Drake’s new deal with Universal Music Group (UMG) could be worth millions.
Variety reports that during the music label’s Q1 earnings call, the amount behind the deal is worth allegedly close to $400 million.
“Drake has the bargaining power to negotiate a net profit split with the best deal terms and a humongous advance up front,” said one attorney who practices within the music industry. The deal follows the news that his fellow Toronto native, The Weeknd has also inked a deal with UMG that focuses heavily on “visual media projects.”
The Toronto native’s history with the label runs deep through his previous label Cash Money which was under the UMG-owned Republic Records label. Now he has re-signed to the label in a new contract that focuses on recordings, publishing, merchandise, and “visual media projects.”
“Drake is about to get the biggest bag in the history of the music business by far,” said record executive and entrepreneur Steve Stoute back in July 2020 when word got out that the “Laugh Now Cry Later” emcee was working to get his UMG contract fulfilled. “If Drake goes independent, the music business is over.”
As one of the world’s most popular artists, Drake’s rise to fame in the mid-to-late 2000s has earned him numerous awards including the 2021 Billboard Artist of the Decade title. He continues to surpass music industry standards to this day. Just last month reports revealed that the “Hotline Bling” lyricist managed to populate more U.S. on-demand streams last year than all of the music released before the 1980s combined.
He was recently tapped by his fellow Scorpio brethren, Future Hendrix, for his latestI Never Liked You album. Drizzy is featured on tracks “WAIT FOR U” and “I’M ON ONE.” The recent album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 140,000 album-equivalent units.