David Crosby Didn’t Want to Sell His Publishing Rights
David Crosby admitted he didn't want to sell the publishing rights to his catalog of songs, but the deal allowed him to get on with his life and stop worrying about money.
Following the lead of many veteran artists in recent times, Crosby signed a deal with Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group that paid him a lump sum in return for the corporation becoming entitled to profit from use of his music.
When the pandemic began in 2020, Crosby reported he’d been forced into a severe financial situation, saying he might lose his house if he couldn’t tour. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, he said “that wasn’t a thing I wanted to do, but doing that deal with Irving made it possible for me to not worry about the money.”
He noted that he "paid off my house. That was really scary. We were really worried we were going to lose it. I couldn’t work live, and I couldn’t make any money doing records. That deal made a difference for us. It really helped a lot.”
Crosby pointed out another side effect of the pandemic as his 80th birthday approached. “Eighty is not a birthday to celebrate,” he laughed. “No birthday party. I am celebrating that I am alive. I am celebrating that my relationship with my family has improved by being home. My relationship with my son has improved a lot from being home.”
Repeating his recent statement that he realizes he's approaching the end of his life, Crosby asserted: “What matters is what you do with the time. If you sit there on your butt and worry about dying, then you fucking wasted it. I haven’t been wasting it. I’m having a really good time and feeling wonderfully about it. Sooner or later, something is going to break. Right now, my life is pretty great.”