“I Don’t Want to OWN Music. I Want to LISTEN to Music.”
Brian Thompson is from a Canadian music marketing company, a management firm and record label called Thorny Bleeder. The company also produces a blog called The DIY Daily, which offers all kinds of digital music news, DIY advice and social media tips.
This editorial caught my eye last night. Can’t say I disagree. It falls right within my belief that as time goes on, people want to access music and not necessarily possess it.
I don’t want to own music.
I just want to listen to music.
I just want to feel the music.
I don’t want to buy that which I don’t need.
I don’t want to own a piece of plastic.
I don’t want to create demand for petroleum based products.
I don’t want to fuel the profits of freight companies by encouraging them to ship songs wrapped in plastic and cardboard in a semi trailer across the the country.
I just want to listen to music.
Can music really be owned?
How do you own a piece of culture?
How do you own a piece of the collective consciousness of a society?
If you wrote a song that I love, I thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
But…
Do you own the melody I’m humming in my head (even though it came to be from your own inspiration)?
Do you own the lyrics I’m singing on the beach (even though they’re your words)?
Do you lay claim to the emotions I feel when I reflect on an unforgettable moment I shared with a lover as your song danced in the background?
If society has simply become accustomed to certain behaviours, does that mean we’re entitled to continue them ad infinitum?
And by the way, who was it that originally decided that an album was worth $9.99… or $19.99?
Read the rest of it here. It’s good.
I highly disagree with this dink. "Expectation of compensation", "music is liquid"? You know what's not liquid? The technology and equipment used to create and record the music. The employees who work in the studio, the car that gets the musician to the studio, the time at the studio the band has to rent. All of that costs real money, not Monopoly money, and THAT'S why you have to pay for music. The song is on the radio so you'll BUY THE ALBUM. You can wrap it up in a hipster bow all you want but the reality is getting music for free is theft. Music isn't a gift, it's a product. It's a fantastic one, but so's a toaster, and you still have to pay for those.
Hey thanks a ton for sharing this piece of mine Alan, I'm glad you stumbled upon it. It's great to see we're on the same page!
Cheers,
Brian
Did I seriously just get called a "dink"?
ha! that's awesome.
"So if I can listen to a song on the radio for free, why can I not listen to it on the Internet for free?"
Radio is free? What's with all the commercials then?
Thank you Meg, I agree with you. I also do not agree with this guys post. It's simply their way of justifying the fact they don't want to steal someones product, and then they will give us the usual BS "I support them by seeing them live…".
It is just like saying that if I see a painting I like, why should I have to pay for it? Shouldn't I be able to just take it? I mean, I will support it by paying to go into the Art Exhibit when it comes through town. But you don't OWN the idea of painting a mountain, you don't OWN mountains, you don't OWN the color blue etc.
As expected, my thoughts in this article have been misinterpreted by many.
For the record, I never said music has no value or should be free. Not wanting to own music does not mean I'm not willing to pay to listen to music (ie. access).
Sorry Brian I failed to see that interpretation. I would welcome that idea, I am interested to hear the opinions of a variety of musicians. I sure hope they continue to release music in CD/vinyl form, especially for the track and album lengths etc.