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- Bob Dylan has sold his entire catalogue to Sony Music in a deal thought to be worth R3 billion.
- The agreement follows the singer's massive 2020 deal in which he sold his songwriting catalogue to Universal Music Publishers.
- But while he continues to have financial success with his music, Bob's career became shrouded in controversy in 2021 when he was accused of sexual abuse by a woman known as JC.
Bob Dylan has sold his entire recorded catalogue to Sony Music in a deal thought to be worth $200 million (R3 billion), according to Billboard.
In a statement shared on their website, Sony called the deal a "landmark agreement", adding that it "comprises the entirety of Bob Dylan's recorded body of work since 1962, beginning with the artist's self-titled debut album and continuing through 2020's highly acclaimed and successful Rough and Rowdy Ways".
Bob has had a long-standing relationship with Sony, having signed to their label, Columbia Records, in 1961, where he recorded his debut album that same year.
"Columbia Records and Rob Stringer [chairman of the Sony Music Group] have been nothing but good to me for many, many years and a whole lot of records. I'm glad that all my recordings can stay where they belong," the singer said in the statement.
This is not the only big deal that Bob has signed in recent years. In 2020, the singer sold his entire songwriting catalogue, estimated to be worth $300 million (R4.5 billion), to Universal Music Publishing Group.
Sexual abuse scandal
While he continues to have financial success with his music, Bob's career became shrouded in controversy in 2021 when a woman accused him of sexually abusing her in 1965 when she was a child.
Known as JC, the woman claims the singer "exploited his status as a musician to provide [her] with alcohol and drugs and sexually abuse her multiple times".
According to The Guardian, lawyers for the singer have formally denied the allegations, calling an amended filing of the lawsuit, in which JC stated that the abuse took place over "several months" rather than over a six-week period as previously stated, "a brazen shakedown... false, malicious, reckless and defamatory".
Bob's legal team has also attempted to discredit JC by highlighting her work as a psychic.
In response, JC's legal team said: "Neither my client or her counsel are going to be bullied. More than half of Americans believe in psychic phenomena. If you're going to attack somebody for their beliefs, you're encroaching upon very dangerous territory. This is what this country is based on, freedom of beliefs. It shouldn't divert our attention from the allegations. This case is about the facts."
