Arists Vs. Spotify: The Cost Of Music

By Kate Mueller on November 18, 2014

via Washington Post

Taylor Swift recently took all of her music off of Spotify, a free (*with ads) music streaming app, claiming that a musician’s art should not be free.

She’s not the first to take a stand on this and won’t be the last. Fellow country star Jason Aldean decided to follow in her footsteps when it came to his new album.

Christina Aguilera, DMX, Blink 182, Dr. Dre and more than 50 other artists all backed an anti-piracy act several years ago.

In their opinion, music is their livelihood; they spend months and months on a piece of art and for people to “steal” the music for free online is not fair.

However, there are plenty of artists that are on the other side of the argument. Nelly Furtado, Shakira and Jack White are just a few that aren’t necessarily opposed to fans pirating their music. They claim that music is a gift and they’re just happy people can listen and enjoy their music.

Spotify is not considered a pirating site, though. They pay (very minimal) royalties to the artists featured – something some artists don’t think is enough. But let’s forget that pirating is illegal, for the sake of argument. Should music be available for free? Here are the biggest topics surrounding the debate.

Music as art

Anti-Free Music:

A clothing designer giving away free clothes, a chef giving away free gourmet meals, a painter giving away free portraits –in most situations, you would think they were crazy for selling themselves short. They have a gift and should be compensated for it.

That’s how musicians feel when their music is available to the masses at no cost. Spending hours upon hours on a project that they can say they put their heart and soul into shouldn’t be free.

Pro-Free Music:

Music is art and a gift. It’s a gift to be able to share your talent and love for music with other people that enjoy it. Why do we listen to music? To relax, to get in party mode, to escape from the world, to relate to someone who is going through a similar situation – all gifts that musicians provide.

The more people that hear it, the better you feel because that’s one more person that knows who you are and what you’re about. In the music industry, making your name known and music heard should be the most important part.

Money

Anti-Free Music:

Obviously, the most important aspect of the argument. “You don’t work for free, so why should I?” Giving away music makes it seem as if your art is worthless and mediocre.

Pro-Free Music:

Taylor Swift did get paid for Spotify to stream her albums. While how much she made is uncertain due to both sides giving different numbers, Taylor Swift made AT LEAST $500,000 from Spotify (according to her people). So, the number could be closer to the $2 million that Spotify claims they paid her.

Please, cry some more Taylor Swift and anti-Spotify artists about how you don’t get paid. I don’t know how you’re living off $500,000 and still surviving. As a college kid that has to work several jobs to cover tuition and eat Ramen for dinner occasionally, I have no sympathy.

Think about it, though. Artists sell millions of albums, despite the ability to get music for free (both legally and illegally). The number would be much higher if you couldn’t, yes, but that doesn’t mean you’re still not making A LOT of money.

From endorsements, concerts and merchandise you’re still making MILLIONS, as Lady Gaga pointed out.

“Big artists can make anywhere from $50 million for one cycle of two years’ touring. Giant artists make upwards of $100 million. Make music–then tour. It’s just the way it is today.”
- Lady Gaga

Music Quality and Fans

Anti-Free Music:

The quality of music will go down if music is free. Seasoned musicians will be giving away their music as if they are a rookie begging to get discovered. They’ve done their time and are in demand, so the price should reflect that. If your fans are true fans that crave listening to your music, they will pay the $0.99 for the single on iTunes because that’s the right thing to do.

Pro-Free Music:

If songs were free, the quality of music would go up because it would make artists more competitive. They will strive to get you to listen to real music, instead of just popping out another cookie cutter pop song that will sell well on the radio only because it’s annoying and catchy.

Fans will appreciate that artists care about what they think and want. It doesn’t mean the artist thinks the music is worthless, it means that the music is so good that EVERYONE should hear it. Fans are the most important person in the music industry.

No One Wins

via Venture Beat

In the end, there are pros and cons to each side. Music will never be completely free for fans, but artists should really try to accommodate their fans as much as possible. Spotify is a great app that offers a lot to music fans, while still giving the artist some profit. After all, that’s better than pirating.

My solution: more mixtapes. Some of my favorite albums have been free, downloadable mixtapes that artists have put out in between albums to keep their fans listening and interested, while not letting songs (and time) get wasted in the studio.

If someone cannot afford to buy albums or doesn’t want to use a streaming app like Spotify, they can download it and not feel guilty. In the end, the artist gets feedback for what the fans want, and the fans get what they want – music.

Looking for some great, free music without ads? Here are my all-time favorite (and free) mixtapes:

Folarin – Wale

Yours Truly – J. Cole

Art Dealer Chic – Miguel

1999 – Joey Bada$$

Acid Rap – Chance the Rapper

Overly Dedicated – Kendrick Lamar

Nostalgia, Ultra – Frank Ocean

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