SA hit shows the way
HOT on the heels of the Jerusalema Dance Challenge that took the world by storm last year, a new challenge is developing for some organisations that uploaded videos online showcasing their brands and workforces dancing to South African DJ Master KG’s global megahit, Jerusalema, without permission from the rights holders to do so.
Recent media reports inform that the Warner Music Group, that manages the copyright in the Jerusalema song internationally, approached several organisations in Germany for the payment of licence fees for the use of the song.
A social media backlash ensued as some of the entities that were approached include hospitals whose front-line health-care workers performed the dance to support the global message of togetherness that the song has fuelled. Others were commercial airlines, however, and businesses that could look to benefit commercially from their alignment with the poignant creative movement.
Questions were raised as to when it becomes unethical for copyright owners to demand the payment of usage fees.
Some questioned the timing of the payment demands, suggesting a form of entrapment, unbeknownst thereto that licensing models were already in place at the onset of the challenge, and some of the German entities approached the rights holders to negotiate and settle licence fees out of their own volition, in recognition that usage fees were payable.
Copyright is an intricate area of the law that is often misunderstood due to its technical nature, and the complexities of the industries to which it applies.
In today’s digital environment, user-upload internet platforms that enable global audiences to instantaneously access uploaded content, often including copyright protected music and films, for free, have largely contributed towards shaping public perception that content that is available online for free, can be distributed and re-purposed without the need to obtain permission from rights holders.
When the late music icon, David Bowie, was asked whether he would sue Chris Hadfield, the astronaut who released an unauthorised cover of Bowie’s hit song, Space Oddity, while the astronaut circled the earth on the international space station, Bowie said he considered the song to be the most poignant version ever released, and he assisted to keep the music video available for viewing online. Copyright is not relied on to “lock up works” and prevent user access without due cause.
It is not surprising that the rights holders of the Jerusalema song are actively seeking to engage with third parties that made unlicensed use of the song. Individuals remain encouraged to continue to learn the steps and take part in the dance challenge without fear of a heavy-handed knock on the door. Social media influencers should take caution though, as their use of the music might well amount to commercial use, since they derive profit from sponsored posts, and attract higher fees depending on their following.
There is more room for corporates to support artists, if only by ensuring that licence fees are paid where due, and to support creative movements, to generate momentum for investment into new creative projects that can light up the world, even in the darkest of times. showed the way. Togetherness is where it starts.