{"id":395458,"date":"2025-09-03T20:41:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-03T20:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/395458\/"},"modified":"2025-09-03T20:41:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-03T20:41:09","slug":"morrissey-puts-his-business-interests-in-the-smiths-up-for-sale-to-any-interested-party-the-smiths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/395458\/","title":{"rendered":"Morrissey puts his business interests in the Smiths up for sale \u2018to any interested party\u2019 | The Smiths"},"content":{"rendered":"

Morrissey has announced that he \u201chas no choice\u201d but to put up for sale the entirety of his business interests in the Smiths \u201cto any interested party\/investor\u201d.<\/p>\n

The deal, made in apparent seriousness on his website, Morrissey Solo<\/a>, in a post titled \u201cA Soul for Sale\u201d, would include the band\u2019s name and artwork, which he created, as well as his share of merchandising rights, lyrical and musical compositions, synchronisation, recordings and publishing contractual rights.<\/p>\n

In a statement, Morrissey wrote that he was \u201cburnt out by any and all connections\u201d to his former bandmates, Johnny Marr<\/a>, Mike Joyce and the late Andy Rourke.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have had enough of malicious associations,\u201d he continued. \u201cWith my entire life I have paid my rightful dues to these songs and these images. I would now like to live disassociated from those who wish me nothing but ill will and destruction, and this is the only resolution.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe songs are me \u2013 they are no one else \u2013 but they bring with them business communications that go to excessive lengths to create as much dread and spite year after year. I must now protect myself, especially my health.\u201d<\/p>\n

Serious investors, Morrissey wrote, should email eaves7760@gmail.com to inquire.<\/p>\n

Morrissey shares 50% of the rights to the Smiths with Marr. Whether the brand retains its value to investors without Morrissey as an active participant to help market it remains to be seen.<\/p>\n

The Guardian has contacted representatives for Marr and Joyce for comment.<\/p>\n

It is unclear what annual business communications are being referred to by Morrissey. Joyce recently announced the publication of a \u201cno-holds-barred\u201d memoir<\/a>, The Drums, this November.<\/p>\n

Johnny Marr has previously said that he declined an \u201ceye-watering\u201d offer for the Smiths to reform. \u201cIt was a little bit about principles, but I\u2019m not an idiot, I just think the vibe\u2019s not right,\u201d he said, referencing the evident political and personal differences between him and Morrissey.<\/p>\n

In 2024, Marr rubbished Morrissey\u2019s claim<\/a> that he had acquired the rights to the Smiths\u2019 trademark \u201cwithout any consultation\u201d. Morrissey said that Marr owned the copyright which would allow the group to tour with a new vocalist.<\/p>\n

Marr said this was incorrect. A spokesperson said on his behalf: \u201cIn 2018, following an attempt by a third party to use the Smiths\u2019 name \u2013 and upon discovery that the trademark was not owned by the band \u2013 Marr reached out to Morrissey, via his representatives, to work together in protecting the Smiths\u2019 name.<\/p>\n

\u201cA failure to respond led Marr to register the trademark himself. It was subsequently agreed with Morrissey\u2019s lawyers that this trademark was held for the mutual benefit of Morrissey and Marr.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a gesture of goodwill, in January 2024, Marr signed an assignment of joint ownership to Morrissey. Execution of this document still requires Morrissey to sign.\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u201d<\/p>\n

He denied that he was planning to tour under the Smiths name with a different singer, and had also turned down an offer from Warner Music Group to release a new Smiths compilation \u201cgiven the number in existence\u201d.<\/p>\n

Morrissey\u2019s apparently dire situation may have been influenced by the evidently unsuccessful attempt to reform the Smiths, as well as the difficulties he has faced in releasing his 14th solo album, Bonfire of Teenagers, which remains on the backburner.<\/p>\n

He has previously said he was \u201cgagged\u201d owing to the subject of its title track, the 2017 terrorist attack<\/a> on an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester that killed 22 people.<\/p>\n

He has been performing the song since 2022. It features lyrics about how \u201cThe silly people sing Don\u2019t Look Back in Anger \/ And the morons swing and say Don\u2019t Look Back in Anger \/ I can assure you I will look back in anger \u2019til the day I die,\u201d a reference to the street singalongs of the Oasis track after the bombing. The song concludes with Morrissey singing \u201cgo easy on the killer\u201d.<\/p>\n

He was dropped by his former label BMG in November 2020 and blamed the split on the label\u2019s \u201cnew plans for \u2018diversity\u2019\u201d. At the time, BMG declined to comment on whether the decision had anything to do with the musician\u2019s contentious statements about race and sexual assault.<\/p>\n

Bonfire of Teenagers has been completed since May 2021. His new deal with Capitol should have seen the album released in February 2023. However, at the end of 2022, he said he had \u201cvoluntarily\u201d split from Capitol and his management team, and claimed that the label was \u201cholding on to\u201d the record.<\/p>\n

In April 2024, he said he had bought back the rights to the record but alleged that \u201cevery major label in London\u201d had refused it \u201cwhile also admitting that it is a masterpiece\u201d.<\/p>\n

He has called the record \u201cthe best album of my life\u201d and said the \u201cmadly insane efforts to silence the album are somehow indications of its power. Otherwise, who would bother to get so overheated about an inconspicuous recluse?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Morrissey has announced that he \u201chas no choice\u201d but to put up for sale the entirety of his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":395459,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[77,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-395458","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-uk","10":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115142307692775790","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395458","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=395458"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395458\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/395459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=395458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=395458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=395458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}