excess of 35 top 10 hits including for globally
successful artists Cher, Kylie Minogue, Girls Aloud and The
Sugababes.
In 1998, Brian Higgins co-wrote Cher's Grammy winning hit
'Believe' which reached Number 1 in 21 countries, selling over 11
million copies worldwide and being certified 4x platinum in the US.
The song topped the UK Singles chart for seven weeks. Higgins
received recognition for his work on the song winning three Ivor
Novello awards in 1999; 'Best Song Musically and Lyrically', 'Best
Selling British Single' and 'International Hit of the Year'.
'Believe' has gone on to become one of the most iconic songs of all
time and now has over 1 billion plays on global streaming services.
'Believe' is the closing hit in Cher's first global tour in over 15
years 'Here We Go Again' which began in 2018, played almost 100
shows in 2019 and will continue throughout 2020. The tour has been
a huge commercial and critical success making Cher the third
highest top-grossing female touring artist of 2019.
Brian Higgins has collaborated closely with Girls Aloud, helping
them become the UK's biggest selling girl group of the 21(st)
century, with over 4.3 million singles sales and 4 million albums
sold in the UK alone. This includes co-writing and producing most
of their five studio albums, all of which achieved either platinum
or double platinum status in the UK. Brian Higgins also co-wrote or
produced their Number 1 hits 'Sound Of The Underground', 'I'll
Stand By You' and 'The Promise'.
In 2008, Brian Higgins co-wrote and produced Gabrielle Cilmi's
'Sweet About Me', which reached Number 1 in three countries and was
named the most played song in the UK during 2009 by PRS for
Music.
Brian Higgins was named UK producer of the year in 2009 and has
also written or produced hits performed by Pet Shop Boys, Dannii
Minogue, The Saturdays, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Bananarama, Alesha
Dixon, Texas, Rachel Stevens, Saint Etienne, Gossip and
Florrie.
Hipgnosis has acquired 100% of Brian Higgins' worldwide
copyright, ownership and financial interest, including the writer
share, of his catalogue comprising 362 songs.
Brian Higgins was represented by manager Mark Beaven at AAM and
lawyer Michael Guido at Carroll Guido Groffman Cohen Bar &
Karalian, LLP.
Merck Mercuriadis, Founder of The Family (Music) Limited and
Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited, said:
"I'm delighted to welcome Brian Higgins to the Hipgnosis family.
He is one of the finest writers of the last 25 years and 'Believe'
in particular is an evergreen song that has gained iconic
status."
Brian Higgins said
"I started Xenomania in 1996 and to see it in 2020 as a
standalone independent record label and publishing company is
something that gives me deep pride and great joy. I'm very grateful
to Merck and Hipgnosis for the opportunity they have presented me
to guarantee the labels presence in the worldwide music landscape
for decades to come."
For further information, please contact:
The Family (Music) Limited Tel: +44 (0)1481 742742
Merck Mercuriadis
N+1 Singer - Joint Corporate Broker Tel: +44 (0)20 7496
James Maxwell / James Moat (Corporate 3000
Finance)
Alan Geeves / James Waterlow / Sam Greatrex
(Sales)
J.P. Morgan Cazenove - Joint Corporate Tel: +44 (0)20 7742
Broker 4000
William Simmonds / Ed Murray / Jérémie
Birnbaum (Corporate Finance)
James Bouverat / Eddie Nissen (Sales)
The Outside Organisation Tel: +44 (0)7711 081
Alan Edwards / Nick Caley 843
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited
(www.hipgnosissongs.com)
Hipgnosis, which was founded by Merck Mercuriadis, is a Guernsey
registered investment company established to offer investors a
pure-play exposure to songs and associated musical intellectual
property rights. The Company has raised a total of over GBP625
million (gross equity capital) through its Initial Public Offering
on 11 July 2018, and subsequent issues in April 2019, August 2019
and October 2019. In September 2019, Hipgnosis transferred its
entire issued share capital to the Premium listing segment of the
Official List of the FCA and to the London Stock Exchange's Premium
segment of the Main Market.
About The Family (Music) Limited
The Company's Investment Adviser is The Family (Music) Limited,
which was founded by Merck Mercuriadis, former manager of globally
successful recording artists, such as Elton John, Guns N' Roses,
Morrissey, Iron Maiden and Beyoncé, and hit songwriters such as
Diane Warren, Justin Tranter and The-Dream, and former CEO of The
Sanctuary Group plc. The Investment Adviser has assembled an
Advisory Board of highly successful music industry experts which
include award winning members of the artist, songwriter,
publishing, legal, financial, recorded music and music management
communities, all with in-depth knowledge of music publishing.
Members of The Family (Music) Limited Advisory Board include Nile
Rodgers, The-Dream, Giorgio Tuinfort, Starrah, Nick Jarjour, David
Stewart, Bill Leibowitz, Ian Montone, and Jason Flom.
This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the
London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct
Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United
Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution
of this information may apply. For further information, please
contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
END
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