Britney Spears, the pop icon, has sold the rights to her music catalog to Primary Wave, a music publisher located in New York. This deal is reported to be worth in the low nine figures, around $200 million, though the exact details have not been disclosed publicly after Britney Spears Sells Her Rights To Music Catalog.
The deal, which was finalized on December 30, 2025, transfers Spears’ ownership of many of her most famous hits including tracks like “…Baby One More Time,” “Oops!… I Did It Again,””Toxic,””Circus,” and “Gimme More” to Primary Wave, as part of a larger trend where legacy artists are monetizing their catalogs in the streaming era.
Now 44 years old and largely out of the limelight in recent years, Britney has not released a full album since Glory in 2016, and her last performance in the United States took place in 2018. The sale of her catalog happened as she continues to concentrate on her personal life and family after the end of her long conservatorship in 2021.
Britney Spears Sells Her Rights To Music Catalog
The singer known for her hit “Toxic” has sold her music catalog and other rights to the music publisher Primary Wave, according to numerous reports. While the financial details regarding Britney’s music were not made public, legal documents obtained by TMZ reveal that she signed over her ownership interest in her music catalog in December.
In recent years, Primary Wave has got the catalogs of some famous artists, including Stevie Nicks, Prince, Whitney Houston, and Biggie Smalls. Other artists such as Justin Bieber, Bruce Springsteen, and Shakira have also sold their music ownership to different companies, while Taylor Swift’s masters were notably sold by her former label, Big Machine Records, in 2019, before she bought them back from Shamrock Capital in 2025.
Why Britney Spears Sold Her Rights
The 44-year-old individual spent almost 14 years under a conservatorship that wanted her to pay attorneys to oversee her life, restricting her ability to make choices regarding her personal matters, career, or finances. In 2021, a judge ended this legal arrangement.
In her 2023 memoir, The Woman in Me, she knew how the conservatorship affected her life, controlling her decisions related to her diet and family planning.
Why Are Artists Selling Their Music Catalogs Rather Than Collecting Royalties?
According to a report in 2023, artists are increasingly choosing to sell their music catalogs to take advantage of the financial worth of their copyrights, thereby securing immediate wealth from assets that may vary in value over time. For older artists, this decision often acts as a strategy for estate planning, alleviating the complex responsibility of managing these assets from their heirs.
Moreover, selling to specialised publishers enables artists to revitalise their work. Companies such as Primary Wave concentrate on marketing and brand development for enhanced visibility, which major labels might overlook. This collaboration can result in new initiatives, including biographical films, fresh albums, or remixes that introduce the music to younger audiences.
Britney Spears said she will not perform in the United States again.
Reports regarding the sale of her catalogue come after Spears’ recent statement about her future performances. “Due to an unwanted situation, I won’t be returning to perform in the U.S. again,” Spears said in an Instagram post on January 8. I am looking forward to the moment when I can sit on a stool with a red rose in my hair, styled in a bun, and perform with my son … in the UK and Australia shortly.
Spears is the mother of two sons, Sean, 20, and Jayden, 19, with her ex-husband Kevin Federline. In October, Federline released his memoir titled “You Thought You Knew,” which explored the couple’s three-year marriage, their divorce, and the custody battle concerning their children.
Spears has not provided any more information regarding her upcoming live performances in either the United Kingdom or Australia, and there are currently no announcements available on her official website or other social media platforms.
