The Rolling Stones have been announced as the latest recipient of a BRIT Billion Award by the BPI, the representative voice for Britain’s leading record labels and music companies.
The BRIT Bill Award celebrates The Rolling Stones’ incredible career, spanning seven decades.
Last week they celebrated their 14th UK No.1 album with Hackney Diamonds, their first album of new material in 18 years.
Reaching the milestone of one billion UK career streams, as calculated by the Official Charts Company, the British band became the longest active artist to receive the prestigious Award, with their most streamed hits including Paint It, Black and Start Me Up. .
Now with 14 UK Number 1 albums and eight UK Number 1 singles, The Rolling Stones have been undisputedly one of the defining voices of British music for over 60 years.
Achievement: The Rolling Stones have been announced by the BPI as the latest recipient of a BRIT Billion Award
Hackney Diamonds marks their first album of original material since 2005’s A Bigger Bang, and features an incredible array of guest artists including Elton John, Lady Gaga, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Bill Wyman.
The Rolling Stones are the 25th artist to receive a BRIT Billion Award, which was officially launched in May 2023.
They follow in the footsteps of fellow icons ABBA, Coldplay, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and Queen, as well as pioneering rap and hip-hop artists AJ Tracey and Headie One, and chart-dominating pop artists such as Ellie Goulding, Lewis Capaldi and RAYE, and the next generation of megastars, including Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish.
Ed Sheeran recently became the first artist to receive a special Gold edition of the Award for reaching a milestone of 10 billion UK streams.
Dr. Jo Twist OBE, CEO of BPI, said: “Few artists have crossed the generational divide in the way the Rolling Stones have. Their iconic songs and albums define the era, but the band remains as contemporary as ever.
‘The BPI is delighted to honor them with a BRIT Billion Award, which underlines both the timeless appeal of their music and the extent to which they are now connecting with a new wave of fans through streaming.’
While most famous faces will build up deep pockets and a healthy bank account over the course of their careers, not many walk away with a billion dollars.
Topping the rich list are The Rolling Stones, the first band in Britain to gross a billion dollars.
The iconic band has struck gold through electrifying live performances and more than 250 million album sales.
Limited ed: On Saturday, FC Barcelona debuted their limited edition match shirt featuring the iconic band’s infamous tongue and lips logo and retailing for an eye-watering $400
Their concerts have raked in a staggering $2 billion in ticket sales over the years, and in 2021 fans spent $130.9 million on just 14 performances on the No Filter tour in the US.
Cliff Dane, the money whiz who ranked the rockers for The Sunday Times Rich List, applauded the Stones, alongside Led Zeppelin, for initiating mega-stadium tours.
Even though the remaining members of Ronnie Wood (76), Mick Jagger (80) and Keith Richards (79) are now playing fewer shows, their devoted fans are happy to part with top dollar for tickets as they tend to be older and have more disposable income. and the Stones can now make more money from the till.
The person behind the Stones’ financial affairs today is Joyce Smyth, who reformed the American leg of the Stones tour after Mick’s heart surgery four years ago.
She has been their secret financial weapon and was introduced to the rock stars by Prince Rupert, a private banker who hired the band and who later became known as ‘Rupie the Groupie’.
And despite abandoning his studies in finance and accounting at the London School of Economics, Mick has consistently demonstrated a keen entrepreneurial instinct.
He recently opened with the words: ‘I don’t really like doing business, I just have to do it. Because if you don’t do it, you’re going to be fucked.’
Not one to shy away, the band has happily capitalized on partnerships with corporate giants like Budweiser, LVMH, Chase Manhattan and more.
Microsoft even reportedly shelled out millions to use “Start Me Up” in a Windows 95 commercial and Mercedes spent $1.5 million to use “Sympathy for the Devil” in a 2013 Super Bowl ad.
Iconic: Despite the band now playing fewer shows, their devoted fans pay top dollar for tickets and the Stones can now rake in more money at the box office (photo (top) Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts. (bottom) Brian Jones and Bill Wyman)
On Saturday, FC Barcelona debuted their limited edition match shirt, which features the iconic band’s infamous tongue and lips logo and retails for an eye-watering $400.
It comes after the three remaining members, Ronnie Wood released their first original album after 18 years on October 20.
Hackney Diamonds, the band’s twenty-fourth studio album, went straight to number one – the eleventh time the band has achieved this feat.
It is already the fifth fastest selling album of the year and is currently the third most streamed album on Apple Music.
Six songs from the new record – Angry, Sweet Sounds of Heaven, Get Close, Bite My Head Off, Depending on You and Mess it Up – made the top 100 singles midweek chart this week.