Don’t steal music, says Lily Allen
Well, one thing is becoming quite clear: If Lily Allen ever does decide to retire from music, she’s got a few options, including politics and blogging.
Over the last few weeks, the English musician has been engaged in a war of words with some of her fellow musicians over the practice of file sharing. She’s become so involved in fact that she has formed an anti-piracy blog, titled It’s Not Alright, and rounded up the likes of James Blunt, Muse’s Matt Bellamy, and Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan to serve as contributors.
“I want to put my hand up in support of Lily Allen,” wrote Blunt in the blog’s debut entry. “She’s asking British musicians to galvanise over a serious crime: the death of a Great British Industry — our music business.”
The issue at hand relates to whether the British Government should tackle online piracy by suspending people’s internet connections.
The Featured Artists’ Coalition, whose members include Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien, Billy Bragg, Blur’s Dave Rowntree, and Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, oppose the proposed sanctions sanctions. However, in a statement posted on the Coalition’s website this morning, the group noted that its stance does not means its “pro-illegal.”
There has been much discussion over the past few weeks regarding the Government’s proposals to combat the challenge of copyright infringement through the suspension of the internet connections of individuals alleged to have illegally downloaded copyrighted material.
Statements made in opposition to this idea by members of the Featured Artists Coalition have been taken to imply that we condone illicit file-sharing. This is not the case and never has been.
We wish to make it clear to all parties that we believe the creative work of artists should be paid for by those who enjoy it and that whenever our music is used, royalties should be paid.
The focus of our objection is the proposed treatment of ordinary music fans who download a few tracks so as to check out our material before they buy. For those of us who don’t get played on the radio or mentioned in the music media – artists established and emerging – peer-to-peer recommendation is an important form of promotion.
Allen immediately responded to this with a statement of her own:
I want to make it clear that I’m not after a fight with the Featured Artists Coalition – I want us artists to stand together on this – but they’ve released a new statement which just doesn’t make sense. The FAC seems to be viewing the government’s proposed legislation as an attack on freedom and liberty, but stealing’s not really a human right, is it?
If we’re going to change anything us artists need to stand together. If you’re in the business and you agree that we should be encouraging new talent, preventing file-sharing and preventing the collapse of an industry — as well as coming up with new ways to legally get music — then help me out.
Knock ‘em out, indeed.
i love lily, not just looking at her but i love her music too. however file sharing really isn’t any different than when a friend of yours buys a cd and then burns you a copy of it which no one ever complained about before. plus if everyone spent all of there money on buying every record to come out, how would anyone have money left over to pay for concert tickets which is the artists bread and butter. i don’t find her complaining about this nearly as offensive as metallica complaining because they had already made money hand over fist and will never have to worry about money for the rest of their lives. lily i’m sure is fine and will be fine in the money department as she seemingly has a plenty of time left to make money but she knows she won’t make the kind of money that huge artists do. athletes complain about the money they make to but make more money than most people so this isn’t any different, it’s just slightly annoying when athletes and artists make statements like this because most of us have to go to a job that isn’t our dream job and make less money than you would like to make. end rant.
From my point of view, all the laws and rules made up in the history of the universe couldn’t make up for the HUGE positive impact filesharing has had on people’s lives internationally. Music has never been more alive and widely accessible (which has allowed the music to become more unaccessible, but that’s just a sidenote worth mentioning). You can’t put a value on that.
Both Lily Allen and Natasha Khan (Blunt’s too blunt to mention) emerged in a scene and time which was already heavily, HEAVILY, influenced by filesharing. We would barely, barely I say, know who Lily Allen and especially Natasha Khan were if it weren’t for filesharing. Allen with her mainstream sound and corporate backup would perhaps be on the radar - a dull and old-fashioned radar.
But Ms. Khan… Shame on you…. You wouldn’t be selling half of what you sell today if it weren’t for filesharing, I can tell you that much. That’s my sincere conviction.
I think Lily Allen and James Blunt would have a better chance at selling records if they didn’t suck. The same goes for Bellamy. “The Resistance” sounds like the laziest album they’ve ever done from the stuff I’ve heard.
isn’t music something that is supposed to be free anyway, to help move us and as artisits move themselves. sure i understand they need to pay the bills we all do but when i can barley afford a lilly alleen cd (lke i would buy one lol) but i was able ito buy in rainbows at the price i could afford. hmmmm i wonder who’s side i will be on this time lol just tell me this, who went into music to make music and who went into music to become rich cause that’s the answer i want to know ??? i mean who says to make music you gotta make millions apon milions lol i like what pearl jam is doing, sure there selling out just a little but they own there music and there doing it in a good way for there fans. yes pearl jam was with sony for 20 years but if only they could have been able to do it on there own fromt he begining - damn them record labels
They can throw tantrums all they like, but they lost this battle already. A long long time ago.
Hmmm… Radiohead, Pink Floyd, Blur Vs. Lily Allen… The fact is Radiohead made more money off In Rainbows by asking people to “pay what they want” than they did on their previous album which was sold the old fashioned way. When confronted with these facts Lily Allen had no response.
Sep 24th, 2009 at 9:15 am
[...] course, given the content of the quotes and the fact it was posted on her recently launched, now deceased anti-piracy blog (Allen shut it down shortly after posting the statement because, as [...]