First of all, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Chelsea Lee Richardson, and I am an intern here at the Copyright Alliance. I am a 2008 graduate of Muhlenberg College, having double majored in Theatre and English. Being an actress who was raised by a mother in the music industry, and whose uncle produces film DVDs for a living, I have always been intrigued by issues surrounding the arts/entertainment world.

I was in middle and high school when downloading music (quickly followed by movies and television) became the “thing to do”, and having many extremely tech-savvy friends, one might assume that my opinions may have been made up for me by my peers. For one reason or another, however, I could never quite justify downloading free media off of the internet. Time and time again I have found myself in the middle of long-winded debates with my friends, some of whom were artists themselves, and some of whom even got me questioning my own beliefs.

Somehow though, in my heart of hearts, I always knew that I would continue to buy my music and DVDs, even when that meant holding off on an album I really wanted because I just didn’t have the cash.

I have been interning for the Copyright Alliance for almost two months now, and have recently found myself even more immersed than ever in the issues surrounding copyright infringement in the digital generation. Thus, I thought it was about time I sat down and put some of my thoughts on paper…or in this case, online.

On Monday, September 10th, music legends Nick Mason, Ed O’Brien, Dave Rowntree and Billy Bragg were featured in an article in the UK Times about the controversy surrounding file sharing. The musicians all share the viewpoint that file sharing will not be the death of the music industry, but that in fact, it may be what brings it back to life.

Nick Mason of Pink Floyd was quoted as saying,

The last thing we want to be doing is going to war with our fanbase. File sharing means a new generation of fans for us. It’s a great thing to have another generation discovering your music and thinking you’re rather good. File sharing plays a part in that, because that generation don’t do it any other way.

Why, I find myself asking, doesn’t “that” (or rather MY) generation do it any other way? I, myself, am a huge Pink Floyd fan, and am always pleased when I see a teenager walking down the street in a Dark Side of the Moon t-shirt. But is it really possible that the only way to encourage youngsters to appreciate the music of generation’s passed is to allow them to take it for free? I have never used P2P file sharing, and yet I still listen to more classic rock than contemporary music. This is because my mother also valued music, and was constantly playing cassettes and CDs around the apartment when I was a child. My love for music is firmly stemmed in the excitement of unwrapping a new CD and dancing to it with my mother in my childhood living room, not from downloading songs off of the internet.

It seems British singer/songwriter Lily Allen had a similar reaction after reading the Times article, because on Monday, September 14th she took to her blog, expressing concern for the next generation of artists. She stated,

I think music piracy is having a dangerous effect on British music, but some really rich and successful artists like Nick Mason from Pink Floyd and Ed O’Brien from Radiohead don’t seem to think so. Last week in an article in the Times these guys from huge bands said file sharing music is fine. It probably is fine for them. They do sell-out arena tours and have the biggest Ferrari collections in the world. For new talent though, file sharing is a disaster as it’s making it harder and harder for new acts to emerge.

Lily got a lot of criticism for speaking out against file sharing. Some readers interpreted her post as bidding for the music industry executives, hoping to keep their high-powered, high-paying jobs. Others thought she was being a hypocrite, allowing her music to be listened to for free via MySpace in order to gain a larger fan base, but then taking a stand against the sharing of free music now that she is starting to make some money and presumably wants to keep doing so.

Lily took to her blog once again to clarify her point of view, making clear that she was not taking a stand on behalf of the wealthy artists and music industry executives, but in fact the people on the lower-end of the totem pole who often get laid off or looked-over when profits are down. It is easy to feel fine about illegally downloading when looking at the riches of successful artists, but people seem to forget that the percentage of artists that actually become millionaires is minute.

What many critics of Lily Allen, and copyright advocates in general, are missing is that playing a song for your friend and giving a song to your friend are very different things. Yes, Lily Allen offered streaming songs to fans on MySpace (and still does for that matter), and it is her right as the copyright holder of her music to do so.

Today’s legal music and video streaming is the equivalent to my generation’s radio. This is where you can listen to whatever type of music you like, getting a taste of things for free, without making the investment of a purchase. Listening to streaming music, or watching streaming television shows does not allow you to keep the music or duplicate it for your friends. Legal streaming sites and file sharing are not in the same ball park.

Other downloaders justify their actions by saying that they cannot rationalize spending hard-earned cash on an album when it may be only one or two songs that they actually enjoy listening to. This makes a lot of sense to me, as I often buy an album only to find out that the single I heard on the radio or MySpace is the only one I like. This is where the beauty of iTunes and other legal digital media applications come in. Downloading legally allows you the freedom to purchase just one song, or an entire album. The same goes for television series. More often than not, you can chose to purchase just one episode, or the entire season. In this way, we have more freedom and flexibility as consumers of music, movies, and television than ever before! So why all the stealing?

When I was a child, the purchase of a CD was a big deal, at least in my household. It was something we looked forward to, something we saved up for, and something we truly valued. Of course I love the fact that I now have the freedom to buy a single on iTunes for less than a dollar, but I also think music is special, and treating it as such was not always a bad thing. Do I think music should still be a huge and unaffordable purchase for the average person? Absolutely not. But should it still be valued and respected as a work that brings endless enjoyment? Yes. We used to teach our nation’s children to save their pennies for things they really wanted, but now it seems we as a society are giving in and instead saying “Oh, go on. Just take it if you want it.” I believe we owe it to the next generation of children and artists to teach them the values that my generation seems to have lost somewhere along the way. When I love and appreciate something, I value it; and when I value it, I accept that it is worth a little hard work to get it. These are the values I believe in.

I give Lily Allen major kudos for publically disagreeing with music legends that most young stars would be intimidated of. I also give her major kudos for speaking out on behalf of the even younger emerging artists who don’t yet have a public voice. In my eyes, it has always been a right vs. wrong issue. When an artist holds the copyright to something they have created, it is their choice how and where to distribute it, not ours. Children are constantly taught to stand up for their rights as members of society, so why should artists be any different? I believe we need to stop telling our children that this behavior is okay, and start once again teaching them to value what they love, and love the values they hold.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, September 17th, 2009 at 2:44 pm by Chelsea Richardson and is filed under copyright opponents, creators, p2p, piracy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.