Merck Mercuriadis to leave Hipgnosis Song Management after Blackstone deal

Merck Mercuriadis, chairman and founder of Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM), the manager of Hipgnosis Songs Fund (SONG) has given notice of his intention to step away as chairman of HSM, effective upon closing of the proposed acquisition of SONG by Blackstone, which is expected to become effective on 29 July 2024 (click here to see our most recent coverage of this deal, which has been part of an ongoing saga that you can read about on our website). This makes no practical difference to SONG now that the terms of that deal have been agreed and don’t look likely to change.

In what is being pitched as a case of poacher turned gamekeeper, Merck says that now is the right time for him to step back from his role as chairman of HSM “to spend more time advocating on behalf of songwriters to ensure that they are properly compensated for their work”. Merck goes on to say that he has always envisioned bringing songwriters together globally and organising them to ensure they have a voice at the table, representing the consensus views of their community, in discussions about their compensation. He adds that, with the next Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) four years away and ongoing legislation being discussed worldwide, the time to act is now.

[QD comment: It should not be long now until the story of Hipgnosis Songs Fund finally draws to a close. It is no secret that this fund, which once burned brightly as a darling of the sector, has been beset by problems many of which appear to stem back to the way that it was managed. It will probably be of scant solace to investors that Merck is exiting stage left and that he has a new project to work on.]