Nile Rodgers asks record labels to be clearer about streaming incomes

Chic guitarist and songwriter Nile Rodgers has appealed to major record labels to give musicians fair remuneration and to be more transparent about streaming incomes..

During the second session of a digital, media, culture and sport committee inquiry into the future of music trail. It’s the labels that are perpetrating streaming,this.”Rodgerssaidthatthemajor labels – Sony, Universal and Warner Rodgers, who is one of the most sucBrothers – are not doing enough to give cessful songwriters of his generation, songwriters and artists a fair share of added that he believes soon the music streaming revenue. labels will have too much power for

Rodgers said: “It’s not the streamthe situation to be changed and iming services that we have the problem plored the committee to work on artwith, it’s fantastic that they can distriists’ behalf to force change. bute our product in such an effective “When you see the disparity it’s just wonderful way and keep a great digital absolutely ridiculous and the thing that they know is that it’s going to get even greater. And once it reaches those numbers, they’ll have so much power that we can’t fix it,” he said.

Other artists to give evidence on Tuesday were jazz and hip-hop musician Soweto Kinch and Ivor Novello member and songwriter Fiona Bevan, who painted a bleak picture for songwriters.

Bevan said that many were having to seek secondary forms of employment, including driving for Uber, as a way to supplement meagre earning from their songwriting, which for many is less than £200 per year from streams – even on hit records.

She said: “One of the stats that the Ivors have just published, is that eight out of 10 songwriters earn less than

£200 a year from streaming, so we have a big problem here and people don’t know why they’re getting so little.”

Bevan added that she believes “the UK government is footing the bill” for the disparity in remuneration because songwriters are having to turn to universal credit in order to pay the bills and rent.

One repeated issue that came up during the session and in the previous one on 24 November was the lack of transparency between labels and artists, and Rodgers pointed out that because of non-disclosure agreements artists were unable to accurately say how much a stream is worth.

Rodgers said: “I want to know what the hell a stream is worth … so I could sit down with my accountant and we can go over real numbers because right now, even though I love the way Spotify gives me the stats, I don’t know what’s on the other side of that wall. I don’t have a clue.”

Kinch said that if British artists such as Rod Stewart, David Bowie and Kate Bush were starting out now they would struggle to build careers because of the way streaming promotes certain types of music and songs.

“You’re making songs for playlists, you’re making songs for a very narrow sonic wall. You’re not making the sort of incredible musical risks that Bowie might have taken decades ago,” he said.