Death As Career Move?

[ardgedee]

Never thought of James Brown as being financially "rich" in his lifetime. Always thought of him as a super diligent journeyman that loved touring, performing, and making music.

Samples.

Also licensing. "I Feel Good" has appeared in dozens of ads and movie soundtracks, and he's got a pretty deep catalog in addition to that one song.

 

[J-Bassomatic]

Wasn't Harrison a musician?

 

[S-Bigbottom]

Worked for Elvis, he been comfy post career for a long time.

 

[BarfanyShart]

Like the old Daffy Duck cartoon, "the catch is that I can only perform that act once."

 

[Sponson Thrisby]

Spending the year dead for tax purposes.

 

[dalkowski]

Kate Bush's bank account will be bigger this year, and she's still around to enjoy it.

And she deserves every last penny.

 

[red_rhino]

Anyway, I currently have no plans to off myself so my wife can be supported in style afterwards

I live by one simple rule: Never be worth more dead than you are alive.

 

[JimmyM]

No real surprises on the list except maybe one.

Never thought of James Brown as being financially "rich" in his lifetime. Always thought of him as a super diligent journeyman that loved touring, performing, and making music.

One thing for sure now: his estate holder(s) are surely singing, "I feel good. . "

His estate also sold all of his publishing rights for $20 million, I believe is the figure.

 

[elgranluis]

Juan Gabriel (also a musician) making more than John Lennon and George Harrison!

 

[Bassinthemudd]

You know you're big when you can just spend a year dead. Not to increase your popularity, but for tax purposes.

 

[Matt R.]

Seriously considering it.

 

[Bassinthemudd]

Spending the year dead for tax purposes.
View attachment 4861291

I missed your post before posting a link to a video clip. Great stuff.

 

[JRA]

Death As Career Move?
maybe as a last resort...do you have to announce it ahead of time?

 

[J Wilson]

These works are long past paying off the original costs, and now you simply print more and sell more. The bigger names can be offered as remixed, remastered, box sets, this or that number anniversary, etc. You're only out new costs for how many you plan to sell and any promotion. This can be and is very lucrative as it's little front end with a big back end.

In the case of artists that were difficult to deal with for any number of reasons, these are now out of the way in terms of new business for the products from the old recordings. It's a cold way to look at it, but in some cases, you've buried your problems.

And if those artists had their business right at the time of their passing, the new monies can be a boon to their survivors or whoever owns the catalog.

For me the part of it that's equally heartbreaking and enraging is how many of them died needlessly, just threw their lives away.

 

[eddybuzzard]

Death As Career Move?
maybe as a last resort...do you have to announce it ahead of time?

Pronounce

 

[Mannyinnewyork]

Dead, I am worth about 5 bucks. Alive, I am worth twice that. I'll keep on living.

 

[J-Bass RMR]

Never thought of James Brown as being financially "rich" in his lifetime.

I thought he had built quite the empire back in the day. He had his own private jet back in the mid-60s.

I thought Marley's estate was way up there.

I can only hope my career takes off after I'm dead. It sure hasn't so far.

 

[Wood and Wire]

Spending the year dead for tax purposes.
View attachment 4861291

You know you're big when you can just spend a year dead. Not to increase your popularity, but for tax purposes.

I used to see Hotblack Desiato frequently, when I'd take lunch breaks, and eat my food in the park watching the wolves in London Zoo.

I thought that was an oddly niche reference to name an estate agent (realtor in U.S. speak?) after a minor character in Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.

It turned out it was the other way around; Douglas Adams named the character after the estate agent, who was his landlord at the time.

Still doesn't explain the name - in fact it seems even weirder, but a great character, and Disaster Area are the ultimate rock band.

 

[callofcthulhu]

Now? Always…it's still copyright/publishing.
I had the acquaintance of a guy named Harold Budd, a piano player in the Lenny Tristano mold who didn't persue a jazz path, but instead developed the concept of 'ambient' music…etherial, abstract, spacy tone poems(but not "new age", he hated that tag). Brian Eno picked up on that, and did a number of collaborative albums with him, giving Harold greater exposure, but this is still all on a niche/cult level. Eno, while producing U2's Joshua Tree album, used a sample of his work, and Harold made more money off of that than his own recordings. He went on to work with a number of people that make up a big chunk of my music collection, David Sylvian, XTC's Andy Partridge, Bill Nelson, Jah Wobble, John Foxx from Ultravox, the Cocteau Twins and others; not exactly household names, but quite a collection of work nonetheless. Still, it was U2 that paid the bills(my wife, a harpist, played on one of his last albums, Candylion). It just blows my mind that I got to know him(he actually lived, part time, in the town of Joshua Tree, just down the road). He was great to hang out with, and I miss him(he died due to Covid complications).

I didn't know Harold Budd had died. What a legacy.

 

[fclefgeoff]

Now? Always…it's still copyright/publishing.
I had the acquaintance of a guy named Harold Budd, a piano player in the Lenny Tristano mold who didn't persue a jazz path, but instead developed the concept of 'ambient' music…etherial, abstract, spacy tone poems(but not "new age", he hated that tag). Brian Eno picked up on that, and did a number of collaborative albums with him, giving Harold greater exposure, but this is still all on a niche/cult level. Eno, while producing U2's Joshua Tree album, used a sample of his work, and Harold made more money off of that than his own recordings. He went on to work with a number of people that make up a big chunk of my music collection, David Sylvian, XTC's Andy Partridge, Bill Nelson, Jah Wobble, John Foxx from Ultravox, the Cocteau Twins and others; not exactly household names, but quite a collection of work nonetheless. Still, it was U2 that paid the bills(my wife, a harpist, played on one of his last albums, Candylion). It just blows my mind that I got to know him(he actually lived, part time, in the town of Joshua Tree, just down the road). He was great to hang out with, and I miss him(he died due to Covid complications).

Harold Budd's music saved my life. I discovered it at a difficult time and his music provided a peace and joy that I cherish and return to often. I listen to his work daily in meditation, and was so sad to read of his passing. He was a genius in my eyes and it's a tragedy that he is not a household name. He was very prolific, and in the 7-8 years since I discovered him, I have grown to love several of his albums and collaborations but haven't heard 'Candylion'. I will plan to check it out.