*Music icon Nile Rodgers is speaking out about how music companies are handling streaming services and that the system is unfair to artists.Â
Per Ace Showbiz, the 68-year-old Chic musician thinks artists need to be “remunerated properly” by their record labels. He told The Guardian newspaper, “It is not the streaming services that we have the problem with – it is fantastic that they can distribute our product in such an effective, wonderful way and keep a great digital trail. It is the labels that are perpetrating the issues that need to be seriously addressed. The fact is the system is unfair.”
He added, “Artists and writers are not remunerated properly or equally. They do not get their fair share of the pie. To fix this we need to have transparency and artists should be paid on a license, not a sale. Alongside this, songwriters should be getting a much bigger share as they are delivering the key ingredient. We don’t even know what a stream is worth and there’s no way you could even find out what a stream is worth, and that’s not the basis for a satisfactory relationship.”
Musician Nadine Shah agrees, saying, “I love streaming. I stream a lot of music myself. The access we have to all kinds of music from all over the world is incredible. But I believe streaming must be fixed. The three major labels are bragging about record profits while thousands of musicians are seeing virtually nothing coming back to them. Streaming is here to stay, as it should. What then can fix it and make it better for artists? A user-centric system whereby the artists you choose to play see direct payment from your subscription fee?”
READ MORE:Â Hit Songwriters are Driving Uber to Make Ends Meet Amid Pandemic
New episode of #DeepHiddenMeaning is available now. Check out my conversations on songwriting with @ItsBennyBlanco, @TrickyStewart and @emilywarrennnn now on @applemusic!
Link: https://t.co/vJFRnmqkN0 pic.twitter.com/xy9fbF8eAJ— Nile Rodgers (@nilerodgers) April 4, 2021
Rodgers also addressed the issue during a hearing with British lawmakers in December. Per BBC “Rodgers said he hadn’t looked into his streaming income before the Covid-19 pandemic “because my tour revenue has been so substantial that I could support my entire organisation”.After looking into the figures this year, he was “completely shocked.”
“We don’t even know what a stream is worth,” said the musician, adding that “there’s no way you can find out,” because of non-disclosure agreements between record labels and the streaming services. “We must have transparency,” he told the committee.
“I look at the record labels as my partners. And the interesting thing is that every single time I’ve audited my partners, I find money. Every single time.
“And sometimes, it’s staggering, the amount of money.”
Rodgers believes the industry needs to change the way streaming payments are calculated.
“Labels have unilaterally decided that a stream is considered a sale because it maximizes their profits,” he said. “Artists and songwriters need to update clauses in their contracts to reflect the true nature of how their songs are being consumed – which is via a license. It is something that people are borrowing from [the streaming services]”.
“This can now be a great paradigm shift for songwriters and artists all over the world,” he said.
Rodgers credits include Chic’s “Le Freak,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin” and David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.”
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
