Prince's sister 'may inherit his wealth,' but ex-manager disagrees
The sudden death of the artist Prince leaves an estate worth hundreds of millions in dollars, which could possibly go to his sister Tyka Nelson, if Prince did not leave a will. However, his ex-manager Owen Husney finds this unlikely.
"I'm sure Tyka is a great person," Husney told the Press Association. "I would be remiss to think she has the music business savvy to be able to handle a body of work that's got to be worth $250m-$500m (£360m-£720m)."
Husney, who was Prince's first manager and now teaches a music business course at the University of California, Los Angeles, estimates the value of his back catalog at more than $500 million. This value excludes licensing rights to film, TV, advertisements, and video games as well as his reportedly unheard of recordings collection containing up to 2,000 songs. The collection, which is believed to include an album with jazz musician Miles Davis, is said to be locked in a vault at his Paisley Park home.
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Prince is believed to be among the few recording artists who owns his master recording and music publishing. A will to a trustee will allow Prince to control his music from the grave, for instance posthumously restricting commercial licenses to them.
"Hopefully, Prince executed a trust, and indicated his intentions both with respect to who his trustee would be and how he would want the estate to be disposed of," Dan Streisand, celebrity probate attorney who has represented the estates of Marlon Brando, Barry White and Rodney Dangerfield in the past, told Reuters.
In the event that Prince did not leave a will, a probate will determine the inheritance subject to the laws of succession in the state of Minnesota. Multiple reports suggest the inheritance could go to Tyka as Prince has left no children and both parents are deceased.
Tyka was a recording artist who enjoyed some success and was famous for her album "Royal Blue." She became addicted to drugs at one point in her life, but thanks to a rehab stint paid for by Prince she is back on the right track. Her addiction put a strain on their relationship but they've recently grown closer, according to reports.
