BLABBERMOUTH.NET
Universal Music Publishing Group (
UMPG),
Universal Music Group's leading global music publishing division, has announced the acquisition of 17-time
Grammy Award winner
Sting's career catalog of music. Financial terms were not disclosed, but according to
The New York Times, the deal is estimated to be worth around $300 million. This historic, comprehensive worldwide agreement for the catalog of one of the most commercially successful and critically-acclaimed songwriters of the last half-century encompasses the entirety of both
Sting's solo works as well as those with
THE POLICE, including
"Roxanne",
"Every Breath You Take",
"Shape Of My Heart",
"If I Ever Lose My Faith In You",
"Fields Of Gold",
"Desert Rose",
"Message In A Bottle",
"Englishman In New York" and
"Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", among countless other global hits.
UMPG becomes the worldwide home of
Sting's extensive songwriting legacy, uniting his song catalog with his recorded music catalog under
Universal Music Group (
UMG) with this agreement.
UMG has been
Sting's label home for his entire career through
A&M,
Interscope and
Cherrytree Records. Together,
UMPG and
UMG will work with
Sting to further build and expand his vast audience reach, strengthen the impact and influence of his timeless works, and continue supporting future music releases.
British-born composer, singer-songwriter, actor, author, and activist
Sting has sold more than 100 million albums throughout his illustrious career and created some of the most recognizable and culturally impactful pop songs in recent decades. As co-founder, frontman and bassist of
THE POLICE, alongside
Stewart Copeland and
Andy Summers,
Sting became one of the world's best-selling artists.
THE POLICE released five studio albums between 1978 and 1983, earning six
Grammy Awards and two
Brit Awards. The band was inducted into the
Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2003.
Sting, managed by
Martin Kierszenbaum/
Cherrytree Music Company, is also one of the world's most distinctive, prolific and acclaimed solo artists, having released fifteen studio albums between 1985's debut
"The Dream Of Blue Turtles" and his most recent,
"The Bridge", released in November 2021.
Sting's acclaimed albums include U.K. No. 1s
"…Nothing Like The Sun",
"The Soul Cages",
"Ten Summoner's Tales",
"Mercury Falling",
"Sacred Love",
"Brand New Day" and more.
Sting has received an additional 11
Grammy Awards for his solo works, three further
Brit Awards including the prestigious Outstanding Contribution to Music Award in 2003, a
Golden Globe and an
Emmy Award. He was inducted into the
Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2002 and presented with a star on the
Hollywood Walk Of Fame in 2000.
Sting said: "I am delighted to have
Jody and the team at
UMPG curate and manage my song catalog. It is absolutely essential to me that my career's body of work have a home where it is valued and respected — not only to connect with longtime fans in new ways but also to introduce my songs to new audiences, musicians and generations. Throughout my career, I have enjoyed a long and successful relationship with
UMG as my label partner, under the watchful guidance of
Lucian, so it felt natural to unite everything in one trusted home, as I return to the studio, ready for the next chapter."
Jody Gerson, chairman and CEO,
Universal Music Publishing Group, said: "So many memories from my youth are tied to the great songs written by
Sting — whether it was first seeing
THE POLICE perform in Philadelphia or hearing his music on the radio or playing those albums until I wore them out. I could never have imagined that someday I would get to lead a company that will be the guardian of
Sting's remarkable songwriting legacy. Every one of us at
UMPG looks forward to this work with a sense of honor, responsibility and enormous excitement about what we can achieve for his music in the future."
Sir Lucian Grainge, chairman and CEO,
Universal Music Group, said: "I've had the privilege to work with
Sting for over 20 years and I'm so thrilled to expand our relationship to now include music publishing.
Sting is a songwriting genius whose music permeates global culture. We are honored that by choosing
UMPG for his music publishing,
Sting's entire body of work as a songwriter and recording artist — from
THE POLICE to his solo work — will all be within the
UMG family. It's a responsibility we don't take lightly as well as a great validation of what we have built for artists at
UMG."
Beyond his own critical and commercial success,
Sting's songs have remained a mainstay of pop culture with many of his songs being sampled to shape global hits. In 2018,
Sting's
"Shape Of My Heart" was used in
Juice WRLD's
"Lucid Dreams" which became one of the biggest records of the year. The song peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and has since received more than 1.8 billion streams on
Spotify. In 1997,
THE POLICE's
"Every Breath You Take" was sampled by
Diddy in
"I'll Be Missing You" featuring
Faith Evans and
112, and received the
Grammy Award for "Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group". The song spent eleven weeks atop the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and reached number one in 15 other countries.
A testament to the depth of his influence on countless new generations of performers,
Sting's works have also been sampled by artists including
Nas,
THE ROOTS,
2Pac,
RZA,
Kygo & Avicii,
BLACK EYED PEAS,
Craig David,
French Montana,
Talib Kweli,
FUGEES and
Cam'ron. Additionally, his songs have been covered by an array of the world's most acclaimed artists including
George Michael,
Johnny Cash,
Herbie Hancock,
Isaac Hayes,
Eva Cassidy,
VIOLET FEMMES,
Gloria Gaynor,
Shirley Bassey and
FALL OUT BOY, amongst others.
The recipient of prestigious accolades,
Sting has earned
Billboard magazine's Century Award,
MusiCares 2004 Person of the Year, four
Oscar nominations and a
Tony nomination. In 2003, he was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) by
Queen Elizabeth II for his myriad of contributions to music and appointed Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French government in 2007. He has received the
Kennedy Center Honors, the
American Music Award of Merit and the
Polar Music Prize.
Sting has been awarded Honorary Doctorates of Music by the University of Northumbria (1992), Berklee College of Music (1994), University of Newcastle upon Tyne (2006) and Brown University at its 250th Commencement ceremony (2018).
Sting has appeared in more than 15 films, executive produced the critically acclaimed
"A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints", and in 1989 starred in
"The Threepenny Opera" on Broadway. His most recent theatre project is the
Tony-nominated musical
"The Last Ship", inspired by his memories of the shipbuilding community of Wallsend in the northeast of England where he was born and raised. The show, with music and lyrics by
Sting, ran on Broadway in 2014/2015 and completed a U.K. regional theatre tour which ran from March-July 2018. Thereafter,
Sting starred as shipyard foreman
Jackie White in the Toronto-based production of
"The Last Ship" at the Princess of Wales Theatre. In 2020, he reprised the role for productions in Los Angeles at the Ahmanson Theatre and San Francisco at the Golden Gate Theatre.
One of music's most popular live performers,
Sting will resume his
"My Songs" world tour next month followed by his critically acclaimed Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in June 2022.
Sting was represented in the transaction by
Allen Grubman with his partners
Joe Brenner and
Stuart Prager.