Lady Gaga's Chromatica Concert Film Could Mean A Major Payday – Forbes

LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 29: (Exclusive Coverage) Lady Gaga performs on stage during The Chromatica … [+] Ball Summer Stadium Tour at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on July 29, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Samir Hussein/Getty Images for Live Nation )
Despite not actively promoting new music at the moment, Lady Gaga remains incredibly busy with various projects. She is set to star in the sequel to the movie Joker, which has reportedly finished filming, and she has also announced a new concert film centered around her recent tour, The Chromatica Ball Tour. The trek served as a promotional platform for her latest album Chromatica, and the upcoming documentary not only holds significant value for her fans but also has the potential to bring in substantial earnings for Gaga.
When a star of Gaga’s caliber releases a film, it is almost certain that buyers will pay a considerable amount for the rights. It is likely that the pop icon and her team will sell the production to a streaming platform such as Netflix NFLX , with whom she has previously collaborated for her documentary Five Foot Two. While exact figures may never be disclosed, other top-charting artists have earned tens of millions from similar projects, indicating that Gaga could also receive a significant payday for her concert film.
AppleTV+ paid Billie Eilish $25 million for her documentary The World’s a Little Blurry during the pandemic, and Elton John earned a reported $30 million for Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road, which is coming to Disney+ sometime soon. Gaga might not make that type of money, but it would be odd if someone didn’t pay several million dollars for the project.
Upon the release of the documentary, it is expected that viewers will be inspired to revisit the Chromatica album as they watch her perform that set on stage. Gaga has already earned plenty of money from the record, but in today’s streaming-dominated landscape, there is still ample opportunity for further revenue. The documentary’s release will likely lead to increased sales and streams of the album, and particularly its chart-topping hits. The extent of this boost remains yet to be seen, but it has the potential to last for an extended period.
Since Gaga’s tour not only featured songs from Chromatica but also showcased her past hits, those older tracks could also experience a surge in streams. Depending on the content shown in the film, platforms like Spotify and Apple AAPL Music could see millions more plays for these iconic songs. While the royalties generated from each play may be fractions of a cent, the cumulative effect can be financially significant for Gaga.
While not confirmed, it is possible that Gaga may take advantage of the concert documentary to release a live album. Such a set could serve as the film’s soundtrack and provide die-hard fans with another item to add to their collections. Meanwhile, casual listeners would have the option to stream the live set if they so choose. Although Gaga has not made any official announcements regarding a live album, the existence of the audio she needs and evident interest among fans make it a plausible endeavor.

source