Comments on: Santogold Shakes The “Rock Sellout” Hornet’s Nest

By: PopIsNotDead

PopIsNotDead — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:57:30 +0000

I applaud anyone who can find a way, in this musical climate, to make a living writing music.

I work for a music house, writing music that is intended to be used in advertisements, and every time I receive a royalty check in the mail, I feel as if I'm pulling something over on someone. It's not that I don't think my work is deserving of credit, but the little kid in me is saying "I can't believe someone is paying me to do this!"

What I do is a craft, not an art, and I make a distinction between the music I make and the music someone makes out of a necessity to create a personal piece of art. Someone who has chosen to write music for themselves and/or for their fans as a life's calling, and does it well... you're damn right they deserve to make some money from licensing. If you are lucky enough to have someone hear your work and find something they can connect to, whether it be to get through a nasty break-up, or make an Apple commercial memorable, you are doing something right.

In this day and age, it seems, making music is a right, but getting paid for that music is a privilege not afforded to everyone. Congratulations to anyone who finds a way to make ends meet through their music.

By: rogerniner

rogerniner — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 07:30:21 +0000

It’s interesting to hear that selling out is more now about product placement, than just gaining a larger audience, which I am grateful for. And the variety of appropriate product placement to song has balanced out well, due to ad compaines trying so so hard to nail that 18-34 demographic. I think it is fundamentally different for an company to use a song to sell a banking company (”Lust For Life”), or tampons (remember those idiotic “We Were There” ads, playing Hendrix “Star-Spangled Freakout” from Woodstock. ) to a band’s music featured on an add for a music player. Cars? They are now toting how awesome the sound system is, and I’m sure all of you, when car-bound, listen to music while driving, yes? So it’s “appropriate” in the peripheral. But Outback? Still trying to swallow that one. (place cymbal crash here)

By: Lucas Jensen

Lucas Jensen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 07:14:45 +0000

@whoneedslight: Although, to be fair, Screamin' Jay Hawkins could sue Tom Waits for his entire career, and I like Tom Waits.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 06:48:16 +0000

Blast! I was going to post the video for Reel Big Fish’s “Sell-Out” but Sony BMG has disabled embedding! Anyways, hop over to the youtube, watch the video and everytime you hear “The record company’s gonna give me lots of money…”, substitue “The ad company..”.

By: Chris Molanphy

Chris Molanphy — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 04:10:25 +0000

the awful of-the-moment dreck that so many legacy artists put out in the '80s

I would just like to make the exceedingly marginal, link-related point(s) that:

a) though it has not aged all that well, Aretha's "Freeway of Love" is not in the same category of lameness as Stevie's "Don't Drive Drunk"; and that

b) neither one of them is in the same universe of awfulness as "Kokomo."

That is all.

By: KinetiQ

KinetiQ — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:56:41 +0000

Good article, Maura; very thought provoking, which is odd since this topic pops up on Idolator at least quarterly.

I think music's role in society has changed significantly in the last 15 years (just to put an arbitrary line in the sand). Music just isn't serving as artistic expression or as a primary form of entertainment anymore; it's been relegated to being a compliment to other forms of art or entertainment, albeit a vital compliment.

And that's not the case for everybody or for every musical artist, but as the idea of "listening to music" gets cheapened then the appropriate contexts for it expand immensely.

I may be a "Lincoln/Douglas debates" sort of person in a blipvert world, but if I ever hear Laurie Anderson doing a commercial, then I think I'll lose all hope.

By: Maura Johnston

Maura Johnston — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:13:17 +0000

@Audif Jackson Winters III: agreed. intuition razors, however, are the shizz.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:10:09 +0000

@Audif Jackson Winters III:

Or when the company doesn't bother to license the original and just hires a voice-alike (Tom Waits v. Doritos).

By: Audif Jackson Winters III

Audif Jackson Winters III — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:56:27 +0000

The only time this ever even remotely bothers me is when: 1) the song’s lyrics are modified to fit the promotional aspect of the commercial (i.e. Of Montreal’s Outback ad, or a car ad that chopped up the verses of “Bohemian Like You” by the Dandy Warhols to make it sound like the track was actually about complimenting someone on their taste in automobiles, or 2) when the track itself has anti-consumerism or anti-corporate lyrics and themes (i.e., Jewel’s “Intuition”).

By: Lucas Jensen

Lucas Jensen — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:55:28 +0000

I talked to a label owner recently who was signing an artist specifically because he felt they would bring in licensing money. He cared about sales a little, but ultimately he knew that only a big chunk of change from a commercial would bring in some revenue for the band and put in the black.

And Cortney, I've had TV placements pay nearly 40k, which is no small change.