Kenny MacPherson, Big Deal Publishing Co-Founder and Former Hipgnosis CEO, Dies at 71 — SkimNews
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- Kenny MacPherson died Friday in Los Angeles at age 71 with no cause of death announced; Hits and other media outlets reported the news.
- Apollo Theatre in Glasgow was where MacPherson began his career and eventually became manager, a job that led to Harvey Goldsmith Entertainment in London, where the Manhattan Transfer hired him and brought him to Los Angeles.
- Warner/Chappell hired MacPherson in 1989 after he managed Supertramp and branched into publishing; over the next decade-plus he signed or worked closely with Radiohead, Underworld, Paul Westerberg, Afghan Whigs and the Blue Nile.
- Chrysalis named MacPherson president of its North American operation in 2002, where he worked with Outkast, Ray LaMontagne, My Morning Jacket, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, St. Vincent, Thom Yorke and TV on the Radio.
- BMG acquired Chrysalis in 2010 and MacPherson moved over, co-founding Big Deal Music two years later and bringing many of the above-named artists with him.
- Big Deal Music was acquired by and effectively merged with Hipgnosis Songs Group in 2020, with MacPherson named CEO; Sony Music then acquired Hipgnosis in 2025, and MacPherson launched Oh Aye Music in 2021.
- MacPherson was sued for sexual misconduct by a former Chrysalis employee in 2023, with a mediation scheduled for next month.
Why it matters: Sony Music, which bought Hipgnosis Songs Group in 2025, loses the executive who had run it since Big Deal's 2020 merger, and a mediation in the 2023 sexual-misconduct suit was scheduled for next month. His 2021 launch of Oh Aye Music also leaves that new venture without its founder.
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