The Metro: Music royalties help pay for Michigan state employee retirements
Michigan’s pension fund invested over $1 billion in music royalties, earning money every time songs by artists like Billie Holiday and Tyla are streamed — but raising questions about who really profits from music.
A photo of vinyl records at a record store. Photo credit: Kay Wood, Unsplash
Detroit is a city with many musical connections. But one musical connection might be helping pay for your retirement.
Between 2010 and 2019, Michigan’s treasury pension fund invested $1.1 billion into music royalties. It significantly invested in Concord, an entertainment company that holds the copyrights to over 300,000 songs.
Its catalog includes timeless acts like Billie Holiday, Phil Collins, Cyndi Lauper, and more modern artists like Brent Faiyaz and Tyla. Every time their songs are streamed, Michigan pensions grow.
These investments are becoming more popular thanks to streaming platforms like Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music.
It raises questions about how an influx of financiers could impact the music industry. And considering so few artists own their catalog, what does it mean for the earnings disparity between the musicians who make the music and the investors who profit from it?
Helping us sift through this is the founder of CAD Management, Clayton Durant. He is also an adjunct professor of music business at New York University.
Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.
Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.
More stories from The Metro
Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.Donate today »
