Paul McCartney Made a Joke to Michael Jackson About Buying Music Rights — It Made MJ a Billionaire

In 1981, Paul McCartney made a casual joke to Michael Jackson about buying music rights. Michael didn't realize it was a joke. What happened next made him a billionaire and ended their friendship forever.

During recording sessions for "Say Say Say," Paul invited Michael to dinner at his London home. Over wine, Paul explained music publishing: "The real money is in buying song catalogs. If you have extra money, that's what you should do." He was speaking casually, making conversation. Michael was taking notes.

Four years later, in 1985, the Beatles catalog went up for sale. Paul tried desperately to buy back his own songs — the songs he and John Lennon had written. Then he got a devastating phone call: Michael Jackson was bidding against him.

Michael paid $47.5 million for ATV Music Publishing, acquiring 251 Beatles songs. Paul felt betrayed by his friend. Michael saw it as smart business. Their friendship ended that day. But Michael's investment eventually grew to $750 million — one of the most profitable music deals in history.

This is the true story of how casual dinner advice became a billion-dollar empire, how a friendship died over business, and why Paul later admitted "Michael became smarter than all of us."