ZZ Top Sells Music Catalog To BMG for $50M

ZZ Top is selling its music catalog to investment firm KKR and record company BMG for $50 million, according to The NY Post.

The legendary Texas trio, known for hits like “Legs,” “Cheap Sunglasses” and “Gimme All Your Lovin,'” sold their music interests, which include the publishing catalog as well as income from recorded music royalties and performance royalties, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

The sale follows a slew of high-profile deals in which legendary rock stars are cashing out. 

The ZZ Top deal includes 15 albums released over a 50-year span, including the commercial breakthrough “Tres Hombres” in 1973, “Degüello,” “El Loco,” “Eliminator,” “Afterburner,” “Recycler” and “Antenna.”Dusty Hill of ZZ Top passed away in July amid the band’s North American tour, which is slated to run through spring 2022.Redferns/Getty Images

The trio of Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard formed ZZ Top in the late ’60s. Known for their distinctive long red beards, the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. Hill died in July at age 72 during the band’s North American tour, which is slated to run through spring 2022.

The deals are part of a long string of established artists selling their songbooks to deep-pocketed investors or music labels. They’re also fueled by streaming, which offers the possibility of more lucrative royalties as customers flock to services like Spotify and Apple Music.