(photo: Ivors Academy)
The Musicians’ Union and the Ivors Academy have started a petition urging UK government officials to investigate music streaming on behalf of songwriters and artists.
The London-based organizations, which represent over 32,000 total music writers and artists, published their campaign under the “Keep Music Alive” banner.
At its start, the Change.org petition reiterates the immense financial difficulty that artists and music-industry professionals are grappling with amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, given that many recording studios remain closed and live performances have been largely put on ice. The Musicians’ Union recently found that 20 percent of UK musicians fear the coronavirus crisis will mark the end of their professional careers.
Then, the text emphasizes the substantial revenue that music streaming produces, before stating that artists and other creators “shouldn’t have to rely on Government support, and shouldn’t be struggling to survive.”
To fix the problem, Keep Music Alive’s team indicates that steps must be taken to assure that the music industry’s “flow of money is transparent and fair for the whole music ecosystem.”
In this vein, the campaign closes by calling on the UK government – and specifically Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Oliver Dowden – “to urgently undertake a review of streaming.”
At the time of this piece’s writing, over 3,340 individuals had backed the Musicians’ Union and the Ivors Academy’s petition.
In late March, Digital Music News was first to report that several dissatisfied artists had started a petition of their own, demanding, in no uncertain terms, that Spotify permanently triple its per-stream payments. Thus far, about 2,000 persons have rallied behind the cause.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlined a three-step plan to gradually reopen the United Kingdom’s economy while minimizing new COVID-19 cases and treating those who’ve already tested positive.
To date, UK medical professionals have diagnosed over 223,000 COVID-19 infections, and more than 32,000 residents have perished due to complications from the disease.
I often wonder how many musicians were invited to the meeting when Spotify set their streaming rates? ZERO probably!
My invite was lost in the mail, apparently.
Pennies for Play would give any musician a penny every click anywhere on the net. No middleman, no subscriptions. This is the future that no media dare talk about. Part of the music revolution, D Pop, the wheel, etc.