Kiss, the legendary American rock band, has sold its name, its image and the intellectual property rights of its entire musical catalog to the Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment Group for a figure close to 300 million euros, according to the Associated Press ( AP). The brand already owns legendary songs such as 'I was made for lovin' you', 'Rock and Roll all nite' or 'Beth', the name of the band and its iconic image, with its provocative facial makeup and its 'eternal' digital avatars.
The New York band, which has sold more than one hundred million records worldwide in its half-century career, may not return to the stage in person. But it could be on permanent tour thanks to the digital avatars of the band members created by the Swedish company that has acquired the rights after paying 276.8 million euros, about 300 million dollars.
Not surprisingly, Pophouse participated in the design of the ABBA Voyage show in London, in which digital avatars, or 'ABBAtars', performed the hits of the iconic Swedish pop group. In February, the same company, co-founded by one of Abba's members, Bjorn Ulvaeus, announced that it had acquired the rights to the music catalog of American singer Cyndi Lauper.
Avatars
During the last Kiss concert last December at Madison Square Garden in New York, and as part of their farewell tour, End of the Road, the group announced that, according to a Swedish company, they had made digital avatars of all the members. of the band and that they would be used for a hypothetical film, a documentary or for an immersive experience about which Pophouse has not provided further details.
Generated from artificial intelligence, the avatars will be 'customized' with special effects and perform the stunts that elderly musicians can no longer perform.
It's not the first time Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer of Kiss have teamed up with Pophouse. Simmons has assured, however, that he does not like the word “acquisition” and that they would “never” sell his work to a company that they do not appreciate.
The sale of their image and rights is intended to “expose” Kiss to younger generations, explained Pophouse CEO Per Sundin. “It is exactly a collaboration.” “Kiss is one of the most recognized and iconic bands in the history of music,” said Johan Lagerlof, head of investments at Pophouse. He recalled that Kiss “has not ceased to push the boundaries of popular culture.” “The group's mysterious components, incomparable virtues and iconic images have made them a cultural force and a legendary value with multigenerational appeal,” he said.
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