Category: Artists Rights Watch

David Byrne: “Do you really think people are going to keep putting time and effort into this, if no one is making any money?” | Salon

Start the stopwatch for the synchronized swimming rapid response team… David Byrne in Salon:

The musical genius shares his songwriting secrets, opens up his finances and ponders the future of art and the Web

Lots of us believe that musicians, along with other artists, are struck by inspiration and have this emotion which they must express and share. But you argue in your book that it is actually the opposite — that the idea of the songwriter pouring heart, soul and autobiography into his or her music is wrong-headed. “The accepted narrative,” you write, “that the rock and roll singer is driven by desire and demons, and out bursts this amazing, perfectly shaped song that had to be three minutes and 12 seconds. This is the romantic notion of how creative work comes to be, but I think the path of creation is almost 180 degrees from this model.”

READ THE FULL STORY AT SALON:
http://www.salon.com/2013/12/21/david_byrne_do_you_really_think_people_are_going_to_keep_putting_time_and_effort_into_this_if_no_one_is_making_any_money/

by Trichordist Editor

The 10 Most Important News Stories of 2013 |CoS

#8 Musicians Declare War on Spotify

Why it matters: Musicians like David Lowery and Damon Krukowski have been questioning the royalty practices of streaming services and online radio for years. When it’s the frontman of the biggest band in the world calling bullshit, though, people start listening. Streaming was supposed to be the next evolution of music consumption, but if the royalty models are really as bad as they’ve been made out to be (and by all accounts, they are), that particular evolutionary branch may be stunted. In the end, that might be for the best: a financial model that doesn’t support new artists will, inevitably, cripple the music industry.

Yorke called companies like Spotify “the last desperate fart of a dying corpse” and said, “What happens next is the important part.” This is where Neil Young and his long in-development PONO music service might have to step in. Set to launch next year, PONO reportedly solves the audio loss issues Beck pointed out, though there hasn’t been much word on pricing models. Still, Yorke remarked that musicians “can build the shit” themselves, and Young’s company may be the first step in a new direction. Either way, the medium listeners absorb music is going to keep changing for everyone involved. –Ben Kaye

READ THE FULL STORY AT CONSEQUENCE OF SOUND:
http://consequenceofsound.net/2013/12/year-in-news-2013/

by Trichordist Editor

Pandora loses BMI court battle over music licensing | Circa

Pandora has spent more than a year in legal battles with music publishers over exactly what songs the online radio service has access to.

A federal judge in New York has ruled that Broadcast Music Inc., a performance rights organization, may allow its members to prevent their music from being licensed to Pandora. The Dec. 18 decision means that Pandora may soon lose access to music from publishers like Universal and BMG.

READ THE FULL POST AT CIRCA:
http://cir.ca/news/pandoras-music-licensing-battles

by Trichordist Editor

Goldie Blox – SPIN’s 2013 Hall of Shame | SPIN

Goldie Blox sets the new gold standard as the enemy of artists. Spin reports…

Though the rap legends had suggested it was copyright infringement, in a tender letter to the company they mentioned that the late Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys had a “no advertising” clause in his will. Whether Goldie Blox made a parody or not, really shouldn’t matter. Contriving a viral moment (their CEO has made other controversy-baiting spoofs before) with a riff on a song from a man whose will explicitly asked that his music not be used in commercials is just plain gross.

READ THE FULL STORY AT SPIN:
http://www.spin.com/articles/spin-2013-hall-of-shame/?slide=9

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by Trichordist Editor

Pussy Riot to finally walk free this week | Salon

A report from the Guardian suggests the imprisoned activists could be home as early as Thursday

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, the two incarcerated members of Pussy Riot, will be released from prison this week, potentially as early as Thursday, according to a report from the Guardian.

The Russian parliament voted Wednesday to approve an amnesty law that would grant reprieve to first-time offenders, minors and women with young children. The deal still must be signed by President Vladimir Putin, which is expected to happen this week.

READ THE FULL STORY AT SALON:
http://www.salon.com/2013/12/18/pussy_riot_to_finally_walk_free_this_week/

by trichordist

Graham Henderson: “Of what is and is not broken…”

The Canadian Independent Music Association just completed a study that pegs the average musician’s income in Canada at $7,228. This echoes an earlier study undertaken by Professor Doug Hyatt of Rotman which put the number at $16,491. Income at these absurdly low levels render it virtually impossible to pursue music as a profession. It starts to look and feel more like a hobby. And let me tell you that this is a far cry from the conditions that could be obtained prior to 1999.

The “middle class” for want of a better term is in a state of what appears to be terminal decline. This is a phenomena that has been remarked on and discussed in many fora but rarely as it applies to the creative class. We now live in a world where a very few musicians have become fabulously wealthy, leaving almost everyone else with very little on the table. Was not digital technology supposed to have done EXACTLY to opposite? Successful bands today have become more brand than band, diversifying into luxury goods, film, television and beyond. This is in strident contrast to musicians of the past who would have been horrified beyond imagining to have their art, their political speech, associated with mere products. I knew artists who turned down absolutely fabulous sums rather than shill for an advertisement.

READ THE FULL POST AT MUSIC CANADA:
http://musiccanada.com/newsitem.aspx?scid=65834

by Trichordist Editor

Art and Music Are Professions Worth Fighting for | Blake Morgan HuffPo

In music specifically, 2013 has been a year unlike any other in recent memory. It’s been a year that has seen musicians stand up and speak out on behalf of their profession like never before. And the results have been historic. Internet radio giant Pandora has announced it’s abandoning its pursuit of legislation that would lower artists’ royalties. Congress is now taking another look at copyright reform. Spotify has responded to broad criticism and made their operations more transparent. And perhaps most significant, music lovers are now standing with music makers to help push these issues forward.

For the first time in a long time, there’s a lot to be hopeful about if you’re a musician. There are tremendous fights ahead, against powerful forces, on many fronts. But we have something those forces don’t have. We have something worth fighting for.

READ THE FULL POST AT HUFFPO:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/blake-morgan/post_6463_b_4461936.html

by Trichordist Editor

Bills to Eliminate Pirate Sites like The Pirate Bay get Unanimous Approval | IBT

AGCOM, an independent Electronic Communications Authority of Italy, devised various measures to bring down the pirate websites and their owners. The measures put forward have been unanimously approved. The new system that ensures the fast removal of copyrighted content by hosts and blocking of various file-sharing websites will be implemented on March 31, 2014.

In the past, Italy has emerged as a nation that is taking proactive actions to tackle pirate sites and other online piracy issues. Numerous leading torrent websites like Kicka** Torrents and The Pirate Bay are blocked at the Internet Service Provider (ISP) level after orders from different courts.

READ THE FULL STORY AT IBT:
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/530351/20131216/bills-take-out-sites-pirate-bay.htm#.UrISnY3Kf_A

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by trichordist

As Music Downloads Decline, Expect More Anti-Spotify Anxiety | FastCoLabs

We’re starting to get the answer to the question, “is Spotify revenue instead of transactional download revenue, or in addition to transactional download revenue”?

It’s official: We’re buying less digital music. Just like vinyl, cassettes, and CDs before it, the digital download may have reached it peak, with total sales dropping 4% from last year. The culprit? It’s complicated, but expect the already-raging debate over Spotify, streaming, and the future of music distribution to heat up.

Here’s a breakdown. In the first half of this year, U.S. music fans paid for 25-30 million digital tracks per week, according to Billboard. In October and November, that number dipped below 20 million. Billboard blames “a web of interrelated stories that show new technologies affecting consumer behavior” for the decline, with the most obvious culprit being that little green and black icon on your home screen.

READ THE FULL STORY AT FAST CO LABS:
http://www.fastcolabs.com/3023581/as-music-downloads-decline-expect-more-anti-spotify-anxiety

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Xbox Music : Microsoft to Pay The Most of Any Music Streaming Service?

Why Spotify is not Netflix (But Maybe It Should Be)

by trichordist