While we have put a stone on it on the sale of the Pink Floyd catalog (so Variety claims, at least), there are still those who bet heavily on music libraries. This is the case of Iconoclast, the company of the French producer Olivier Chastan which has just acquired the repertoire of Nick Monson, producer and co-author of Lady Gaga, responsible for the success of the album «Art Pop» and the related hit «Applause», finished in the Top 5 on Billboard and in the Top 10 in more than 20 countries worldwide.
Following his success with Lady Gaga, Monson has written, produced and collaborated with the likes of Nick Jonas, Selena Gomez, Britney Spears, Rag ‘n’ Bone Man, Little Mix, Anne-Marie and Julia Michaels.
In 2019, Monson continued to collaborate with Lady Gaga, producing and writing much of the soundtrack for «A Star Is Born» which topped the charts in more than 20 countries, received gold and platinum certifications and she took home four of the seven Grammys she was nominated for. The catalog includes hit songs such as “Human” by Rag ‘n’ Bone Man, “Good For You” with A$AP Rocky and “Nobody” by Selena Gomez.
Founded in 2021, Iconoclast claims to “operate at the intersection of brand management and technology to preserve and grow the intellectual property and legacy of culturally significant artists”.
Last month, Iconoclast acquired the catalog of Mad Decent Publishing, co-founded by DJ and producer Diplo and Kevin Kusastsu. In July 2022, producer Irv Gotti (Irving Lorenzo), founder of rap label Murder Inc, sold a share of his master tapes to Iconoclast in a deal worth $300 million.
Olivier Chastan was previously managing director of Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group which last year acquired the catalogs of the likes of the Beach Boys, David Crosby and Linda Ronstadt. The US-based French executive quietly launched Iconoclast in the fall of 2021 and, speaking to Music Business Worldwide in February 2022, said the company has since completed five separate music rights acquisitions.