This is not the Hipgnosis elephant, but it sees the world from a similar perspective.
Did you know the famous upside-down elephant at the center of Hipgnosis’ identity is not, conceptually speaking, an upside-down elephant?
That’s according to Storm Thorgerson – the legendary late art director and music sleeve designer whose original Hipgnosis company created iconic visuals for Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and more.
Before his death in 2013, Thorgerson granted his friend, Merck Mercuriadis, the right to use the Hipgnosis name for Mercuriadis’ own venture (which, via rampant music rights acquisitions, became one of this industry’s most transformative players over the past decade).
Thorgerson only had one condition: that Mercuriadis use his design of an upturned elephant as the brand’s graphical accompaniment.
When Mercuriadis asked Thorgerson what possible connection there was between an upturned elephant and his own business plans, Thorgersonpurportedly joked: “[That’s] not an upside-down elephant… it’s an elephant that’s blown away by how good the songs are!”
Well, said elephant is no longer blown away.
That’s not because the multi-billion-dollar portfolio of songs amassed by Mercuriadis at Hipgnosis isn’t stellar – spanning as it does classic hits recorded by Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Rihanna, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Beyoncé, Leonard Cohen, Justin Timberlake, Shakira, and many more.
It’s because of corporate realities.
Last year, as MBW readers know well, Blackstone acquired Hipgnosis Songs Fund (HSF) from its UK public investors for USD $1.58 billion, giving HSF’s portfolio a valuation of over $2.2 billion.
This acquisition brought together HSF with Hipgnosis’ operational management team (at Hipgnosis Song Management), plus a private Blackstone-owned collection of songs (also amassed by Mercuriadis). Combined, the Hipgnosis portfolios contain over 45,000 songs and recordings from over 145 catalogs.
Subsequent to Blackstone’s acquisition of all-things-Hipgnosis, Merck Mercuriadisleft the firm he created. (More on him shortly.)
So now we turn to today’s big news (March 12): Blackstone has announced that it will no longer be using the Hipgnosis name.
Instead, it’s bringing together those 45,000 songs and the team charged with maximizing their earnings under a new brand: Recognition Music Group.
As part of this refresh, Blackstone hints that further acquisitions may be on the way, noting in a press release: “Building on its relationship with songwriters and artists and as a highly capable business for acquiring and managing catalogues, Recognition is well positioned for future growth and to deliver superior returns to its investors.”
Out with the old (right), in with the new (left)
What does AI think?
It’s not MBW’s natural territory – nor our immediate area of expertise – to judge the comparative brand qualities of Recognition Music Group vs. Hipgnosis.
So, wanting to present some empirically unbiased commentary, we outsourced this duty to AI.
Asked for its hot-take on the rebrand, ChatGPT replied: “This feels like a conscious attempt by Blackstone to steer the company into more traditional, corporate waters, distancing it from the quirky, creative roots Merck Mercuriadis and Storm Thorgerson built into the Hipgnosis brand.
“By contrast, Recognition Music Group feels… well, safer. More clinical. It suggests a focus on royalty tracking and revenue optimization— “recognition” in the accounting sense, perhaps more than the artistic one. It’s a move that says: We’re here to manage, not mythologize.”
“Recognition Music Group’ feels more corporate and straightforward — which likely reflects Blackstone’s approach to the business as primarily a financial asset.”
Anthropic’s Claude gives its hot take on the big re-brand
Anthropic’s Claude went a little harder.
It said: “Recognition Music Group feels more corporate and straightforward than Hipgnosis — which likely reflects Blackstone’s approach to the business as primarily a financial asset. It has that consultant-approved polish while conveying very little about musical identity or vision.
“It also has financial undertones that fit perfectly – “recognition” as in recognizing revenue or asset value, rather than artistic achievement.
“I can easily imagine this on corporate letterhead or in press releases about ‘unlocking value’ from music catalogs that have been acquired.”
What now for the elephant?
Some will inevitably assume Blackstone’s comprehensive deletion of the Hipgnosis brand is primarily driven by the firm’s keenness to remove all public-facing associations between its music rights portfolio and the man who built it: Merck Mercuriadis.
Other sources, however, indicate another factor may be at play.
Industry whisperers tell MBW that, just as Storm Thorgerson wished all those years ago, Mercuriadis has retained his rights to the Hipgnosis name and company identity.
In fact, one source suggests that Mercuriadis is likely to use the Hipgnosis name for the new company he’s building, which is set to be unveiled later this year.
“The rumor is Merck’s new venture has one arm in artist management, and that he’s keen to use the Hipgnosis name,” said MBW’s well-placed insider. “It would be Hipgnosis 2.0, or Hipgnosis 3.0 if you count the original sleeve design company.”
Mercuriadis didn’t return requests for comment when contacted.
Watch this space, then. There may be life in those upturned tusks, and those swirly eyes, just yet.Music ComeOn
