An anonymous coward writes:

"Killing the Music"

Don Henley, Washington Post

When I started in the music business, music was
important and vital to our culture. Artists connected
with their fans. Record labels signed cutting-edge
artists, and FM radio offered an incredible variety of
music. Music touched fans in a unique and personal way.
Our culture was enriched and the music business was
healthy and strong.

That's all changed.

Today the music business is in crisis. Sales have
decreased between 20 and 30 percent over the past three
years. Record labels are suing children for using
unauthorized peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing systems.
Only a few artists ever hear their music on the radio,
yet radio networks are battling Congress over ownership
restrictions. Independent music stores are closing at
an unprecedented pace. And the artists seem to be at
odds with just about everyone -- even the fans.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, the root problem is
not the artists, the fans or even new Internet
technology. The problem is the music industry itself.
It's systemic. The industry, which was once composed of
hundreds of big and small record labels, is now
controlled by just a handful of unregulated,
multinational corporations determined to continue their
mad rush toward further consolidation and merger. Sony
and BMG announced their agreement to merge in November,
and EMI and Time Warner may not be far behind. The
industry may soon be dominated by only three
multinational corporations.

The executives who run these corporations believe that
music is solely a commodity. Unlike their predecessors,
they fail to recognize that music is as much a vital
art form and social barometer as it is a way to make a
profit. At one time artists actually developed
meaningful, even if strained, relationships with their
record labels. This was possible because labels were
relatively small and accessible, and they had an
incentive to join with the artists in marketing their
music. Today such a relationship is practically
impossible for most artists.

Labels no longer take risks by signing unique and
important new artists, nor do they become partners with
artists in the creation and promotion of the music.
After the music is created, the artist's connection
with it is minimized and in some instances is
nonexistent. In their world, music is generic. A major
record label president confirmed this recently when he
referred to artists as "content providers." Would a
major label sign Johnny Cash today? I doubt it.

Radio stations used to be local and diverse. Deejays
programmed their own shows and developed close
relationships with artists. Today radio stations are
centrally programmed by their corporate owners, and
airplay is essentially bought rather than earned. The
floodgates have opened for corporations to buy an
almost unlimited number of radio stations, as well as
concert venues and agencies. The delicate balance
between artists and radio networks has been
dramatically altered; networks can now, and often do,
exert unprecedented pressure on artists. Whatever
connection the artists had with their music on the
airwaves is almost totally gone.

Music stores used to be magical places offering wide
variety. Today the three largest music retailers are
Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Target. In those stores shelf
space is limited, making it harder for new artists to
emerge. Even established artists are troubled by stores
using music as a loss leader. Smaller, more
personalized record stores are closing all over the
country -- some because of rampant P2P piracy but many
others because of competition from department stores
that traditionally have no connection whatsoever with
artists.

Piracy is perhaps the most emotionally gut-wrenching
problem facing artists. Artists like the idea of a new
and better business model for the industry, but they
cannot accept a business model that uses their music
without authority or compensation. Suing kids is not
what artists want, but many of them feel betrayed by
fans who claim to love artists but still want their
music free.

The music industry must also take a large amount of
blame for this piracy. Not only did the industry not
address the issue sooner, it provided the P2P users
with a convenient scapegoat. Many kids rationalize
their P2P habit by pointing out that only record labels
are hurt -- that the labels don't pay the artists
anyway. This is clearly wrong, because artists are at
the bottom of the food chain. They are the ones hit
hardest when sales take a nosedive and when the labels
cut back on promotion, on signing new artists and on
keeping artists with potential. Artists are clearly
affected, yet because many perceive the music business
as being dominated by rich multinational corporations,
the pain felt by the artist has no public face.

Artists are finally realizing their predicament is no
different from that of any other group with common
economic and political interests. They can no longer
just hope for change; they must fight for it.
Washington is where artists must go to plead their case
and find answers.

So whether they are fighting against media and radio
consolidation, fighting for fair recording contracts
and corporate responsibility, or demanding that labels
treat artists as partners and not as employees, the
core message is the same: The artist must be allowed to
join with the labels and must be treated in a fair and
respectful manner. If the labels are not willing to
voluntarily implement these changes, then the artists
have no choice but to seek legislative and judicial
solutions. Simply put, artists must regain control, as
much as possible, over their music.

[The writer is a singer and drummer with the Eagles and
a founding member of the Recording Artists' Coalition.]

(c) 2004 The Washington Post Company