Four years ago, the producers who discovered Eminem sued his record label, the Universal Music Group, over the way royalties are computed for digital music, which boils down to whether an individual song sold online should be considered a license or a sale. The difference is far from academic because, as with most artists, Eminem’s contract stipulates that he gets 50 percent of the royalties for a license but only 12 percent for a sale.

“As of now it’s worth $17 million or $20 million, but on a future accounting basis, five or 10 years from now, it could easily be a $40 million to $50 million issue,” said Joel Martin, the manager of F.B.T. Productions in Detroit, which first signed Eminem and continues to collect royalties on his music. (Marshall Mathers himself, who performs as Eminem, was not a party to the suit, although he stands to earn millions from it.)

The suit reached its apparent end last week when the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal, letting stand a lower court’s decision that digital music should be treated as a license. Lawyers and music executives say that few younger artists are likely to be affected by the decision because since the early 2000s record companies have revised most of their contracts to include digital sales among an artist’s record royalties. Eminem’s first contract was signed in 1995.

@ NYTimes

Fox News special from ’06, when they thought they stood a fighting chance.

(via)

TWU: Right old ways of marketing records don’t seem to be working, which is worrying for the independent artists. When you talk about the endangered lyricist, is that what you are referring to?

RK: I think it’s deeper than that. Jay-Z has put himself pretty much in a position to become the first rap billionaire but I’m talking about the Ras Kass, people that maybe for whatever reason aren’t. Nas, he put himself in a position to at least be heard by the world and whatever happens then after that is about what politics does. I don’t buy a Jay-Z album, not because I don’t like Jay-Z but because Talib Kweli may need that record sale more. 50 Cent is still on his way to being a billionaire whether he sells one copy or a million in first week. So, I probably won’t buy a 50 Cent album, not because I don’t like his music, it’s just that there’s somebody that needs it more. I want to support Hip-Hop and make it better so I may have to buy a Common album, as opposed to buying an Eminem album. That’s what the ‘endangered lyricist’ is about, it’s about keeping the balance. No bees, no pollination, no trees, no oxygen, you know what I’m saying? I remember going to the studio when I was working on Goldyn Child and Nas came in like the day he dropped ‘Ether’ and was like ‘Goldyn Child didn’t come out. I went to the fucking record store and that shit wasn’t out.’ I was just like wow he gave a fuck! Nas is literally having a career-changing thing with ‘Ether,’ wakes up and thinks Ras Kass’ album’s coming out. We give a fuck and we support each other.

Link

Every time a new album leaks online, songs begin to be distributed without permission from the artist and/or label. Because most websites do not disclose the source of their content, readers and potential consumers download these tracks but do not fully understand (or care) if they are supporting the artists’ sales or if they are being fed illegal content. In an effort to increase the transparency in this commonplace but no less significant transaction we embark on a new category. “Leaked” will point to the tools (not the content) that are used by distributers and consumers alike.

Consumers, distributers and most importantly artists: do with it what you will, and hopefully you know what you are doing.

Leaked: Inspectah Deck – Manifesto

Many would have you believe this announcement and El-P’s recent decision to build Hovercrafts is proof of the widely held conspiracy theory that suggested Def Jux and Anticon were in fact working closely together over the past decade to subvert and annihilate the indie rap micro-industry. You be the judge, Tim “Sole” Holland explains:

Today, with a heavy heart I end 11+ years of working with anticon. In the early days of the label, anticon was a pet project of mine, a life-long dream. We fulfilled the dream of a collectively run record label and put out many great records and stood as an image of defiance against the music industry. Those memories, I will always have and be proud of. Sadly, those times are gone, and I need to live in the present as I prepare for the future.

We created anticon as a response to what was going on at the time in the music industry – the indy boom of the late 90’s. There were still a viable music industry then and people bought records. That’s how we built up our empire. The music industry isn’t just dying, but what it means to be a recording artist is changing. Technology is making everything cheap, and cheapening everything it touches. Soon the old ways of selling records will be a distant memory, along with magazines, working musicians and employed blue-collar dads. It’s not a time to cry about the recession, or urge people to go to their local mom and pops and pick up the new sole & skyrider LP. Technology is working its magic, and instead of being a passenger on its ship, I have decided to plot a new course for myself.

Read the full press release over @ soleone.org

This indie thing might turn out to be ok for artists that can muster the creativity to figure out how to (re)connect with their fans in new ways made possible mostly by the thing that some say killed the music industry, the Intehnets.

A few recent noteworthy triumphs:

Immortal Technique, who in this recent interview provides some background on what it takes to become financially independent. If he can drop ten large on a not-for-profit, he must be doing something right.

Sole & friends who decided not to continue being passive about the bootlegging of their product and in addition are coming up with interesting enhanced packages for their fans (#2 comes with one copy of 500 vinyl pressings of the Battlefields ep, count me in).

And lastly, as explained in the video above, Sir Dizl just launched DelTheFunkyHomosapien.com and to celebrate he released a new album that I just copped from the very artist friendly bandcamp.com (if you’re an artist, you need to learn about this site). The minimum for the album is $3.00, but if you drop $30.00 you get a set of limited edition Del “Funkman” Skull candy headphones and a personal phone convo with Del himself (a bit too stanish for me but I’m sure there’s interest out there).

It’s funny ’cause one day mp3 bootleggers (i.e. fans) might be seen as emancipators. By sharing music illicitly they contributed to the (creative) destruction of the traditional music industry business model while at the same time paving the road for the self-empowerment of independent musicians. Can we get a for he’s a jolly good bootlegger?

Look the way I see it is a leak can be good and bad . There’s nothing I can do about it but if I ever did get my hands on the scumbag journalist that leaked it that would be another story. A person that is gonna steal the record will regardless but the deal is this I spent nearly $150,000 to make this album and thats on the cheap calling in favors and working out the home studio. Some artists spend much much more trying to create their art. If people continue to STEAL the music it will definitely keep a lot of artists (including myself) from making a living at this and sooner or later all you will have is The Jonas Bros. and Miley Cirus records to listen to ( or whatever other crap Disney or Nickelodeon want to shove down your throat) . So if you hear the record and like it BUY it … tell some friends about it … Come to the shows (not just mine ..any good or indie music you like) without your support and YES your dollars a band can’t stage a tour or properly market an album or record a quality record …. I’m very proud of the record … And stop asking on this board where the leak is … I won’t post the site and would appreciate none of you fans post it here either… at least find it on your own and again if you like it like I think you will COP that shit .With Respect and Appreciation for all the fans of MUSIC …… EV P.S. I just wanted to add that I’m aware the people who frequent this site will buy the album if they are able . I appreciate anyone who takes the time out of their day to leave their input. This was merely something I had to get off my chest.

recently:
Everlast – Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash Cover Over “Insane In The Brain”) / video

The sites listed below specialize in hip-hop and are just a handful of the most trafficked that I have come across. They mostly acquire their content from the online piracy release group scene (see United States Department of Justice description of Operation Buccaneer for more background). In other words, these sites exist courtesy of the true piracy stans that dwell in the underbelly of the interwebs. I share this point of differentiation with you so you do not misdirect your hatred/love and so you can gain an understanding of how this stuff works. And when I say you, I am addressing “you”, the Artist.

Consider the people behind these sites as some of your biggest fans that help to disseminate your work worldwide. They are the 2nd party virtual groupies that identify so closely with your work that they want to share it with everyone (the 1st party disseminators you will probably never come close to observing, so we’ll leave them out of this for now). But imagine this, if you were providing the mp3s before anyone else, at a reasonable price point, where would these and the rest of your fans choose to go to first?

Collection of Hip-Hop Bootleggin’ Sites

GULLY
4 All My Niggaz
Highing Fly
Hip-Hop Bootleggers
Rap Dungeon
SKINY AKA BLANKOK SOLDIERZ & BOURVIL AKA THE SMOKER PITCHER
Sun Of The Underground
Sunete Din UnderGround v2
The Hip Hop Collection
The Mexican Taint
TheDubGod
Turbo City
UDS – Music Blog
Underground Hip Hop Collection Blog

related:
ED209° – Karma 360 ft. Imam THUG / audio + q&a
Altruistic Hip-Hop Bootleggers vs. Money Hungry Independent Artists
Weak In Review: Fuck the world, don’t ask me for shit
Retail Version Of 8 Diagrams Has Hit The Bootleg Sites, To Leak Or Not To Leak, That Is The Question
Definitive Jux Records To Google, Take Our Sh*t Down Or Else

Some people claim this to be an unreleased demo featuring tracks recorded prior to his signing/joining with Death Row. Although I saw this floating around on various bootleg sites recently I was hesitant to post it. Same way I’m hesitant to share anything from those bootleg sites. I’m starting to get over it though. Actually, I think I’m starting to see the benefit of more transparency with the bootleg scene. Ultimately, artists can’t face their competitors if they can’t see them. In addition to that, I’m just sick of these corny wannabe mp3 blogs selectively posting rips and trying to come off like something special. Peace to Omer Saar for reminding me about it this morning. via Bay On Top, by way of The Hip-Hop Collection

Snoop Doggy Dogg – Over The Counter

When Snoop was talking with Cold 187 he was promised a deal. So Snoop waited….. and waited….. and waited. Nobody ever got back with him. In result, Warren G took 213 to Dre. After Dre heard “Sooper Dooper Snooper” he hooked up with Snoop quickly. About the same time, Cold 187 called Snoop. He told him they had a song ready for his vocals called “Never Missin’ A Beat” (the first minute or so of that track was to be for Snoop). But it was too late, Snoop turned him down. Another song “Pimpology 101″ was intended for Snoop. Those two tracks were slapped on the album at the last minute as instrumentals.

So Snoop was with Dre. Dre was very, very, very impressed by Snoop’s smooth, calm, and charismatic demeanor. He wanted an album out immediately. So they went to work. Although, they failed to realize that they had no way of distributing the resulting album. At that time very late in 1991 Dre & Suge managed to hook up a weak deal directly with Time Warner. But the problem was that Dre was rushing everything before it was legal. Death Row was not yet officially a Record Company. It was more like a Record Organization of Dre’s respective partners.
So, Dre and Snoop record a few songs featuring many of the labels early artists such as RBX, CPO, D.O.C., Chocolate and everyone else. It featured producers such as Dre himself, Warren G, Chocolate, and DJ Glaze. Not all the songs were created at Death Row though. Some were recorded during Snoop’s wait on Cold 187 and before Snoop’s introduction to Dre. A couple were songs that Snoop really liked and wanted to include, recorded with Dj Glaze and Foesum in early 1991 that otherwise would never have been heard. He wanted these songs included also because he had hoped to bring the group Perfection (Foesum) onto Death Row because they were desperately searching for a stable deal. They were the only group that were apart of Snoop’s cirlce that never got their chance like RBX, Daz, Kurupt, and Malik got. Due to Foesum’s contracts with their record company and due to their own unorganized practices, they were never given a chance by Dre. “Let’em Understand Perfection” was the only chance they were given on Death Row.
Time Warner was not legally capable of Distributing the album, so it was shelved. Only promo tapes were pressed and given to LA radio station but never given authorization to play it. But knowing them they played the shit anyway. The song “Do You Remember” was the song most played by radio stations before they were stopped.

Tracks Included:

“Let’Em Understand”
—-Before recording the Chronic, Snoop did a collaboration with the fellow Long Beach group Foesum (formerly – Perfection) which consisted of T-Dubb, MNMsta, DJ Glaze, Tender D (Waniac), Mellow D (Tripp Loc) and Travvy Trav (who died soon after the group formed). This is that song. It was aimed at Long Beach rapper Domino as a diss track for leaving the group early in the group’s career. It was also featured on the “Please Pass The Mic” compilation a long time ago. This was really Foesum’s chance to prove themselves to Dre. But Dre wasn’t feelin’ them. In the song “Nuthin’ But A G Thang” Snoop refers to this song
-”Perfection is perfected, so I’ma let’em understand”.

“The Message”
—-This song was recorded with DJ Glaze before Death Row.

“187″ (“It’s On”)
—-This was the original inspiration for Deep Cover. It was going to be on the Deep Cover soundtrack, but they replaced it with Dre’s version, when Dre realized that he needed to come out first. On the first press of early Deep Cover cassettes it feature this song in the tracklist, but much like the situation with the original “Next Episode” it was not actually included.

“Do You Remember”
—-This song was the most played by radio stations after it made it to the radio stations. They were stopped. This is the radio version.

“True To The Game”
This is another song Snoop did with DJ Glaze. It’s an example of how long Snoop used to right his raps, before the D.O.C. taught him containment.

“County Blues”
This was recorded while waiting on Cold 187, but before Death Row.

So that’s the story. Many claim this album to be fake. Many claim it was a hoax created by a guy with too much time on his hands. But no one has ever asked Snoop himself, so we’ll never know for sure until then. Over the past few years “Over The Counter” has became sort of a myth in the hip hop underworld. You can determine it’s legitimacy.

Alright, it’s dropped:

These tracks are remastered, but only to the best they can be. They are not ran through any noise filters, so the hiss will be apparent.

Password: Bay On Top

ED209° decided to make this banger available for free on his mysp*ce since it got bootlegged quick fast when he sent out the promo cds.

Download: ED209° – Karma 360 ft. Imam THUG

Since the Karma360 joint has been bootlegged over the web and is even for sale as mp3s ( nothing to do with me ) then its best for you to get it from the source and download from my page.

For those keeping it really real and supporting vinyl then be one of the 500 and grab a copy.

Whilst you have the wallet open then the P Brothers ‘Gas’ LP is nearly on us … Vivit Post Funera Virtus … ya get me!

Earlier this month when I ordered my copy of the vinyl I sent Ed an email alerting him to the bootleg sites and asking him about what he thinks. This was his response:

Yes G.

On your bootleggers topic … have you seen this :

http://vulguerre.blogspot.com/2008/07/altruistic-hip-hop-bootleggers-vs-money.html

i was going to leave a reply but I wasnt registered so left it. Would have been as follows :

“Nice piece – I sent a few ( like 10 ) CDs out for promotion on Karma360 and one found its way to be bootlegged – now its literally all over the web … I’ve even found sites selling mp3s of the track! I can’t see how sticking to vinyl and download can help – its only one simple step to get them to be mp3 files and then do what you want with ‘em. Even myspace you can record the track if its not downloadable and do whatever. I understand the argument that its ‘promotion’ but, as you said, its not. If it was there would be links to buy the vinyl? to contact the artist? Back in the day the ‘mixtape’ spread the word – copied and copied and copied again – but we wanted ‘proper’ ownership of the music – which meant buying the vinyl – the tape was just the ‘menu’ … vinyl was the main course arriving. Now people accept they are happy to not own anything … just a harddrive with some 0s and 1s on then theres no second step ( other than in the minds of the few ) – you have all you need already on your computer/ipod/whatever – I can’t see that you can call independent artists ‘money hungry’ … shit – if I break even it will be a miracle… but I can’t stop because I owe hip hop for all its given me.

1.ED

And here is my response:

Ed,

I find it very funny that you sent me that link because I wrote that.

The actual post is here:

Altruistic Hip-Hop Bootleggers vs. Money Hungry Independent Artists

It’s kind of strange that you found it on what appears to be a news aggregating blog. Also disappointing as it seems grandgood is being de-indexed from google, but that’s another story I won’t bore you with.

Thank you for sending your feedback. My original post was an attempt at sarcasm and subtle advice. I don’t actually believe independent artists are money hungry. I think bootleggers need to take into consideration that independent artists are entitled to some form of compensation. But I also see that independent artists can’t rely on others for their own benefit. They need to act on their own behalf. My advice isn’t necessarily to stick solely to vinyl. It is to use vinyl as promotional tool (the physical product that many people still want) but also to be “first to market” with mp3 distribution. In other words, from my experience, fans of your music that are willing to pay for your product are very interested in listening to the music, literally, as soon as it is possible. They would prefer not to wait around. If you are the one that makes the mp3s available first, then I believe the fans will support you with money, as long as it is reasonabley priced. But historically it is bootlegging sites that have made mp3s available first. Which I strongly believe is one of the main reasons they are successful in their dealings.

Thanks again for hitting me back. If you don’t mind, I will publish this on our site.

Chill,

This is raw, unadulterated hip-hop. Support if you can. Visit ED209°. Cop that P Brothers when it drops.

related:
Audiocast No. 33 ft. Ayatollah, Ed209, Imam Thug, The Roots, Blueprint, D-Day One, Carlos Nino, Lil Sci, Keith Murray, Roughneck Jihad, Mike Chavarria And More
Ed209 + Imam Thug – Karma 360

[Falls asleep, wakes up 2hrs later]

If indie artists were smart, they would recognize these bootleggers as their primary competitors. They would never send out promos, never press up cds. Stick to vinyl and downloads. The artist has to be first to the online market, or else they give up their strongest leverage.

[Drinks warm cup of legal absinthe]

Ok, ok, fine. I see how bootleggers undermine artists currently. But don’t you see how they are ultimately making them stronger? These freakin’ bootleggers are responsible for bringing down an entire industry! Think about it thunnie, their voracious appetite and altruistic sensibilities have forced the collapse of the music industrial complex. The commodotization of culture is that much weaker because of them. And indie artists are lifting themselves up by the bootstraps, out of necessity. They’ll do it in the end. They’ll figure it out and blaze like the sun. Bootleggers will continue to share, but fans will support the real.

[falls asleep, wakes up next day]

Damn. I was trippin. Fuck bootleggers.

[Inspired by the recent bootleggings of Mood - Doom, Dj Clue - Blizzard '94, Ed 209 and Imam Thug - Karma 360, Envelope - Shark Bolt. All releases which I own or have ordered recently and which I think everyone should listen to. In other words, I want to share, just like these bootleggers. Deep down inside, I am one. Sort of.]

1. Nas – Queens Get The Money
2. Nas – You Can’t Stop Us Now (Feat. Eban Thomas)
3. Nas – Breathe
4. Nas – Middle Finger (feat. David Banner)
5. Nas – Hero
6. Nas – Association (feat. stic man)
7. Nas – Sly Fox
8. Nas – Testify
9. Nas – N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave & The Master)
10. Nas – Nigger Hatred
11. Nas – Be A Nigger Too
12. Nas – Fried Chicken (Featuring Busta Rhymes)
13. Nas – Esco Lets Go (Prod. By DJ Khalil)
14. Nas – I’m On (feat. Cool)
15. Nas – We’re Not Alone
16. Nas – Black President
17. Nas – Smokin’
18. Nas – War Is Necessay

To celebrate the launch of their digital distribution site, Wax Poetics will be gettin busy with the Budos Band tomorrow night. *Takes place @ The Red Bull Space / 40 Thompson NYC / 1st Come 1st Serve

Come celebrate the official launch of Wax Poetics Digital with a live performance from the Budos Band this Thursday June 19th at 9pm. Open Bar all night courtesy of Heineken, Christiana Vodka and Red Bull. Please arrive early, and RSVP (no +1) to BUDOS@WAXPOETICS.COM

“Yup. I’m back! And I feel unstoppable. My flow is advanced and as an artist, I’m getting better, especially without the claws of Roc-A-Fella digging at my back. I’ve been a free agent for the past 3 months and now signing with the Amalgam Digital label for my first project I feel even more unstoppable. They are providing exactly what Peedi always needed…proper promotion and distribution. BANG! It’s Camel Face Hunting Season”

This week has been monumental! The race to post an mp3 link first continues! Apparently driven by lucid dreams of financial independence, bloggers continue to amaze and defy the odds. How do they do it? Will the advertisers buy in?

The excitement to share leaked songs keeps false notions of exclusivity alive, all whilst entire albums are revealed by the real disseminators. Who will the consumers support? What about the customers? Are there customers?

The struggle to differentiate further frustrates while content confusion continues to continue reigning supreme. Wait, was that redundant? Hold up son! You’re saying if I blog this after they blogged this, that I am redundant? What if I title it differently? What about ID3 tags son?

Discovery of the weak: If I watermark my copyright-infringed images, then they will know not to fuck with this! Yo, then I can really start usercashing in on them! But you know what, first let me qualify the reason why I’m posting this 16 min 36 sec after them.

Oh what a tangled web we weave…as we proceed…get live motherfuckers. Those two songs have been in my head all week! 13+ years ago. Shit, am I too old for this? If you don’t know which songs I’m referring to, are you too young for this? Am I a rap-snob with an over-tendency to be vague?

Awards: Most contrived-headlines award goes to – this site. No matter how hard they try, they will never touch the sarcasm and humour of Tobes and Zaid (sidebar: gossipingbitches still sorely missed). Most unapologetic-titler award goes to – Noz. Award for most self-serving rant? Um, I’ll get back to you on that one. 3000 out (yeah, that track is stuck in me too. exceptional song by the way, have no idea why we never posted it separately.).

So says co-founder Chris DeWolfe in this interview. Really interested to see how the MySpace Music launch will play out. The sheer number of indie artists on their alone is mind boggling, 5,000,000 bands? Link

Wired: Does this deal give MySpace users access to more music?

DeWolfe: By far…. We have the three biggest music companies in the world signed on with us. We’re in the process of talking to the fourth. We’re also working with all the indie music consortiums, so by the time we launch [this summer], it should be a very high percentage in the United States…. Our main goal is to have all the music in the world on MySpace.

Wired: Any clue on the size of your new catalog?

DeWolfe: I know we have 5 million bands, so that certainly won’t change; if anything that will go up. Virtually every artist has a profile on MySpace already. In terms of the number of songs, each artist is allowed to put up four songs right now, so that will change to be an infinite number of songs.