Blondie and Barry Manilow sell their catalogs to Hipgnosis

Blondie Hit songwriting duo Debbie Harry and Chris Stein, as well as pop singer and author Barry Manilow have sold their future royalties to a fast-growing investment fund Hipgnosis, Rolling Stone reports. That means their income from 197 Blondie songs, including 'Heart of Glass' and 'Rapture', as well from 917 Manilow's songs, including 'Mandy', 'I Write the Songs' and 'Copacabana (At the Copa)', now goes to the Hipgnosis Songs Fund. Founded by music industry veteran Merck Mercuriadis, the fund allows investors to see an income from music royalties. Hipgnosis has spent over $1 billion in song acquisitions since 2018, picking up catalogs from artists, songwriters and producers and amassing a collection of hits from the likes of Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora, star producer Mark Ronson and Blink-182 co-founder Tom Delonge.