The Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre & More
This auction features nearly 25 years of earnings from hip-hop legends The Notorious B.I.G. and Dr. Dre, as well as reggae icon Bob Marley, and many more.
The Theoretical IRR is a formulaic guideline based on an extrapolation of the normalized, historical earnings trend of the catalog. The Theoretical IRR is not a guarantee of future performance. It should be used for comparison purposes only. Each catalog has its own risk factors and the Theoretical IRR is not based upon a specific analysis of this catalog. Click here to view the basis for all Theoretical IRR calculations.
Historic royalty income is no indication of future royalty income. Future royalty income is dependent upon future sales and licensing revenue generated by the sound recordings or compositions associated with this listing.
| Starting Price: | $60,000 |
| Bidding Increment: | $1,400 |
| Closing Price: | $86,600 |
| End Date: | Jan 24, 2019, 3:14 PM MST |
| Last 12 Months' Royalties: | $13,180 |
| Investment Term: | 10 years* |
| Distributors: | ASCAP |
| Rights Included: | Public Performance |
| Interests Included: | Songwriter (World) Publishing (US) |
| Track List: | |
| First Distribution: | February 11, 2019 |
| Distribution Frequency: | Quarterly |
| Buyer Fees: | $500‡ |
* Please see the FAQ tab for more information on the 10-year investment term.
‡ Become a Royalty Exchange All Access Investor to waive auction fees and enjoy additional exclusive benefits.
What rights are included?
| Musical Composition | Sound Recording | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copyrights included? | No | — | ||||||
| Rights: |
|
|
||||||
| Sources: | Internet Streaming, AM/FM & Satellite Radio, TV/Film/Commercial Performances, etc. | Internet Streaming, Satellite Radio, Digital Downloads, CD Sales, TV/Film/Commercial Placements & Performances, Samples, etc. | ||||||
| Distributors: | ASCAP | — |
Description
Listings with longevity and growth like this do not come around very often. Up for auction is a star-studded collection of hip-hop tracks dating back to the mid-90s that are still being actively streamed today. In fact, streaming platforms not only contribute the greatest portion of overall earnings (54% in the last 12 months), but streaming revenues are growing as well—35% over the prior year.
The top-earning track is “Suicidal Thoughts” from The Notorious B.I.G.’s 6x platinum album, Ready To Die. It contributes 57% of the last 12 month’s earnings, an increase of 46% over the previous year. Following up close behind with similar age and growth is the track “The Message” from hip-hop legend Dr. Dre. Released to one of Dr. Dre’s most recognized releases, 2001 (Chronic), the highly-decorated album went 6X platinum album and ranked No. 1 on Billboard’s year-end Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Currently, the track contributes to 14% of earnings in the last 12 months with a growth rate of 26%.
Additional contributors to this collection include “Street Struck” and "MVP" from Big L as well as “Hold Ya Head,” a posthumous Notorious B.I.G. release that features Bob Marley vocals. Together, these songs round out the remaining top five earnings tracks for this collection, driving 13% of earnings in the last 12 months. It’s worth noting, each individual track is also showing growth, “Hold Ya Head” with the most significant rate at 71%.
This listing includes additional noteworthy tracks including dozens of Big L tracks from his early career and “Come On” by The Notorious B.I.G.
Key Drivers
Song Age. This catalog contains music with release dates dating back to 1994. This provides a diverse income mix between new(er) releases and more mature works. Industrywide, "Deep Catalog" titles (those released more than three years ago) accounted for 55% of all album sales in 2018, up from 51% in 2017.
This collection of songs aligns with this trend. The highest-earning tracks — “Suicidal Thoughts” and “The Message”— were released in 1994 and 2001, respectively. A catalog containing more mature works is something worth noting as an investor. What is even more interesting is despite the age of the works, individually the tracks continue to grow over 20 years after their release. In fact, “Suicidal Thoughts” and “The Message” both showed a growth rate in the last 12 months of nearly 46% and 26%, respectively. This demonstrates the longevity and impact the songs and artists have on today’s listeners
Featured Artists. Not surprisingly, the star power within this catalog is an attractive feature. These are multi-Platinum-selling artists with a proven track record of hits, loyal fan bases, and mainstream appeal. This catalog features some of the biggest names in music: The Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre and more. Opportunities to collect royalties from evergreen artists and royalty stream don’t come around often.
Streaming. This catalog is a perfect example of two trends: hip-hop and streaming's growth worldwide. According to BuzzAngle's 2018 Year End Report, hip-hop is the most popular genre of music in the U.S. The driver for the increase is streaming. Hip-hop/rap tracks accounted for more than a quarter of all on-demand plays on music streaming services in the US in 2018. Streaming accounts for 54% of this catalog’s earnings over the last 12 months and these earnings are up over 35% in the same period.
About the Royalty Distributor
American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) is one of four United States performing rights organizations, along with BMI, SESAC & Global Music Rights. It collects license fees from music users on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed. For more information on ASCAP’s distribution schedule, click here.