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Was Chappell Roan’s Grammys Speech Naive or Necessary? Why Both Sides of the Debate Are Right, and Sometimes Not
Chappell Roan's statement at the Grammys that labels owe artists 'a livable wage and health insurance' has set off a fiery debate in the industry.
Raye, in an acceptance speech for one of her seven Brit Awards last year, demanded that record labels provide a percentage of album and song sales revenue (“points on the master”) to songwriters, who have been shunted to the bottom of the streaming economy and often can barely make a living. And James Blake has taken his entire business under his own roof, from releasing his music via a proprietary streaming platform to booking and selling tickets for his tours himself — in partnership with other independent companies, of course, but with a much greater level of personal involvement. But ultimately, whether or not Chappell’s speech at the Grammys was airtight from a business sense is beside the point: It brings light to an unfair and untenable system, and also helps more creators to understand — in vivid terms — that knowledge is power.
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