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Julian Bond - 2013-06-09 19:22:18+0000 - Updated: 2013-06-09 19:31:37+0000

http://retromaniabysimonreynolds.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/why-he-no-longer-gives-away-his-music.html
The problem here is that I can't see the connection between music obsessives discovering that you can obtain music for free and exploiting that fact; and a movement trying to work against the exploitation of interns and freelancers by for-profit organisations.
Follow the links to http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jun/05/digital-economy-work-for-free

Bruce Sterling is fond of saying "what happens to Musicians will happen to everyone". The theory being that Musicians discovering that there is no money in the game for 99.9999% of all players is just the bleeding edge and everyone else will be discovering the same thing about their niche in quick time. But maybe this is just recognising that most art is an activity with no monetary value and always has been. If we still think it has value to our lives and society as a whole, then we need to find some other way of compensating it's creators than simply putting a monetary value on it's content.

As for education loans, endless internships, going the extra mile, free freelancers, and all the other euphemisms, it's economic slavery, no? By all means leverage a bit of free work or barter into a longer term contract, but if you consistently use people's willingness to do this to keep your costs down, then go to hell.

So are you still buying stuff from Amazon? I know, I know, it's just so convenient.

why he no longer gives away his music / "stop working for free"

Ron Porter - 2013-06-10 15:28:23+0000

There have been far more musicians than the market could bear for at least a century. In fact, I suspect that what we consider the music market really only came into existence with recording and broadcasting. Before that, the market was in selling sheet music and instruments. There were local markets for musicians that were mostly earning only pin money, and often not enough to even support what was primarily a hobby. For better or worse, we seem to be returning to those days.

I do agree that the various arts have a value to society and that they should be supported, but I think the days of making a living as an artist are behind us except for those who have exceptional talent, skill, and business sense.

When I hear people complain about how little musicians make, I think back to my grandfather's dance band. It was filled with fine musicians, but nobody could ever dream of making a living from it. There used to be thousands of bands just like it and nobody considered it economic slavery because they counted themselves lucky to be able to pick up a little extra cash for what was fundamentally a hobby. When their kind of playing became seen as a living, all the little dance and concert halls closed because the musicians had priced themselves out of the market.