(L-R) Flea, Chad Smith, Anthony Kiedis, and John Frusciante of Red Hot Chili Peppers perform onstage during the FIREAID Benefit Concert for California Fire Relief at The Kia Forum on January 30, 2025 in Inglewood, California. Scott Dudelson/Getty Images The Red Hot Chili Peppers sold the rights to their recorded catalog to Warner Music Group in a deal worth more than $300 million, sources familiar with the matter tell The Hollywood Reporter, with WMG acquiring the catalog through the company’s joint venture with Bain Capital.
WMG first announced its $1.2 billion joint venture catalog acquisition vehicle with Bain last July and reported in its May 7 earnings report that they’d spent $650 million on catalogs since the JV’s launch, though the company didn’t specify what those acquisitions were. The Chili Peppers deal represents close to half of the JV’s reported spending, though it’s currently unclear what the rest has gone toward.
Reps for the band and WMG declined or didn’t respond to request for comment.
The deal had been long rumored, with Billboard reporting in February of 2025 that the band was shopping its recorded rights, while Music Business Worldwide speculated earlier this year that the venture was potentially targeting the Chili Peppers.
This isn’t the group’s first time selling music rights either. Back in 2021, the group sold its publishing catalog to Hipgnosis (now known as Recognition Music Group) in a $140 million deal. The publishing rights could be changing hands again soon, as Sony Music Group is currently in talks to acquire Recognition in what would be a multibillion-dollar deal. Among the other catalogs in Recognition’s ownership are publishing rights for Justin Bieber, Justin Timberlake and Neil Young, among many more.
The Chili Peppers are one of the biggest rock bands of all time, with a massive catalog of hits including “Californication,” “Scar Tissue,” “Can’t Stop,” “Under the Bridge” and “Otherside” among many more. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers remain one of the biggest touring acts in the business as well, consistently selling out stadiums around the world.
Warner is a natural choice for the Chili Peppers to sell to given that the band has been signed to flagship label Warner Records since the early ’90s, where they’ve released every one of their albums since 1991’s Blood Sugar Sex Magik.
The catalog acquisition space remains hot as the major labels have all partnered with outside investors to buy up music rights. Aside from Warner, Universal Music Group has a minority stake in Chord Music Partners, while Sony recently announced a venture with Singapore’s GIC.
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