Huey Lewis and the News Catalog Sells to Primary Wave in $20M Deal

Primary Wave Music has partnered with Huey Lewis and the News to purchase ownership of all Lewis and the band members’ shares of their musical composition copyrights, including writers’ shares of income. With a $20 million price tag, according to a source close to the deal, this encompasses their full discography from the group’s self-titled debut album up to 1994’s Four Chords & Several Years Ago.

This time period, spanning about 25 years, was the band’s most fruitful run, including hits like “Hip to Be Square,” “The Power of Love,” “If This Is It,” “Workin’ for a Living” and “The Heart of Rock and Roll.” The band’s landmark third album, the 7x-platinum Sports, turns 40 next year.

With a catalog that helped define 1980s rock n’ roll, Huey Lewis and The News’ likely best-known single to date is “The Power of Love” which was written for the Back to the Future soundtrack. After peaking at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart, it earned the band nominations for a Grammy, a Golden Globe and an Academy Award.

Along with the transfer of ownership of the aforementioned catalog, Primary Wave will provide Huey Lewis and The News with marketing and publishing administration. This also includes digital strategy, licensing, synch opportunities and film & TV production.

The deal follows up the announcement that Primary Wave has received $1.7 billion from the Canadian investment company Brookfield Asset Management, Inc. to fund song catalog acquisitions as well as the announcements of over $300 million worth of other deals in 2022 so far, including the purchase of music and/or estate rights from members of Def Leppard, Alice in Chains, America, The Strokes, Prince, and more.

Outside of the discography included in the catalog agreement, Huey and the band continued on into the 21st century, releasing lesser known albums like Plan B (2001) and their Stax Records tribute, Soulsville (2010). By 2018, Lewis announced that he was losing his hearing due to a battle with Ménière’s, an inner ear disease, but he brought the crew together for their 2020 comeback record, Weather.

Primary Wave Music’s David Weitzman says of the deal, “In the 1980’s, everyone heard Huey Lewis and the News’s many smashes on radio and saw their iconic & fun videos which appeared on MTV in endless rotation. Their incredibly crafted songs still made me smile, remind me of that seemingly more innocent era, and make me want to sing along at the top of your lungs. Primary Wave look forward to working with Huey to create new opportunities for his storied song catalog into the future.”

John Luneau, senior counsel for Primary Wave, added “We’re honored to welcome the music of Huey Lewis and the News to Primary Wave. Our entire team is looking forward to working with them to generate new and exciting opportunities for their iconic catalog.”

Related Images: