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Noted pro-wrestling writer and occasional musician Billy Corgan appeared on CNBC’s Squawk Alley to talk about the state of the music business. And wouldn’t you know it, not all of it was glowing. When speaking about the people in control of record labels and touring, the Smashing Pumpkins frontman suggested it was still the outdated model of: sign a contract and, essentially, your life is over:
The music business is mostly run by feckless idiots who do not subscribe to the normal attendance to capitalism which when they do the business tends to work out well, stars tend to rise to the top. Everybody benefits. But it is still a parochial business. It is run by thiefdoms way behind the times technologically.
Pretty fair, but when asked about Jay Z and Tidal, he said the failings with that service are due to its dishonesty:
To try and sell it as an overt, altruistic thing is disingenuous because it’s not. He is taking his slice of the pie, which he has every right to do — he is a powerful man and he works with powerful people. But by the way, I’m a powerful artist and I don’t remember getting a phone call from him. But I get phone calls from other people and I have to make a similar decision. But to sell it as altruistic, I don’t buy it.
Sure that phone will be ringing any day now, Billy! A lot of the issues that were brought up in his arguments are rooted in truth. The music industry does have a lot more problems than solutions offered. But sometimes, when the messenger has so many beefs, it might just kill the message.
(Via CNBC)
