According to a New York Post exclusive, South Korean consumer electronics giant Samsung Electronics has apparently inked a multi-million dollar deal with pop sensation Rihanna to sponsor her upcoming world tour to promote her eighth studio album ‘Anti’. The singer is believed to have sold over 50 million albums already and is known for such chart busters as Umbrella, Disturbia, Russian Roulette, Rude Boy etc. While there is no official confirmation of the deal either from Samsung or from Rihanna’s home label Roc Nation, the amount involved is believed to be in the region of $25 million, and is said to be the biggest marketing deal in the history of the music industry.
Roc Nation of course, is part-owned by hip hop mogul Jay Z, who was recently spotted at the offices of Samsung Research America at Santa Clara, California. While initial speculation suggested that he might have been there to discuss the sale of his Tidal music streaming service to the multinational tech company, the New York Post now claims that he was just going over the specifics of the Rihanna deal with Samsung executives during his visit. As for Roc Nation, the company has reportedly worked closely with Samsung earlier as well, with the two having signed a $5 million marketing deal in 2013 for Jay Z’s Magna Carta Holy Grail album. As part of the deal, Samsung offered one million of its customers free downloads of the album via the Jay Z Magna Carta app on the Galaxy S III and other Samsung devices.
While Rihanna and her label may be celebrating the multi-million dollar deal, one of the music industry insiders quoted as its source by New York Post, expressed concern over the amount involved. According to him, such deals will have marketing budgets of companies spiraling out of control. “No-one wants to have $25 million deals in the market place”, is what the anonymous source was quoted as having said by the publication. The singer meanwhile, is scheduled to appear at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show to be aired on the CBS on November 10th. She is also slated to appear in an upcoming movie to be directed by French film maker Luc Besson, called “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”.