Linda Ronstadt, whose song Long Long Time was recently featured in The Last of Us, won’t make money from the associated royalties.
The 76-year-old singer’s track experienced a major uptick in streaming numbers after its use in the hit HBO series.
But because she sold off her music catalog in 2021, Ronstadt will not reap the benefits of the song’s resurgence.
‘I still love the song and I’m very glad that [songwriter Gary White] will get a windfall,’ she told Billboard.
Ronstadt’s manager John Boylan added ‘She’s not unhappy about it, believe me.’
No royalties: Linda Ronstadt, whose song Long Long Time was recently featured in The Last of Us, won’t make money from the associated royalties (pictured 2020)
‘We sold her catalog. The last four or five years have been a complete tsunami of buyouts like this.’
She did talk a bit about hearing the song for the first time when she was introduced to White through guitarist David Bromberg.
Ronstadt said she ‘took me to the Café Au Go Go in Greenwich Village to see Gary performing with Paul Siebel. After the show, Gary played me Long Long Time and I immediately wanted to record it.’
She continued, ‘It wasn’t a country song, wasn’t a folk song, or a rock song, but I thought it was a really good song.’
Long Long Time came out in 1970. It on the album Silk Purse and received a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Female.
The classic tune was played three times during the devastating The Last of Us episode, which depicted the tragic love story between Bill and Frank as they met under the guise of the apocalypse.
The episode has been lauded by fans and critics alike, with many praising stars Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett for their performances in the ‘achingly beautiful’ love story, which culminates in their deaths.
Streams for Linda’s song Long, Long Time increased by 4900% following the episode’s release on HBO Max in the US, according to Spotify.
Increase: The 76-year-old singer’s track received an increase in its streaming numbers because of its use in the show, but that won’t help out the Arizona native
Sold! She then explained that she had sold her music catalog several years ago which is why she wouldn’t be receiving money for the uptick in streams (pictured 2013)
Tragedy: The classic tune was played three times during the devastating The Last of Us episode, which depicted the tragic love story between Bill and Frank as they met under the guise of the apocalypse
The increase in streaming after appearing in the television show appeared reminiscent of the resurgence of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) after it was used in Stranger Things.
After going viral on TikTok and reentering the charts in a number of countries, the track helped Kate achieve her first ever top five single in America.
It climbed all the way up to number four in the US charts almost four decades after its release, with the single originally only reaching number 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Emotional: The episode has been lauded by fans and critics alike, with many praising stars Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett for their performances
Huge increase: Streams for Linda’s song Long, Long Time increased by 4900% following the episode’s release on HBO Max in the US, according to Spotify
Year of resurgence: The increase in streaming after appearing in the television show appeared reminiscent of the resurgence of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) after it was used in Stranger Things
The popular tune also hit the number one spot in Norway and Austria, with her album Hounds Of Love reaching number one on Billboard’s Top Alternative Albums Chart in the US.
Speaking about the milestone achievement, Kate gushed: ‘It’s all so exciting! Since the last post, ‘Running Up That Hill’ went to No. 1 in Norway and Austria.
‘This is such great news and we just heard today that it’s up from No. 8 to No. 4 in the U.S.
Digital Music News reported one stat claiming that streams of the song jump up 9,000% because of the show and social media.
For the month after Stranger Things came out, it took in $2.3 million in royalties according to an estimate reported by Fortune.
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