Garth Brooks is back. I never knew he went away. But apparently he’s out of retirement and back in the news. He’s complaining that the government is not doing anything to crack down on file sharing, which is allegedly killing the music industry, even though it’s not. (See also here, and here, and here.)
To the government he complains,
You’ve ignored us, because there’s 50,000 of us and 300 million voters. You’ve ignored us.
Think about that. Brooks is admitting that the use of file sharing is widespread. He acknowledges that everyone is doing it. But yet he wants the government to crack down on every single person in the US so that he can earn a few million more a year.
That’s some fricken balls! I almost feel like I should give him some credit for being so completely self-centered. It’s one thing to complain, “My family is starving so I need government help to feed my kids.” It’s another thing to complain, “Why won’t the government help me so I can buy my fourth fricken mansion?!”
Apparently Garth doesn’t know this, but it’s common knowledge to the rest of the world that it’s already against the law to use P2P to infringe copyrights. The punishment for such use goes way beyond any physical crime. If I go to Walmart, stick a gun in someone’s face, and steal a CD, the most I’ll have to pay monetarily is for the price of that one CD, about 20 bucks. However, if I download a CD worth of music, I’d have to pay millions of dollars.
But yet that draconian law is not enough for Garthy. He wants more! Does he want incarceration? For all 300 million of us? Apparently so. Apparently, his “lost” money, which has nothing to do with P2P, is worth more than the liberty of every citizen in the US.
But this isn’t the first time Brooks put his bank account above the rights of citizens. He also claims that selling used CDs is stealing. I’m not making this up. According to Brooks, the simple act of selling a used CD is a criminal act. Of course he’s wrong. But your right to sell your stuff is nothing compared to Brooks’ right to buy a mansion.
Of course the main reason he’s having trouble selling CDs is that his time in the spotlight is over. When rock and roll killed off the careers of the vocalists from the 50s, Sinatra, Mathis, Cole, to name a few, those guys didn’t ask the government to stop the switch to rock music. They graciously accepted their time was over and moved on. It’s time for washed up has-beens like Brooks to do the same.
Artists of today realize that the net is not a hindrance to making great music, but is actually a great tool for connecting with fans.
#18–nosoap// and SN/Gilherme==do you guys agree with #20–BirdBrain? If “I” disagree, have I failed to read his post, or am I toadying for the man to comment that there is NO JAIL TIME for mere copyright infringement?? Excessive civil penalties===yes. Not the same as jail time.
Silly ninnies, so confused you are.
The people that are ripping him off the most are the record companies that he signed with. He’s just probably too much of a stupid fuckin’ redneck to figure that one out though.
He should just be happy that he made any money at all with all that shitty music he made.
@22 for the win!
“He should just be happy that he made any money at all with all that shitty music he made.”
He’s just looking for publicity. He should send his kids up in a ufo balloon!
#22, trouble,
OK, that is the most accurate post so far. My bias is I never cared for him anyway.
Hey, Brooks, guess what. I won’t steal even ONE of your $hitty songs the next time I use LimeWire! Does that make you feel better now?
#21, Bobbo, who almost spotted it,
… and SN/Gilherme …
FYI
Guilherme is the pseudonym for a regular that never posts anything substantive. He always claims everyone else is wrong although he can’t tell them why. His favorite buddy, Alphie, is almost as irritating. His name begins with a “p” and ends in “dro”. Put that together and you don’t have an Uncle Hopper.
If SN is a third part of that schizoid relationship (the Three Faces of a Wetback) then I will be very surprised. Very, very surprised. I’ve seen SN post here for many years (including a few years under a different handle) and is very intelligent with well written comments, even if we don’t always agree.
These guys can whine all they want, and the RIAA can fine all they want. T’aint gonna change a thing. Most people I know who play music don’t make a dime anyway, they do it for pleasure. The end of commercial recorded music does not seem like that bad a thing to me. Maybe then more people would learn how to PLAY music.
I am sad to hear that he feels this way. I have been a big fan for a long time. I think he is quite a bit out of touch with how much the music industry has changed since he has been retired. Just rather sad that so many other artists see how many people have lost their jobs and can’t afford to go out and buy a CD. Time to give back GB. So your great, great, great, great, great grandkids will still be unbelievably wealthy but you want us to choose between feeding our kids and buying your “possibly” good CD. Where is the guarantee that every song on it is good? Just sad that a person with such an opportunity to help or understand, doesn’t.
He’s returning to the stage and he’s doing it in LAS VEGAS?! Sounds like someone needs more money for child support payments…
He’s bored. Performers do that. They “retire”, realize they have NOTHING ELSE TO DO IN THEIR LIVES and then reappear.
Mute buttons do wonders.
A good article. It had many points of merit. And I agree with much of it. What’s not pointed out by anyone, but should be pretty obvious, is that the economy is in a bad way. And retail music is a luxury commodity. I’m sure the great majority of people aren’t buying music, because they can’t afford it. They have to eat. We’re not all as well off as Garth Brooks. And yet I wonder if even he buys much music?
Blaming a drop in sales on piracy alone, is ridiculous. People are losing their jobs and their homes. It’s a shame that Mr. Brooks isn’t aware of this. But I guess he’s too focused on all the millions he’s no longer making. Accusing the government of not cracking down enough, might be the first overture leading up to a “bail out” for the music industry.
Back when video taping was being blamed for a slump in movie sales. A surcharge was attached to the sales of blank tapes! Apparently to raise some revenue to feed the starving movie industry. But maybe people were spending their money on the new cable Tv service. Or the physical fitness craze had them exercising rather than sitting in theaters.
And if I’m not mistaken, blank CDRs also have a surcharge attached, to help the ailing music industry recover some loss in sales. Assuming that all blank CDR bought are for piracy use only. Which is a punishment for all citizens, wishing to use CDRs to back up data files, and maybe archive some favorite songs too. Or make custom mix CDRs of tunes they already bought.
But apparently, this surcharge isn’t enough to satisfy some artists, or their recording label executives. They want huge fines, and they want the money to go into their pockets. And not to the lawyers and politicians. Which ain’t gonna happen. Sp they’ll still be pissed that they’re not getting enough money, for doing squat! Which eventually will lead to them insisting on a government subsidy. Basically like what the banks and automakers all got. Can’t let those music artists suffer like the rest of us.
“According to Brooks, the simple act of selling a used CD is a criminal act.” Hmmm.
Well then my local Goodwill is breaking the law. Because they have bins of old records and CDs for sales. I know visiting a Goodwill store is something alien to Mr. Brooks. Or he’s forgotten his hick roots (if he ever had any). I wonder if Brooks ever had any old records in his collection, that were bought used? Was he born rich?
I’ve never heard any of his music. Partly because I’m not into country music. But also because I don’t think someone deserves to be famous, because of the clothes they wear and their stage antics. Guys like Garth Brooks only have to carry a tune, wear all black clothing, and dance around on the stage (lip syncing), to be successful. Ever since Elvis appeared in movies, it’s been about the artist performing, rather than just singing their songs.
A lot of people can sing well enough to do decent song for a record label. But the labels don’t weed out the hundreds of possibles, by their academic credentials. If anything, they prefer their artists dumb as stumps, so they will sign a lousier recording contract.
It’s not the singing ability or talent the sells songs. It’s all that stage performing, fashion, and good looks. And the labels know that. Music artists usually age themselves out of the business. Not because they can’t sing as well as they use to. But their looks start to go. So they’re not a popular with a younger crowd. And their song style doesn’t impress those either. The new generation wants music sung by someone of their age bracket. Not from someone of their parent’s age.
Obviously Brooks doesn’t realize these facts of life. Expecting to be rich his whole life,
if only everyone wasn’t pirating his music. He really is dumb as a stump.
The net is not a hinderance to making great music and it is a great tool for connecting with fans, but it is also a hinderance to making a living from your work, and a great way for ‘fans’ to get something for nothing. I’ve played on many recordings as a session musician and earn pretty much the average wage. Every time someone downloads one of those tracks illegally, it costs me a little bit of money that frankly I need, to feed my family and pay my mortgage. Can anyone make a rational explanation as to why I shouldn’t get any payment for my work?
Owning copyright affects the brain –
| <This is your brain
$ <This is your brain on copyright
– - – - -
What's a LINQUIST?
your such a loozer dvorak.. get some new material.. oh no.. i already gave you whatreallyhappened.com 6 months ago.. and u sstill fail.. wat a loozer.
Name two songs of his
#1 Friends in Low Places
#2 umm some other song
One hit wonder yes?
if you ever get the chance to look at old recordings from edisons music company, the buyer did not own the record only a licence to play it.. this before 45′s, lp’s, 8tracks, compact cassette, cd, or even mp3s.
It specifically banned reselling the disc. among many other bans
Downloading/sharing music illegally and freely may seem victimless buy I cry not for GB but the new musicians that may never be able to capitalize on their talent in ways previously possible.
This may lead to less potential success and less persons pursuing a recording careeer. Hence we all might loose.
Maybe Garth should talk to Chris Gaines as to why his sales have disappeared.
Wow it’s amazing how people like Garth are so clueless and out of touch about how the world works simply because you’re fucking rich. I bet Garth would be the same asshole who would yell out “I don’t want the government screwing around with medicare!”
I submit CD sales are down because they suck!
30 year old tech and absolutely no attempts to put out quality material.
Yes I am a cranky old man at 50 but it used to be an artist would make an album. Now they make a hit and fill in with crap.