The Tragedy of Streaming Services .. the saga continues!

In the next story of the “streaming saga”, avid drummer of distinguished brit-pop group Blur (and now-councillor for Norfolk), David Rowntree, spoke in front of the House of Commons committee and the BBC on the tragedy of streaming services and how “terminal” it all can be for the industry.

Whilst the labels yet again stick their head in the sand, and stating the artists are happy, Rowntree is speaking for all of them, and simply stating they’re not.

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“Bands like mine will be fine [Blur], but the next generation of bands will be hit – bands living hand-ti-mouth like we did for the first 10 years.” – David Rowntree.

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Singer-songwriter Bevan also edged in with her comments on the way streaming services pay royalties and how backwards it all is.

She stated that typically out of every £1 spent on streaming services, 30p goes to the streamer (such as Spotify), 55p goes to the publisher, which is then distributed to the artist and songwriters.

Considering the artists and songwriters make the damn stuff in the first place, it seems that we are last in the chain when it comes to remuneration and being fairly compensated for the work which has given the said publishers and said streamers those clicks, streams and ad revenue to begin with.

The fear is growing within the industry, even now as we speak. More talented industry specialists and artists are simply going to disappear from the spotlight and the up-and-coming, simply because the industry is at a stage now, where it is impossible to survive. Especially at grass-root level obtaining a living wage.

What are your thoughts on it all?

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