Musicians' Manager Says SOPA & PIPA Are Not What Musicians Need

from the good-for-him dept

Wed, Dec 14th 2011 8:54am — Mike Masnick

It's always nice to find musician managers who are willing to speak out when the record labels are pushing for bad laws. Ryan Chisholm, a manager at Bill Silva Entertainment, has penned a guest column for Billboard where he argues that SOPA and PIPA are not the way to help musicians:

The music industry already has a poor rapport with many consumers. SOPA/Protect IP only adds fuels the fire of those disgruntled (and web-savvy) listeners who are pissed off that we in the industry can't all get on the same page to agree on deal points to establish a consumer-friendly, legitimate marketplace that rewards creators, rightsholders and fans alike. Worse still, SOPA/Protect IP could make it harder for tomorrow's innovative services to be developed. Today, we are only beginning to realize the potential of sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, SoundCloud - along with numerous popular blogs and thousands of music sites - in driving discovery of and monetization around music. These platforms have become some of the greatest tools we in the business have ever had at our disposal. These sites provide fans the opportunity to participate more directly and meaningfully in the content provided by artists and rightwsholders. In their current form, SOPA/Protect IP give far too much leeway for legitimate expression to be silenced on the grounds of combating infringement. This affects far more than the entertainment industries.

Elsewhere he points out -- as we have -- that the best way to fight infringement is to offer better legitimate services, but SOPA and PIPA don't help in that endeavor at all. Those are definitely important points that many of us have been making for quite some time... but unfortunately, these points seem to be entirely excluded from the discussion over these bills.

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team

Filed Under: manager, music, musicians, protect ip, ryan chisholm, sopa

18 Comments

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread

gorehound (profile), 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:14am

I AM AN ARTIST !
Jordan Kratz of Big Meat Hammer the oldest punk band in Maine.Website is www.bigmeathammer.com or seeding public torrents of my Art.I give my Art away to those who want it and I also allow them to put it on their webpages,blogs,videos,etc.I have half a dozen LP's I am giving away.

My musicians and myself all hate the RIAA & The Corrupt Big Labels.We want nothing to do with these bloodleeches and they can all go to hell.
THAT IS MY FEELING and it has been my way of life for most of my life.I bought my last Big Label LP's in 1978 or 1979 and I never went near a Big Label again nor do I care who the hell they put out.
you can either stand with me or keep supporting these asses.They are nothing but thieves to guys like me.they sign you and then you are tied up in legal krap for years after they drop you.you will probably not even be able to use the name of your band once you are dropped.They will tell you how to look.They will record you and mix you even though you do not like the sound they get.They will want total control of your music and your lifestyle.
Sorry about my rant but I really really hate the RIAA & any Big Label.And if you do sign with them then I will not be listening to you again.Stay as you are in total control as a DIY ARTIST.
Big Labels are no longer needed by any cool and smart musician.Their time has come and the power of the people is rising.
Take your SOPA/PIPA and shove it up yer butt !!!
So Say We All !
[ link to this | view in thread ]
anonymous, 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:16am

as are any points that the entertainment industries dont like. as soon as there is something that will benefit everyone else, but restrict the big labels and the execs from getting big profits and big salaries and maintaining their control, it is quashed.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Travis, 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:16am

More
More of this please!! Yes!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
TtfnJohn (profile), 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:32am

As I pointed out in another thread the Grateful Dead have been at this for decades. Hasn't hurt them any. :)
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:40am

Bands don't have to sign to labels. They don't have to do anything of the sort. The labels are their best option, but if someone puts together a better option, I am sure they will flock to it. SOPA or not SOPA, that will not change.

If you want to change business, offer a better business model (and no, pirate the shit out of the competition isn't a better business model).
[ link to this | view in thread ]
E. Zachary Knight (profile), 14 Dec 2011 @ 9:57am

Re:
Since when are the labels the best option? From what I can tell, the labels keep the lions share and if the Musicians manage to pay back their advance, they make earn a very small percentage of profits.

As it is now, musicians can sell their music themselves online and make all the money for themselves.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 10:10am

Re:
I gave this a 'funny' click, but only because there isn't a 'sad' or 'deluded' button.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 10:39am

Re:
Don't you get tired of complaining all the time? And you wonder why you're so bitter.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 11:10am

Re:
The labels are no longer their best option. This scares the RIAA to death. Artists are able to use the very technology they're trying to kill and go number 1 on Soundscan. I know of many artists who are able to chart on Soundscan without being on a RIAA member label. They NEED artists to believe they are needed, but most artists these days are figuring out they don't at all.

That's what keeps these guys up at night and that is what this bill is all about.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Richard (profile), 14 Dec 2011 @ 12:18pm

Re: Re:
The labels stopped being the best option the moment they stopeed being the only option.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 12:19pm

Re: Re:
Tell me then, what is the best option now? I haven't seem one that turns out more star acts, more million sellers, and more money than the label system. Please help me understand!
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Violated (profile), 14 Dec 2011 @ 1:02pm

Some nice words there.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
athe, 14 Dec 2011 @ 7:40pm

Re: Re: Re:
Why does there have to be a "best option"? Why can't there be multiple paths to success? And even if only the "label way" turns out star acts, why can't it co-exist with the other paths?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 14 Dec 2011 @ 8:22pm

Re: I AM AN ARTIST !
So rages another failed musician. Blaming his lack of success on the big labels rather than lack of talent. Maybe there just isn't a market for burned out geezer punk rock. What do you actually find to sing about these days? Medicare? Depends? Shoes with Velcro instead of laces?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, 15 Dec 2011 @ 12:07am

Re: Re: I AM AN ARTIST !
So... what does failure as an artist have to do with SOPA/PIPA being approved?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Wrecks, 15 Dec 2011 @ 1:04am

Re: Re: Re:
AC, have you even seen on Youtube how a lot of artists there are making it pretty big?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Me and Myself but not the other one, 14 Jan 2012 @ 11:38am

Re: Re: Re: I AM AN ARTIST !
Both you and the guy above you are jerks for equating "being an artist" with "making money".

Lots of amazing artists have no business sense, or their art is not necessarily something that sells too many t-shirts.. or maybe they are just total douchebags (but artists nonetheless).

You are completely naive if you think all great artists are somehow destined to make big bucks.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
PistOfArtist, 10 Sep 2012 @ 8:29pm

SOPA is evil but file sharing sites are the DEVIL
I can see that SOPA is not going to help in its current form. However, pirates need to have the halo riped off of their heads. They are worse than the evil recording industry. Napster made it ok to steal and no one has questioned it since. Not all artists are rich, not all artists tour either. Some are recording artists only. So now artists have to fight both the pirates and non internet-aware politicians. Just great. Why doesn't everyone steal digital books for awhile or something. Give musicians and film producers a break. We are broke, for real!
[ link to this | view in thread ]