Jet have expanded their long-running relationship with BMG, with the publisher acquiring interests in the catalogue of key members of the Melbourne rock band behind Are You Gonna Be My Girl and Get Born.
by Paul Cashmere
BMG has acquired publishing interests in the catalogue of Australian rock band Jet, extending a relationship that already included the group’s recordings catalogue following a 2023 deal. The new agreement covers the publishing interests of three of the band’s four original members, Nic Cester, Cameron Muncey and Mark Wilson, and reinforces the enduring commercial value of one of Australia’s most internationally successful rock acts of the 2000s.
The agreement arrives as Jet continue an active reunion era, more than two decades after the release of their breakthrough debut album Get Born. The band’s catalogue remains heavily used across streaming platforms, radio and sync licensing, particularly through the continuing global visibility of “Are You Gonna Be My Girl”, a track that became synonymous with early 2000s rock revival culture and international advertising campaigns.
Jet co-founder and frontman Nic Cester said the group’s existing relationship with BMG made the expansion into publishing a logical next step.
“We’ve loved working with BMG and we’re excited to extend that partnership to the publishing side, so these songs can keep finding new audiences in the years ahead,” Cester said.
Heath Johns, President of BMG Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia, described Jet as one of Australia’s defining international rock exports of the early 2000s.
“There are few Australian bands with songs as internationally recognizable as Jet,” Johns said. “Jet was the Australian export story of the early 2000s, carrying the torch for a new generation of rock ‘n’ roll storytellers.”
The publishing acquisition follows BMG’s purchase of the band’s recordings catalogue in 2023, a deal completed in the same year Jet were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. The move reflects a broader trend across the music industry where publishers and rights companies continue investing heavily in proven catalogues with long-term streaming and licensing potential.
Formed in Melbourne in 2001 by brothers Nic Cester and Chris Cester alongside Cameron Muncey, Jet emerged during a resurgence of garage rock acts that included bands such as The Strokes and The White Stripes. Their debut album Get Born, released in 2003, sold more than 6.5 million copies worldwide and became one of the biggest Australian rock records of its era.
The album reached No.1 in Australia and achieved nine-times Platinum certification locally. Internationally it charted in both the United Kingdom and United States, driven by the success of “Are You Gonna Be My Girl”, “Rollover DJ”, “Look What You’ve Done” and “Cold Hard Bitch”. At the 2004 ARIA Music Awards of 2004 the band won six awards including Album of the Year, Best Group and Single of the Year.
The success of “Are You Gonna Be My Girl” extended beyond radio and album sales. After its use in Apple’s landmark iPod campaign in 2004, the song became a frequent inclusion in film, television, gaming and global advertising campaigns. Over the following two decades Jet songs appeared across titles including Madden NFL, Guitar Hero, Gran Turismo and Spider-Man soundtracks, helping preserve the band’s visibility long after their initial chart peak.
Jet’s career also included periods of instability. The band split in 2012 following internal tensions and years of heavy touring, before reforming in 2016 and again in 2023 for the 20th anniversary of Get Born. More recently the group confirmed drummer Chris Cester’s departure from the current line-up, with touring musicians Louis Macklin and Pete Marin elevated to full-time members in 2025.
Their return has coincided with renewed recording activity. In 2024 the band released the single “Hurry Hurry” and confirmed work had begun on their first new studio album in 15 years. Jet also toured North America in 2025 and joined Lenny Kravitz for Australian dates later that year.
For BMG, the acquisition adds another major Australian catalogue to a publishing portfolio increasingly focused on heritage repertoire with ongoing sync appeal. For Jet, it further cements the longevity of a catalogue that has remained commercially active long after the band’s original peak years.
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