WEBVTT 00:00:04.100 --> 00:00:07.200 The music industry is constantly under siege for its exposure to 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:10.600 practices and it seems like every few months and artist 00:00:10.600 --> 00:00:13.300 makes headlines discussing the pitfalls of their contracts 00:00:13.300 --> 00:00:17.000 and late October 2021 Meek Mill took to Twitter and essentially 00:00:17.000 --> 00:00:19.900 a tweet saying I haven't got paid from music and I don't know 00:00:19.900 --> 00:00:21.500 how much money labels make off me. 00:00:21.500 --> 00:00:23.400 I need lawyers ASAP. 00:00:23.400 --> 00:00:25.900 It's raining sound on Tik-Tok includes a 2020. 00:00:25.900 --> 00:00:28.700 Interview of Young Thug calling his first contract that he signed 00:00:28.700 --> 00:00:40.900 with APG, back in 2013, call for transparency, 00:00:40.900 --> 00:00:43.800 in the music industry, by releasing a hundred documents 00:00:43.800 --> 00:00:44.600 detailing. The contract. 00:00:44.600 --> 00:00:45.600 He signed with Def Jam. 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:51.800 In 2005 can be happy. 00:00:51.800 --> 00:00:53.100 These deals can be 00:00:54.900 --> 00:00:57.700 Slept in a way that they just more fair recently. 00:00:57.700 --> 00:01:00.700 Rolling Stones, Elias light obtained, R&B artist summer Walker 00:01:00.700 --> 00:01:02.000 contract with label. 00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:05.500 Love Renaissance. Also known as lvrn in the contents raised, 00:01:05.500 --> 00:01:08.300 a number of eyebrows in the contract Walker signed. 00:01:08.300 --> 00:01:11.700 She agreed to receive just 15% of royalties on the first two 00:01:11.700 --> 00:01:15.100 albums forfeit ownership of her master's and be held this low 00:01:15.100 --> 00:01:17.300 royalty structure for what one entertainment lawyer, 00:01:17.300 --> 00:01:20.600 who review to draft described as a somewhat indeterminate 00:01:20.600 --> 00:01:23.700 amount of time, it took to Instagram to Simply confirm. 00:01:23.700 --> 00:01:25.300 That's what she agreed to and went on. 00:01:25.300 --> 00:01:27.100 To say her deal has changed since then, 00:01:27.100 --> 00:01:29.700 recording contract such as Walker's, 2017, contract, 00:01:29.700 --> 00:01:33.100 and more common than one, might think collecting just how exploited 00:01:33.100 --> 00:01:35.800 the music industry can be creators are definitely getting 00:01:35.800 --> 00:01:43.900 the worst. Possible. 00:01:43.900 --> 00:01:46.900 Peter's College, and experience entertainment lawyer, for review 00:01:46.900 --> 00:01:47.600 with rolling stone. 00:01:47.600 --> 00:01:49.200 Drafts of Walkers, contract documents. 00:01:49.200 --> 00:01:53.300 He spoke with RS, new to provide deeper insight into the complexities 00:01:53.300 --> 00:01:54.700 of the industry and white. 00:01:54.900 --> 00:01:55.600 How to change. 00:01:55.600 --> 00:01:59.700 I wouldn't be critical of the artist here like it's not on them 00:01:59.700 --> 00:02:01.000 that the deals are better. 00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:02.400 Not like they're bad negotiators. 00:02:02.400 --> 00:02:04.800 Not a lot of choices and the choices I made the best choices 00:02:04.800 --> 00:02:08.700 besides for what some of you as exploitative practices. 00:02:08.700 --> 00:02:11.800 Even drawing Power Players like Prince in the artist fight 00:02:11.800 --> 00:02:13.200 for ownership over their output. 00:02:13.200 --> 00:02:16.300 You can forget one in the 90s lady artist called I am a slave 00:02:16.300 --> 00:02:19.600 or his face and change his name to a symbol to this music under the 00:02:19.600 --> 00:02:22.500 moniker. The artist formerly known as Prince in protest 00:02:22.500 --> 00:02:24.200 of the restrictive, nature of his record contract, 00:02:24.200 --> 00:02:26.500 but with such a rapidly changing industry, 00:02:26.500 --> 00:02:29.300 and so, we realize the nature of such contracts, 00:02:29.300 --> 00:02:31.600 have relatively stay the same bottom line is, is 00:02:31.600 --> 00:02:35.500 that you're looking at a changing industry that had a few, 00:02:35.500 --> 00:02:37.500 two players that are still there. 00:02:37.500 --> 00:02:41.100 There were none in the world is contracts that occasion 00:02:41.100 --> 00:02:45.800 contracts that are very big party that drafted them and that 00:02:45.800 --> 00:02:49.200 are presented to a lot of people and their two degrees not negotiated. 00:02:54.900 --> 00:02:58.700 One way that contracts have changed for the worse is the introduction of 00:02:58.700 --> 00:02:59.200 the infamous. 00:02:59.200 --> 00:03:02.500 So-called 360 deal that includes options for obtaining. 00:03:02.500 --> 00:03:04.900 A percentage of all the artist revenue streams. 00:03:04.900 --> 00:03:08.300 Not just the music school found such a clause in the draft 00:03:08.300 --> 00:03:11.300 to Summer Walker's, 2017 contract, you reviewed and finds that 00:03:11.300 --> 00:03:13.800 this is becoming a more common practice across the industry, 00:03:13.800 --> 00:03:16.400 even though it may seem highly counterintuitive 00:03:16.400 --> 00:03:20.800 when you say I want to make records with you and we're going 00:03:20.800 --> 00:03:21.300 to split the money. 00:03:21.300 --> 00:03:24.800 You don't expect them to say, we also want money from other 00:03:24.800 --> 00:03:26.900 stuff that you're, you know, any money off of it. 00:03:26.900 --> 00:03:29.800 I understand that those terms are in contracts and in a lot of 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:33.100 contracts, but they always, I think that people should push 00:03:33.100 --> 00:03:34.100 back on those as much as possible. 00:03:34.100 --> 00:03:38.300 But also, if they can try to negotiate a sunset on that particular 00:03:38.300 --> 00:03:39.600 provision so that it goes away. 00:03:39.600 --> 00:03:43.400 After a couple years to type deal, 00:03:43.400 --> 00:03:46.400 makes a lot of sense, they put up resources from the bill, 00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:49.200 and they expect to return for their investment was dreaming 00:03:49.200 --> 00:03:51.300 taking precedence over physical album sales. 00:03:51.300 --> 00:03:54.100 Labels had to find a way to recruit the loss of Revenue. 00:03:54.900 --> 00:03:57.700 Conversate and not just for the work making a record but their 00:03:57.700 --> 00:04:00.200 work building a brand what that sometimes fails to acknowledge 00:04:00.200 --> 00:04:02.000 is the humanity of the artist. 00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:09.500 I don't think they really look at it as artists and their career. 00:04:09.500 --> 00:04:13.700 So much as these are assets that we can monetize and various 00:04:13.700 --> 00:04:19.900 different ways. Now, there are alternatives to have an active 00:04:19.900 --> 00:04:22.300 role in shaping the music out to the masses for some, 00:04:22.300 --> 00:04:23.700 this option is extremely successful. 00:04:23.700 --> 00:04:27.100 By Chance the Rapper who won a Grammy as an unsigned artist, 00:04:27.100 --> 00:04:28.700 but for others, the risk of making, 00:04:28.700 --> 00:04:31.800 it can feel a bit more secure of label machine behind you. 00:04:31.800 --> 00:04:35.300 The label machine. 00:04:35.300 --> 00:04:44.400 My plan was missing was a machine yourself in the shoes of someone 00:04:44.400 --> 00:04:48.500 who's in that position and different because there aren't 00:04:48.500 --> 00:04:50.600 a ton of options if you want to go with. 00:04:54.800 --> 00:04:58.700 Marketing team and the best distribution, and the best PR and 00:04:58.700 --> 00:04:59.100 all that stuff. 00:04:59.100 --> 00:05:00.200 What you going to do? 00:05:00.200 --> 00:05:08.300 Where do you take one? 00:05:08.300 --> 00:05:12.100 2017? Also would have looked like, perhaps a better option 00:05:12.100 --> 00:05:12.700 or more sure. 00:05:12.700 --> 00:05:16.400 Thing school is independent option isn't fully viable. 00:05:16.400 --> 00:05:19.600 Belize big labels with the vast majority of the power in their 00:05:19.600 --> 00:05:21.800 hands. And in his view new artist, 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:23.200 first contracts are written the way. 00:05:23.200 --> 00:05:32.000 They are to maintain that status quo on making it kind of a pig 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:36.500 mostly intended to get revenues generated by the artist for the 00:05:36.500 --> 00:05:44.500 decent amount of time to take matters into their own hands 00:05:44.500 --> 00:05:47.000 and Peters. Hopefully, we will see more artists following 00:05:47.000 --> 00:05:48.800 a similar model to shake up the industry. 00:05:54.800 --> 00:05:59.400 A good level of services to the artist about taking 85% of the 00:05:59.400 --> 00:06:00.200 money from them or whatever. 00:06:00.200 --> 00:06:03.700 They've been in the next five years ago to see a couple transformative 00:06:03.700 --> 00:06:13.000 Solutions, pop up that will hopefully also check out the full 00:06:13.000 --> 00:06:14.300 feature on rollingstone.com.