Executive Editor, Music
Cars frontman Ric Ocasek's song catalog acquired by Primary Wave Music
The estate of Cars co-founder and songwriter Ric Ocasek and Primary Wave Music have announced a new partnership that will see the company acquire the late artist’s catalog—including all of his songs from his Cars tenure, as well as his solo material—in addition to sharing name, image and likeness rights with the estate. The estate will have access to the company’s marketing team and publishing infrastructure, and will collaborate closely on new marketing, branding, digital and synch opportunities, as well as film and television projects. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Included in the deal are hits such as "Just What I Needed", "My Best Friend's Girl", "Let the Good Times Roll", "Let's Go", "You Might Think" and their 1984 hit "Drive".
During his five-decade career, Ocasek sold more than 20 million records with the Cars and had more than a dozen Top 40 hits. The band was nominated for six Grammys and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018. He released six solo albums between 1982 and 2005; he was also a sought-after producer, responsible for Weezer's multiplatinum 1994 debut, as well as material with Bad Brains, Bad Religion, No Doubt, Nada Surf and Suicide. Ocasek died in 2019 at the age of 75.
