GODFATHER OF Soul James Brown’s estate has been sold for an estimated £67 million, according to the New York Times.

The legendary singer’s estate was sold to publishing and management company Primary Wave Music.

According to reports in Rolling Stone, the deal comprises of music rights, publishing, master income stream, control over the late singer’s name and likeness and real estate.

The deal is rumoured to include the entirely of Brown’s music career.

The pioneering soul singer died on December 25, 2006 of heart failure, at the age of 73. Since his death, a bitter 15-year legal battle over his estate halted Brown’s desire for most of his assets to fund educational scholarships for underprivileged children in Georgia and South Carolina.

The star left a will, where he stated it was his dream to give back to children. According to Rolling Stone, his family were only given Brown’s possessions and his iconic stage costumes and £1.5million to fund his grandchildren’s education.

Brown’s children wanted to agree on a settlement which would give them “significant shares of the estate,” bypassing his final wishes.

In 2009, a South Carolina state judge Henry McMaster agreed with Brown’s children, but a year later the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned the settlement citing that any changes would be a “dismemberment of Brown’s carefully crafted estate plan.”

Larry Mestel, the founder of Primary Wave, has previously mentioned the possibility of keeping Brown’s legacy alive with television shows, a Broadway musical, and the creation of a Graceland-like museum in the Godfather of Soul’s former mansion in South Carolina.

“James Brown was one of the greatest musical entertainers of all time, and one of the greatest legends of the music business,” Mr Mestel said in an interview. “That fits what we do like a glove.”

Primary Wave own half of Whitney Houston’s estate and also owns the largest interest in Prince’s estate.

The company also recently acquired a stake in the publishing, master recording income stream, and name and likeness of legendary R&B singer Teddy Pendergrass.

This latest deal comes as the song acquisition market continues to grow and develop.

In 2020, it was reported Bob Dylan sold his entire songwriting catalogue to Universal Music Publishing Group for an undisclosed amount, which is estimated to be more than £225 million.

Despite his sudden passing 15 years ago, Brown continues to remain one of the most influential artists of all time and is best known for his energetic performances and electric dance moves. His countless hit songs including I Got You (I Feel Good), The Comeback, It’s a Man’s World and Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine continue to be used in licensing deals and are constantly being introduced to a new generation of music fans.