Pay-for-play music may not be popular, but at least it’s legal

So, we’re all guilty. For the record, though, I don’t think anyone thought what they were doing was legal.

Yep, Napster is soon to be a thing of the past. Sad, I know — I too will miss being able to get practically any song I wanted at any given time. But let’s be honest, kids. Did anyone really think this was legal? Did anyone really think that stealing the creative works of thousands of artists wouldn’t be, I don’t know, a slight bit unethical at least?

For those of you who bust out with the “Hey-music-should-be-free-to-everyone-dude” side, sit down a minute and listen to yourself. Unless you practice the musical equivalent of communism or even heavy-grade socialism, you can’t go out and purchase anything from a store and then ask a hard-working (or hardly working) artist to just give you his music, his “wares” if you will.

Our society just doesn’t work that way. For better or for worse, we go to jobs to get money, and we sell ourselves each day to make money. These guys, the guys out there that aren’t on MTV and aren’t selling millions of albums — those are the guys that are really getting ripped off.

It’s the guys like Cracker, Burlap to Cashmere and Guster that are taking the hits to album sales. As much as we don’t like them , one-hit wonder bands like a-ha and Men Without Hats are suffering even more. Not only do they have the stigma attached to them that they were “one-hit wonders,” but now their album sales on compilations and singles are down the tubes because you can easily get it off Napster.

Band members in the public eye really do have to work. Yes, even Fred Durst has to sit down and write lyrics to his songs, spend countless hours in the studio and travel away from his family. Then, there were the times before bands were big, when they had to open for first-tier acts, play small clubs or even play out of their basement. They deal with the inability to work with their group, legal contracts, bloodthirsty promoters and deal completely with life as you and I see it.

They work hard for their money, and they deserve the paychecks which are supported by the money you the consumer throw at them. Think they shouldn’t make the money they do? Don’t pay the prices. Oh, and I’ll let you in on a little secret — the producers and record companies make more money than the performers do, at almost a 5-to-1 ratio.

Even with this said, the idea of music trade isn’t going anywhere in the near future — even though people might be taking down places like Napster and Scour music services, the MP3 age is upon us, and it’s not going away.

Hopefully, the old ways of the music industry will embrace this new technology. So, what is the common college student to do?

I’d say this — if you like your music, do as you would have normally. I plan on getting while the getting is good — but when all is said and done, I won’t complain when it’s gone. Hopefully, you won’t either.

Alan Slone is a columnist for the Kentucky Kernel.
This story was distributed by U-Wire.

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