Hallelujah: Hipgnosis buys all Leonard Cohen’s hits

Hipgnosis continues its domination of the music publishing space, snapping up the entire music catalogue of the late music icon Leonard Cohen.

The music investment platform has acquired rights in all 278 songs and derivatives written by Leonard Cohen, including Hallelujah, which has become one of the most beloved songs of all time having been covered more than 300 times and sold almost 10 million copies as well as having been streamed more than 5 billion times across all services.

Within this, 127 songs are from Leonard Cohen’s Stranger Music catalogue for which Hipgnosis has acquired the “songwriter’s share” of royalties. It covers the period from the inception of his career through to the year 2000 and includes all derivative works, making a total of 211 songs. 

It now owns 100 per cent of the copyrights, “publisher’s share” and “songwriter’s share” of royalties in the Old Ideas catalogue which consists of all 67 songs plus derivative works written by Cohen from 2001 until his death, at age 82, in 2016.

The deal was agreed between Cohen’s estate and the partnership of Hipgnosis Song Management and Blackstone, which also acquired the music of Shakira, Neil Young and Blondie.

Merck Mercuriadis, Founder and CEO of Hipgnosis Song Management, said: “To now be the custodians and managers of Leonard Cohen’s incomparable songs is a wonderful yet very serious responsibility that we approach with excitement and fully understand the importance of.”

“Leonard wrote words and songs that have changed our lives, none more so obvious than Hallelujah but there are so many more that we look forward to reminding the world of on a daily basis.”

As a world-renowned songwriter, poet, novelist, performer, Songwriters Hall Of Fame inductee and Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame Inductee, Cohen’s records have sold more than 30 million copies worldwide.