The One-Sided Contracts of the Music Industry

By: Jared Van Leeuwen

Even though the music industry has improved regarding its treatment of recording artists, it still has a long ways to go.

I have loved music for as long as I can remember. As a child, my parents would always listen to the biggest hits of Journey, Bon Jovi, Queen, The Beatles, and other classic rock bands while I was finding out about the music of Avril Lavigne and Kelly Clarkson on my own. As I got older and found out that I could sing, I realized that I wanted to make music just like them a
nd that is still what I'm pursuing to this day.

However, I came to find out that the music industry isn't exactly what I had hoped it would be as a kid. My searches led me to articles and interviews where Kelly Clarkson talked about the fights she had with her record label regarding her music and career. I read post after post and listened to multiple podcasts where people talked about how the music industry interfered with their life and basically stabbed them in the back. I have also seen plenty of articles, especially recently, about artists saying that their labels are giving them more creative control or that they have gone completely independent. Truly, there is a shift taking place in the music industry that is starting to better favor the artist. However, even though the music industry has improved regarding its treatment of recording artists, it still has a long ways to go.

A Brief History of Poorly Written Agreements

Contract disputes (whether between artists and streaming services, artists and record labels, etc.) are not limited to the music industry, or even to the modern day. Throughout history people have drafted all sorts of agreements, contracts, and treaties to be more beneficial to one party at the expense of another. Sometimes this stems from greed, much like the problematic artist contracts of Spotify, or from some desire for justice after being wronged.

The latter was the case for the Treaty of Versailles, the document that ended World War I, and unintentionally started WWII. The Treaty of Versailles, specifically the Way Guilt Clause found within, was worded in such a way so as to basically punish Germany for the role that they played in the war, forcing them to pay costly reparations, give up some of their land they had gained, and restrict their military power, among other things. These conditions were extremely harsh and Germany tried to negotiate them after some time, but they were hardly given any breathing room by the other countries they were paying. As such, they started the Second World War in an effort to get their punishment repealed.


Thankfully, contract disputes in the present day aren't causing any global-scale wars. However, when people get the short end of the stick from a contract they were hesitant to sign in the first place, especially well-known celebrity musicians, odds are that they will try to fight against it. Thankfully, with the help of their fans, they are often able to make the positive changes that are needed or at least makes changes happen that will eventually lead to their goal. Hopefully, we will actually make sure to read contracts ahead of time and hopefully will get to a point as people where we do not use contracts as a means of personal gain alone.

Image Credit: https://www.iamexpat.nl/career/employment-news/new-dutch-labour-laws-conversion-of-contract-from-fixed-term-to-permanent Public Domain

Hot Spots in the Music Industry

• Streaming Service Contracts: Many artists have claimed to get very minimal payment from streaming services, such as Spotify, for their music. This has been due, in part, to deceitful contracts that were worded to be more in favor of the streaming services. This issue has improved quite a bit, especially with the help of Taylor Swift who is a major activist against this problem, but still has a ways to go. (See https://www.forbes.com/sites/legalentertainment/2017/12/08/music-industry-cases-and-issues-to-watch-in-2018/#21eede325066)
• Piracy: It's no secret that many people illegally download various forms of entertainment, including music. Pirating music for free means that the artist doesn't get paid for their music like they should be. Multiple attempts have been made to shut down piracy across the internet, but it still manages to persist nonetheless. (See https://www.ifpi.org/music-piracy.php)
• Songwriting Royalties: Due to laws that were made decades ago, songwriters have a low, fixed rate at which they earn money from the sale of songs they helped write. Recently, the Music Modernization Act was passed on October 11th of this year and will help songwriters to make more of a profit from their work. (See https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/randall-wixen-there-are-an-immense-number-of-songwriters-not-making-enough-money-to-live-on/)

Of all these issues, the one I feel the most strongly about is the second one regarding pirated music. As someone who wants to make music for a living, I completely understand why artists would be against people being able to download their music for free, as digital downloads are a part of how artists make a living. Even though their are laws in place and actions get taken against illegal pirating websites, it still is not enough. I feel like the government needs to do a better job at regulating severely underregulated parts of the internet, such as the parts that enable illegal downloading of music.

Image Credit: https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/8030087/taylor-swift-reputation-tracklist-ed-sheeran-future-end-game Copyright 2015 Kevin Mazur