Hipgnosis Songs Fund is now officially controlled by Blackstone.

The board accepted the US private equity giant’s bid in April that valued the songs fund at $1.57 billion. It followed a bidding war with Concord.

The Hipgnosis catalogue includes shares in songs and catalogues by artists including Shakira, Journey, Ed Sheeran, Neil Young, Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, Blondie, Nile Rodgers, Pusha T,  and dozens more.

It follows a turbulent period for Hipgnosis Songs Fund, which implemented a strategic review following a shareholder vote.

Merck Mercuriadis announced this month that he is stepping down as chairman from Hipgnosis Song Management, following the deal for the fund.

The Blackstone bid (as Lyra Bidco) was approved at the court meeting and general meeting with 99.97% approval from those shareholders who participated in the vote.

For more stories like this, and to keep up to date with all our market leading news, features and analysis, sign up to receive our daily Morning Briefing newsletter