Original Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth spoke with the Associated Press on April 10th at this year’sCoachella Valley Music And Arts Festival in Indio, California, where he joined singer Teddy Swims for a rendition of Van Halen classic song Jump.
Roth said, as per blabbermouth.net, “I sold my publishing eight months ago, ask me how I feel.” After the Associated Press interviewer obliged, Roth replied, “[I feel] rich. [Laughs] For the first time in my life I can rub two coins together and create a little interest. No, really.”
Earlier this year, Roth announced a 30-date solo tour of North America. He tour will make stops in California, Arizona and Texas later in the month before playing in Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina and Ontario, among others, in May. June will see Roth hit New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Minnesota and Wisconsin, among other states. In August, David will play at the Sturgis Buffalo Chip in Sturgis, South Dakota. See Roth’s schedule, and purchase tickets, here.
Last year, Roth reversed his decision to retire from the touring circuit, announcing a U.S. tour which took place over the 2025 summer.
11 Responses
He sold out, he’s Just A Gigolo!
Good for DLR….at this point in his life, it probably made financial sense to sell his catalog. By doing so, he was able to convert future royalty income into a large, upfront capital gain. Doing so also gave him tax savings.
Rattle,
I was speaking with my fiancee, and either I forgot, or did not realize that Van Halen, like many others in the music business, got royally screwed with their publishing rights.
He told me that Noel Monk, some how figured out how to get the publishing rights returned back to the band, but he could not recall how, so, that being the case, then good for Roth. Nevertheless, despite all of that Roth still has, and had, a storied life.
Unlike the Van Halen brothers, and bassist Michael Anthony, he came from a privileged background. His father was, I believe, a veery successful optometrist (?) and he grew up in a mini mansion. All the noble blue collar jobs, that he chose to engage in, such as being an EMT in Manhattan, were all done by his own will, not because he was struggling and needed the money.
So, while I am happy for him, unlike many in his position, he came with a silver spoon, so to speak.
What I respect about David Lee Roth is he refuses to play with tracks. It is better to sound bad then to fool the people into sounding good by playing with tracks, then the fans can decide if they want to support it.