You Can't Please Them All...

The issue of copyright is usually one that musicians have a strong opinion on, so this assignment was an interesting one. Music is the most important thing in a musician's life, so this can be a very personal subject for many. I was able to get in touch with Marblehead High School graduate, Kat Quinn, to see what her views on the issue were. She is a singer-songwriter based in New York. Though music is her passion, she also works a part time job. She won’t need the job for long, as she is making waves in the industry due to her unique style and lyrics. She recently appeared on Jimmy Fallon (which you should all check out!) to perform in a songwriting “battle.” I've luckily had the chance to get to know her and play with her, so I was excited to speak to her about her experiences with copyright. I sent her a couple of questions, which I have posted below.

1. Is music your primary source of income or is it something you do on the side?

Music is not my primary source of income.  It's probably about half. I have a part time job as well.

2. As a musician, where does the majority of your income come from? (CD sales, gigs, etc.)

My music income comes primarily from gigs.

3. Do you use the internet as a way to share your music? If so, how?

Yes, I definitely take advantage of all the music internet sites - reverbnation, facebook, websites, youtube, twitter, etc.

4. Is your music for sale over the internet?

Yes, my music is for sale online.

5. Do you know if your music is ever downloaded or shared without someone paying for it? How do you feel about this? Where would you draw the line?

Yes, I know my music is shared without people paying for it sometimes, and I don't mind at all.  At the stage I'm in, I would rather that people have my music and be listening to it, than have them not have it because they didn't pay for it.  I give my music away for free a lot as well.. because I feel like the beginning of a music is the time to be building a fan base and just letting people hear you, as opposed to just making money.  That's why I keep a day job :)  So I don't have to make music decisions based on money.  I love people sharing music.  I draw the line when someone has a site that makes money by stealing other peoples' music.  Like I don't mind not making money, but if someone else is making money by letting people illegally download my music, I think that's not right.  Any sort of mass-downloading site isn't good for the music biz.  But I think people will always share music with their friends and I think that's great.  

An artist that shares the same views as Kat is Columbian singer Shakira. She has expressed a similar sentiment, she plays her music for her fans, and if they are listening to her music she does not have a problem with them not paying for it. As a very successful singer, she probably wouldn’t mind if a few people didn’t pay for her music, but it was cool to see that someone like Kat, who is climbing the ladder towards fame, shares the same views. Someone who most definitely does not agree with this sentiment is Prince, who has expressed his disgust towards people who illegally download music. He has made plans to sue both YouTube and eBay for allowing people to share his music without paying for it. It was interesting to find that he has a totally opposite viewpoint as he is another extremely successful musician.
 

From my research, I have learned that you can’t please everyone when it comes to downloading music. It was facinating to see that artists who have similar incomes have different views on the same issue.

 

 

Well, you can’t please them all.

Cartoon by Patrick Corrigan

Check out these links!

Kat's Website
Shakira's Website

Prince does not have a website...but check out his fanpage here!