Music Streaming: Label-led Principles Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
Joe Robertson
Main Page: Joe Robertson (Conservative - Isle of Wight East)Department Debates - View all Joe Robertson's debates with the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology
(2 days, 4 hours ago)
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Chris Bryant
The argument for doing this is partly because all musicians simply do not earn enough to make a living. That is the truth of the matter. Having 12 million streamings might equate to earning a theoretical amount of money, but the musician will not earn that amount because it will be diluted by the various processes it goes through—the money the agent takes and all the rest of it. Maybe that is why so many artists have produced songs about poverty—even Destiny’s Child, with “Bills, Bills, Bills”. It has been an obsession for many artists. There is sometimes the impression that an artist, in music or in any other creative industry, can only be really good if they have struggled a bit, but the truth is that we want people to be able to make a living out of their creative industry. A key part of being a Labour Government is being able to deliver that.
Joe Robertson (Isle of Wight East) (Con)
May I invite the Minister to congratulate Isle of Wight band Wet Leg on reaching the top of the albums chart, a particular achievement given that it has beaten Oasis, which I know has personally disappointed my hon. Friend the Member for Old Bexley and Sidcup (Mr French)?