‘Why I’ll be holding back my album, 1989’ – Taylor Swift writes OPEN LETTER to Apple Music


Taylor SwiftTaylor Swift writes open letter to Apple Music. Photo: Getty Images
Taylor Swift has written an open letter to Apple Music explaining why she will be holding back her album, 1989 from the new streaming service as she finds it ‘shocking’ and ‘disappointing.’
The ‘Bad Blood’ singer – who recently pulled all her music from online streaming service, Spotify, which led to her latest album 1989 achieving the largest first week sales of any LP on the Billboard 200 chart since 2002 – published the open letter on her Tumblr page, today, June 21, 2015.
Read below…
I write this to explain why I’ll be holding back my album, 1989, from the new streaming service, Apple Music. I feel this deserves an explanation because Apple has been and will continue to be one of my best partners in selling music and creating ways for me to connect with my fans. I respect the company and the truly ingenious minds that have created a legacy based on innovation and pushing the right boundaries.
I’m sure you are aware that Apple Music will be offering a free 3 month trial to anyone who signs up for the service. I’m not sure you know that Apple Music will not be paying writers, producers, or artists for those three months. I find it to be shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company.
This is not about me. Thankfully I am on my fifth album and can support myself, my band, crew, and entire management team by playing live shows. This is about the new artist or band that has just released their first single and will not be paid for its success. This is about the young songwriter who just got his or her first cut and thought that the royalties from that would get them out of debt. This is about the producer who works tirelessly to innovate and create, just like the innovators and creators at Apple are pioneering in their field…but will not get paid for a quarter of a year’s worth of plays on his or her songs.
These are not the complaints of a spoiled, petulant child. These are the echoed sentiments of every artist, writer and producer in my social circles who are afraid to speak up publicly because we admire and respect Apple so much. We simply do not respect this particular call.
I realize that Apple is working towards a goal of paid streaming. I think that is beautiful progress. We know how astronomically successful Apple has been and we know that this incredible company has the money to pay artists, writers and producers for the 3 month trial period… even if it is free for the fans trying it out.
Three months is a long time to go unpaid, and it is unfair to ask anyone to work for nothing. I say this with love, reverence, and admiration for everything else Apple has done. I hope that soon I can join them in the progression towards a streaming model that seems fair to those who create this music. I think this could be the platform that gets it right.
But I say to Apple with all due respect, it’s not too late to change this policy and change the minds of those in the music industry who will be deeply and gravely affected by this. We don’t ask you for free iPhones. Please don’t ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation.
Taylor

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Vera Wang to design Lady Gaga’s wedding dress

Image
(Vera Wang to design Lady Gaga’s wedding dress. Photo: Shemazing) Lady Gaga , who is preparing to tie the knot with  Chicago Fire  actor,  Taylor Kinney , reportedly reached out to her fashion designer pal,  Vera Wang , to ask her to create her dream wedding dress. A source told Life & Style magazine: ‘She trusts Vera to create an elegant, flowy dress that will fit into her dream wedding!’ The designer has previously created custom-made gowns for a number of other celebrities including Khloé Kardashian ,  Alicia Keys ,   Mariah  Carey  and Nigerian singer,  Tiwa Savage . (Lady Gaga is preparing to tie the knot with ‘Chicago Fire’ actor, Taylor Kinney. Photo: AP) The couple, who got engaged last Valentine’s Day on  February 14  after four years of dating , are planning to exchange vows in a ‘relaxed beach wedding’ this summer at the 29-year old singer’s $23 million mansion in Malibu, California.
Read more

Jeff Bezos Remains World Wealthiest As His Fortunes Hits $172 Billion

Image
Jeff Bezos’ wealth has hit a new high following a recent rise in Amazon’s stock value. Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon, is now worth $172 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Bezos’ ex-wife MacKenzie took 25 percent of his shares, which meant at the time her stake was worth more than $35 billion, according to Forbes. However, 56-year-old Bezos remained the wealthiest person on the planet after the settlement and his wealth has continued to soar amid the coronavirus pandemic. Bezos’ company, Amazon has been doing particularly well in recent months with the increased demand for online shopping de to the Coronavirus pandemic. As a result, the company’s share prices has increased. According to Comparisun, Bezos is on track to be the world’s first trillionaire by 2026.
Read more

It's been 25 years since Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait

Image
A quarter century ago, after Saddam Hussein's Iraqi army successfully invaded and took over the tiny Persian Gulf nation of Kuwait, President George H.W. Bush famously drew a line in the sand against Iraqi aggression. While the United States and its allies easily ejected Iraq from Kuwait within seven months of the Aug. 2, 1990, invasion, Bush's line has continued onward in an almost Biblical fashion, accompanied by plenty of pre-modern horrors. The Gulf War begat the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which begat the US invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, which begat ISIS, which begat a potential future war with Iran or Syria or even what remains of Iraq. At the time, however, Bush said standing up to Hussein's Iraq was necessary to protect neighboring Saudi Arabia, a key US ally and the world's largest oil producing country, both then and now. "The sovereign independence...
Read more