Rock acts selling their catalogue and likeness isn’t a phenomenon in today’s music business. In recent years mega acts like Pink Floyd, KISS, and Red Hot Chili Peppers have all sold portions of their catalogue and/or likeness in massive blockbuster acquisitions. This week, the legacy metal titans Iron Maiden announced that they’d be selling 50% of their catalogue, name and likeness rights to Pophouse Entertainment.
Iron Maiden, who have long been one of the faces of the heavy metal genre, are one of the last legacy metal acts left that are still touring and performing to sold-out stadiums across the globe. Since breaking out in the late 70s’, Iron Maiden has performed over 2,500 shows and grossed $681.1 million in ticket sales since 1984, according to Pophouse Entertainment (Billboard reports). Very few bands have come close to what Iron Maiden has done in their 50 plus years touring and producing hit metal records. And while many speculate the band’s live performance career could be nearing its final stages, their deal with Pophouse Entertainment might be forecasting a different sentiment.
Who Is Pophouse Entertainment And What Could They Have In Store For Iron Maiden’s Legacy?
Pophouse Entertainment was founded by Björn Ulvaeus, member of the Swedish pop act ABBA, along with Conni Jonsson who founded the Swedish global investment organization EQT AB. Pophouse helped launch ABBA Voyage, the immersive audio-visual concert experience where CG avatars of ABBA can be seen performing their greatest hits as they were in 1979. Over recent years Pophouse has acquired stakes in other notables acts like Tina Turner, KISS, and Cyndi Lauper.
Billboard spoke with Pophouse CEO Jessica Koravos, where she elaborated on what their future plans are in working with Iron Maiden. “We are 50-50 partners with the band, and the plan is that we’re going to work together turbo charging Maiden’s plans for the future. With Pophouse, we’re always thinking around the visual identity and … there’s lots of world building that’s possible both in [Maiden’s] artwork, but also in the storytelling within the songs. The heavy metal genre, especially with the addition of Eddie, lends itself to a treatment potentially in the world of horror.”
Koravos further insists, “I have a deep understanding of the Maiden fan, and I think the band would say they’ve brought us on board to turbo charge them, [not] to help them hang up their boots.”
According to Billboard, Catalogue investors consider actively touring acts more valuable than non-touring acts, as live shows generate engagement with the artist’s music catalogue which provides more consumer data that helps measure fan demand.
What’s In Store For Iron Maiden’s Future
Iron Maiden’s deal with Pophouse Entertainment indicates that the metal icons won’t be done performing any time soon. Whether that’s touring as they have been for decades, or via an immersive experience similar to ABBA Voyage that revisions the band as the were in their prime. The latter of which metal fans might not embrace with open arms – many fans reacted negatively towards the idea of Ozzy Osbourne being resurrected as an AI hologram.
However, it’s far more than likely that Iron Maiden will continue touring and possibly be gearing up to record another album. The band has repeatedly expressed their desire to write another studio album (their last record was 2021’s Senjutsu) and continue touring. In June 2026, Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson told Kerrang! “I would rather do another album than another tour. If I had to choose between the two, I’d rather choose a new album, but [bassist] Steve [Harris is] the other way around. He will tour and tour and tour and tour until he probably dies onstage. Touring is fun, but it’s not new. I’m a creative bunny, and I like making new, new things.”
Bottom Line
Time will tell what Iron Maiden decides to do next. The band continues to sound extraordinary and deliver on their signature metal spectacle at their live shows, and they show no signs of slowing down. Hopefully whatever the band has planned with Pophouse Entertainment will only positively impact their legacy and keep them sounding and feeling authentically ‘Maiden.’
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
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