Unpaid Royalties Scam | Know Your Rights As An Artist!

Music Industry has been a very dynamically growing sector. However, the business end of the music industry has always been perplexed since its origin. More importantly, the artists involved in the music business have to witness conflicts with the labels every now and then.

A recent Enforcement Case Information Report (ECRI) issued by the ED (Enforcement Directorate) has shed some light on a similar case. Aditya Chopra, Chairman of Yash Raj Films; Shridhar Subramanium, Vice President of Sony Music India & Devraj Sanyal, MD-CEO, Asia, Universal Music are under ED's radar. Due to the non-payments of the pending royalties to the entitled artists from more than six years, music industry's bigwigs might have to face the aftermath. They have to submit some required documents to the court of law in a couple of days. The news is big but no one has been declared as a culprit yet.

We're breaking down this case to explain what is happening right now and why this accusation is important for artists.

The Blame Game | Who Is Liable To Whom?

As mentioned above, music industry's norms easily confuse an artist. The laws protect an artist but sometimes dreams or opportunities crosses their way at the wrong point in time. As a matter of fact, lyricist/composer of a track owns 50 percent share in the music earnings. These earnings come in as royalties through labels/distribution companies. Section 18 of Copyright Act, 2012, covers this factor. It is obvious that music labels/distribution companies are liable to pay the unpaid royalties to the entitled artists. In the same context, T-Series has reportedly earned almost 2000-crores in past six years as earnings from the distribution. The unpaid dues almost hold an amount 1000-crores in this case. The last reported royalties payment was done on June 21, 2012, and nothing has been paid since then. Now imagine, we're only talking about T-Series right now. There are plenty of major record labels involved in this royalty-evasion scam.

Artist's Independence | Are Labels Really Important?

Let us ask you a question. How do you think an artist earns money? Don't worry, we know that people don't know much about the music business. Undoubtedly, labels are important but dealing with labels wisely is way more important. Artists develop their identity and style by working hard and labels help them in building their reputation while increasing their reach. Legalities involved in the music deals are a mess and needs legal advice several times. On the other hand, music labels can restrict your artistic freedom because big money is involved. An artist earns through live gigs, music sales (digital & physical), digital music streams, Radio plays & Television air-times. Other ways like a reproduction of the original sound (partial or complete), merchandise, media appearances etc. helps an artist to earn a livelihood. Involvement of labels cuts-off the share percentage of the revenues and pays off the already settled royalties to the artist. This might sound secure to you but labels often uses additional/hidden clauses in their contracts to kill your creativity.

Getting Signed To A Label | Who Did Actually Win?

To further explain our point, let's do a comparison. Arijit Singh is one the biggest vocalists from Bollywood right now. Arijit's track "Tum Hi Ho" for Aashiqui 2 is considered as one of his biggest/best songs of all time. As a matter of fact, the official video of the song which is available on YouTube has 45.5 million views as of now. In addition, the official lyrical video has more than 174 million views. If we calculate it, the total becomes 219.5 million. Chris Brown's "Yeah" on the other side has 226 million views on YT. Now tell us, how many times have you ever seen Arijit cruising the city in a Lamborghini? Yes, that is correct: Not a single time. Indian artists are already underpaid if we compare them with similar international acts. Falling down for the greed of a label deal in a confusion of success is foolish sometimes. Labels offer a very small chunk of the entire revenues to an artist at the time of contract deal, artists sign the deal without understanding their worth. Labels know what they're earning but do you know what your label is earning from you? We guess, No.

The Conclusion | What Is There To Learn

The labels are not always bad if you deal with them carefully. Since this case has every major music company involved, an artist's dream of getting a record deal should surely go back to sleep for some more time now. As a matter of fact, no one is a declared culprit as of now but what's important is artist's security. The laws are there to protect an artist's interests but taking a helping hand from the law is important. Qualified lawyers are there to help you out. This situation should definitely ring a bell of danger in your heads.