"The excellent free peer-reviewed net-journal First Monday has published an exhaustive survey of the earnings made by British and German musicians. Their conclusion? Copyright doesn't give creators a living, and in many cases (such as clearing samples) it costs them more than they can afford.
According to a GEMA (German collecting society) insider, only about 1,200 German composers can live from their creative output. Only a small minority of artists reaches ordinary living standards from copyright income... If an artist wants to include a sample from another record, major rights holders often insist on a controlling interest of 50 to 100 percent of the rights in the new track."
Link (via Boingboing)
and here's the flipside...
"This may come as a complete shock to the people who forget that entertainment is a business, but writers, like musicians, get an advance and then have to pay back that advance with royalties from book sales. What is the average advance? One small, non-scientific survey put it at less than US$6,000 (not adjusted for inflation)." Via Coolfer.
Neal Stephenson interview here.
Deal to ban 'homophobic' reggae. "The reggae industry is to refuse to release or stage concerts featuring homophobic songs under a global deal struck with gay rights groups." BBC.
Also from the BBC's site... "homophobia in Jamaica goes far beyond songs lyrics, with gay men and women "beaten, cut, burned, raped and shot on account of their sexuality", according to Amnesty International. It says while no official statistics are available, according to published reports at least 30 gay men are believed to have been murdered in Jamaica since 1997. And at least five Jamaicans have been granted asylum in the UK in the last two years because their lives had been threatened as a result of their sexual identity."
Village Voice Pazz and Jop Critics Poll out now. Kanye tops it - no surprises there, he's one of two hiphop CDs most critics bothered to listen to last year - that and the Grey Album.
Via O-Dub - "Lizz Mendez Berry's Vibe story on how hip-hop silences the issue of domestic violence is an important, important piece - one of the few examples of real investigative, issue-oriented reporting you'll find in today's urban culture mags.
Alas, what I think will be the ultimate fall-out is a much public hand-wringing but business as usual otherwise. As Lizz points out: that's not on hip-hop alone, but it's fascinating to see how fast people circle up the wagons to defend a batterer. If you're talking the talk, i.e. "kick in the door/wavin' the 44/all you heard was 'Poppa don't hit me no more'" at least be man enough to own up to it."
Also from the BBC's site... "homophobia in Jamaica goes far beyond songs lyrics, with gay men and women "beaten, cut, burned, raped and shot on account of their sexuality", according to Amnesty International. It says while no official statistics are available, according to published reports at least 30 gay men are believed to have been murdered in Jamaica since 1997. And at least five Jamaicans have been granted asylum in the UK in the last two years because their lives had been threatened as a result of their sexual identity."
Village Voice Pazz and Jop Critics Poll out now. Kanye tops it - no surprises there, he's one of two hiphop CDs most critics bothered to listen to last year - that and the Grey Album.
Via O-Dub - "Lizz Mendez Berry's Vibe story on how hip-hop silences the issue of domestic violence is an important, important piece - one of the few examples of real investigative, issue-oriented reporting you'll find in today's urban culture mags.
Alas, what I think will be the ultimate fall-out is a much public hand-wringing but business as usual otherwise. As Lizz points out: that's not on hip-hop alone, but it's fascinating to see how fast people circle up the wagons to defend a batterer. If you're talking the talk, i.e. "kick in the door/wavin' the 44/all you heard was 'Poppa don't hit me no more'" at least be man enough to own up to it."
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