Linda Ronstadt will NOT receive royalties for the use of the song in HBO’s The Last of Us
Linda Ronstadt, whose song Long Long Time was recently featured on The Last of Us, will not earn any money from any associated royalties.
The 76-year-old singer’s track saw a huge increase in streaming numbers after its use on the hit HBO series.
But because he sold his music catalog in 2021, Ronstadt won’t reap the benefits of the song’s revival.
‘I still love the song and I’m so glad that [songwriter Gary White] will make a windfall,’ said Billboard.
Ronstadt’s manager, John Boylan, added: “She’s not unhappy about it, believe me.”
No royalties: Linda Ronstadt, whose song Long Long Time was recently featured on The Last of Us, will not earn any money from any associated royalties (pictured in 2020)
We sold your catalog. The last four or five years have been a complete tsunami of acquisitions like this.
She talked a bit about hearing the song for the first time when she was introduced to White through guitarist David Bromberg.
Ronstadt said that he “took me to Cafe Au Go Go in Greenwich Village to see Gary performing with Paul Siebel.” After the show, Gary played Long Long Time for me and I immediately wanted to record it.’
She continued, “It wasn’t a country song, it wasn’t a popular song or a rock song, but I thought it was a really good song.”
Long Long Time came out in 1970. It was included on the Silk Purse album and received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Female.
The classic tune played three times during the devastating episode of The Last of Us, which depicted the tragic love story between Bill and Frank as they met in the guise of the apocalypse.
The episode has been praised by fans and critics alike, with many stars praising Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett for their performances in the “painfully beautiful” love story, which culminates in their deaths.
Streams of Linda Long’s song, Long Time increased by 4900% following the episode’s release on HBO Max in the US, according to Spotify.
Rise: The 76-year-old singer’s track received a boost in its streaming numbers due to its use on the show, but that’s not going to help the Arizona native.
Sold! He then explained that he had sold his music catalog several years ago, so he would not receive any money from the increased streams (pictured in 2013).
Tragedy: The classic tune played three times during the devastating episode of The Last of Us, which depicted the tragic love story between Bill and Frank as they met in the guise of the apocalypse.
The surge in airplay after appearing on the TV show seemed reminiscent of the revival of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) after it was used on Stranger Things.
After going viral on TikTok and re-entering the charts in multiple countries, the song helped Kate achieve her first US top five single.
It climbed all the way to number four on the US charts nearly four decades after its release, with the single originally only reaching number 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Emotional: The episode has been praised by fans and critics alike, with many stars praising Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett for their performances.
Huge increase: Streams of Linda Long’s song, Long Time increased by 4,900% following the episode’s release on HBO Max in the US, according to Spotify.
Revival year: The surge in streaming after appearing on the TV show seemed reminiscent of the revival of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) after it was used on Stranger Things.
The popular song also peaked at number one in Norway and Austria, with their album Hounds Of Love reaching number one on Billboard’s Top Alternative Albums chart in the United States.
Speaking about the landmark achievement, Kate said: ‘It’s all so exciting! Since the last release, ‘Running Up That Hill’ went to number 1 in Norway and Austria.
‘This is great news and we just heard today that it has risen from No. 8 to No. 4 in the US.
digital music news reported a statistic stating that streams of the song increase by 9,000% due to the show and social media.
During the month after the release of Stranger Things, it raked in $2.3 million in royalties according to an estimate reported by Fortune.