Addy Sleeman... What Do You Think?... Also Some Other Artists

Addy and Julia Website

My opinions on downloading are not shared by many other artists, Addy Sleeman, of local indie-pop band, Addy and Julia, is one of those artists who does happen to agree with me. Addy believes that it is acceptable to download music for it is a way to share it with others. When asked what she would say to people downloading her music she jokingly replied, "I hope you you can sleep at night," but said she thought it was best to "spread the love."  Addy believes that downloading music is "a great way to share the music and show others what you're interested in." She also has strong feelings about how other artists should react to downloading. Addy believes that "musicians should be in the business for the love of the music, not for the money".
I also asked Addy if her partner in crime, Julia Taliesin, shared the same views... they do not. Julia feels the complete opposite. She feels that is absolutely not okay to download. Addy admits that she has downloaded, what she assumes to be more music than Julia has, which seems like a fair assumption, seeing as Julia has never illegally downloaded.

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There are two different extremes that new, or not well known, musicians can have. You can be happy that your music is being listened to and gaining a following, or you can be upset that you aren’t getting what you deserve from your hard work. These are both reasonable outlooks.
Though I did not talk to them face to face, I also looked up Ed Sheeran and Paloma Faith’s thoughts on downloading music.
Ed Sheeran has a healthy, yet unique point of view on this subject. Sheeran believes that downloading is fine, he doesn’t seem to care either way. In an article online Ed Sheeran is quoted saying “I didn't make the album to go on tens of thousands of iPods. I made the album to be universal and for everyone to hear it. So if nine million have my record and 800,000 come to my gig and pay £30, I make a living”. I think this is the outlook that most artists should have. Ed, though he is a well known artist and doesn’t have to worry about not selling out concerts, has the viewpoint of an obscure artists, because he just emerged from obscurity recently, therefore he still knows what downloading can do to an artist in need. Sheeran has a very relaxed view on downloading his music and, as long as it isn’t effecting his living, he believes it is fine.

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Paloma Faith is on the completely opposite side of the tracks. In this interview with CBI, The Confederation of British Industry, Paloma states that there should be some sort of punishment for downloading. Faith sympathizes with the other people in her industry, who cannot make a living off what people actually buy. Paloma believes that downloading is a “massive problem” in the music industry and is burning bridges. If people want to become as well known and successful as people like Adele or Jessie J then one thing that needs to be prevented is downloading.
Though I don’t agree with this outlook, I understand that downloading may be annoying to some artists. Downloading to me, like Addy, is about experiencing and sharing music. Though there might not be money involved, without downloading most artists would not be as well known as they are, and their income would be suffering even more.