Hipgnosis Song Management has acquired a song catalogue from the first-ever Grammy Songwriter of the Year, Tobias Jesso Jr., known for his work with Adele (“We Were Young”), Harry Styles (“Boyfriends”), Niall Horan, Pink, Sia, Shawn Mendes, Charlie Pugh, Meghan Trainor, Florence + The Machine and others.
According to the announcement, Hipgnosis has acquired 100% of Jesso’s interest in publishing copyrights (including the writer’s share of performance) for “around” 40 songs released between 2015 and 2020. Further terms of the deal were not disclosed; a rep for Universal Music Publishing confirmed that Jesso remains signed with the company, which holds the rights to his work outside of the Hipgnosis deal.
Like his fellow inaugural songwriter of the year Grammy nominees, Jesso is also an artist and released his debut album, “Goon,” on Matador Records in 2015. The songwriter of the year award is intended to recognize songwriters who are more behind the scenes, which is a role Jesso has embraced in recent years.
He received SOCAN’s Breakout Award in 2016 and has been nominated for songwriter of the year at the 2015 JUNO Awards, nominated for the Ivors and was shortlisted for the Polaris prize. He is represented by longtime manager Ben Persky at Mixed Management and lawyer Nicky Stein at Clintons.
Hipgnosis CEO and founder Merck Mercuriadis said: “Tobias is amongst the most important songwriters in contemporary music today as demonstrated by his winning the 2023 Grammy Award for Songwriter Of The Year, in its inaugural year. I fell in love with his songs right from the get go with Goon eight years ago and he never fails to deliver. I’m delighted to welcome Tobias and his manager Ben Persky to the Hipgnosis family.”
From Variety US
