Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member and recording artist Ric Ocasek has signed with SESAC Performing Rights.
Ocasek is best known as lead vocalist, songwriter and rhythm guitarist of pioneering post-punk and power-pop band, The Cars.
During his time as a member and primary songwriter of The Cars, Ocasek penned hits such as “Drive,” “Shake It Up,” “Good Times Roll,” “My Best Friend’s Girl” and “Just What I Needed.”
The Cars’ classic 1978 eponymous debut album is certified 6x Platinum in the US.
The band racked up 13 Billboard Top 40 singles (four of them Top Ten hits), across a string of six studio albums that sold more than 17 million records in the US alone.
“As a multi-faceted artist, Ric continues to inspire with his creative influence and subtle bravado,” says John Josephson, Chairman and CEO, SESAC. “His remarkable career as songwriter and musician has made a significant impact on American music, and SESAC is proud to welcome Ric to our affiliate family.”
“As a multi-faceted artist, Ric continues to inspire with his creative influence and subtle bravado.”
John Josephson, SESAC
Ric Ocasek’s songs have been used in popular films and television shows such as “Dead to Me,” “Stranger Things,” “Arrested Development”, “Fast Times At Ridgemont High” and many more.
Ocasek has influenced bands from Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins, who covered “You’re All I’ve Got Tonight” as a b-side to their hit “Bullet With Butterfly Wings”.
Longtime fan Brandon Flowers of The Killers inducted The Cars into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018, saying, “They achieved greatness and left a comet trail behind them, writing and recording songs that have transcended into classics…Forty years later they still sound like a new band to me.”
Ocasek’s solo albums include Beatitude (1982), Fireball Zone (1990), Troublizing (1997) and Nexterday (2005). In addition, Ocasek has produced bands as Suicide and Bad Brains, plus Weezer and No Doubt.
In 2010, Ocasek reunited with the surviving original members of The Cars, and in 2011 the band issued Move Like This, a studio album.
Picture Credit: Getty ImagesMusic Business Worldwide
