Hipgnosis Song Management acquires writer’s share of 16-time Grammy winner David Foster

19 April 2023 - Press release

 

Hipgnosis Song Management (“Hipgnosis” or the “Company”), which offers investors a pure-play exposure to songs and associated intellectual property rights, is pleased to announce the Company’s acquisition of the writer’s share of performance income for all songs written by David Foster, the acclaimed Canadian songwriter, composer, musician, arranger and producer.  The acquisition has been made on behalf of Hipgnosis Songs Capital, a partnership between Hipgnosis Song Management and funds managed by Blackstone. 

David Foster has been nominated for 47 Grammy Awards – winning 16 of them – in a one-of-a-kind career that spans more than five decades and includes songs and albums that have collectively sold in the hundreds of millions. 

Foster has been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, been celebrated with a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame as well as being awarded with the Order of Canada and Officer of The Order Of Canada honours.  David has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song, honoring his work as songwriter on Peter Cetera’s Glory of Love (from 1986’s The Karate Kid, Part II), Whitney Houston’s I Have Nothing (from 1992’s The Bodyguard) and Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli’s The Prayer (from 1998’s Quest for Camelot), the latter of which won the 1999 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song following his two previous nominations in the same category for Glory of Love and Night Ranger’s The Secret of My Success (from 1987’s The Secret of My Success). He has also been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall Of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame and been named BMI’s Songwriter of the Year. 

Following the 1978 Number 1 single Got To Be Real for Cheryl Lynn, David’s major breakthrough was contributing 6 songs to Earth, Wind & Fire’s Top 5 album I Am in 1979 including After The Love Has Gone for which he and his co-writers won the 1980 Grammy Award for Best R & B Song. From there he went on to write seminal songs for Michael Jackson with It’s The Falling In Love and Chaka Khan with Through The Fire as well as hit singles for The Tubes and Boz Scaggs. Foster had a pivotal run with Chicago which included the Number 1 single Hard To Say I’m Sorry and the Number 3 single You’re The Inspiration as well as the Number 1 single Glory Of Love for their vocalist / bassist Peter Cetera. He wrote the Number 2 UK single Best Of Me for Cliff Richard and the Number 1 single St Elmo’s Fire (Man In Motion) for John Parr. He produced and co-wrote The Bodyguard soundtrack which made it to Number 1 featuring Whitney Houston including the Number 1 single I Have Nothing. He composed the themes for the 1988 Winter Olympics and the 1996 Summer Olympics. He has gone on to write for a distinguished range of artists including the aforementioned Andrea Bocelli, Celine Dion, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Rod Stewart, Bette Midler, Bryan Adams, Destiny’s Child and Michael Bublé including the Number 1 song Everything, as well as his multiplatinum perennial Christmas album.  

Hailed by Forbes as “a tireless force of nature and the modern manifestation of multi-faceted talent,” Foster has received worldwide critical applause and countless international honours.  

In addition to his Grammy Awards which include three for Producer of the Year, four for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s), three for Album of the Year and two for Record of the Year, David has received 27 Juno Awards nominations, winning Producer of the Year in 1985 and 1986, Instrument Artist of the Year in 1986, 1987 and 1989, and in 2019 the Juno Humanitarian Award in recognition of his philanthropy and support of hundreds of charities, including his own, The David Foster Foundation. 

Foster’s incomparable life and career was documented in 2019 in the film David Foster - Off the Record on Netflix.

David Foster was advised by business manager Howard Grossman of Gelfand, Rennert & Feldman and attorney Michael O. Crain of Crain Law Group.

Merck Mercuriadis, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Hipgnosis Song Management, said: “David is recognized globally as one of the greatest songwriters and producers of all time. He is the songwriters’ songwriter and the producers’ producer. David is truly special, and we are delighted to be working with his almost 50 years of incredible songs and to welcome him to the Hipgnosis family.”

David Foster said: “I’m very happy to be joining the Hipgnosis family. I’ve long admired what Merck and his team have built and I trust they will be terrific partners.”