11 Down, One to Go
Tags: Music Publishing, Musical Expression, Artist Rights, Karaoke, Creative Rights

11 Down, One to Go

Nooooo! I found myself back on the canvas, reeling and trying to catch my breath.

Unsplash by Pablo Rebolledo

Enduring eleven rounds with a professional fighter is what 2020 meant to me. No rules. A hostile and, at best, indifferent referee. No bells. Just intimate contacts with fists, feet, knees, and the mat. Job loss, a prostate scare, and family declining health issues have made the year quite the challenge.

Through it all, I would not have been able to get back up without music. It is the language of the cosmos and holds great power. I have been singing (or croaking in some circles) for my entire life. only in the last several years, I’ve learned to use singing, specifically karaoke, to manage social anxiety improve my presentation skills and boost my confidence.

I sing at home. I sing in my car. I sing whenever I have an opportunity and people aren’t looking at me strangely (family included.) I had been hosting karaoke events for family and business. I visited different locations and was mission-driven to go to a karaoke spot in each locale I visited across the United States. I discovered Smule™, an online karaoke platform allowing me the opportunity to sing with others across the globe. And I found the ultimate joy, frequenting live band karaoke venues, the closest thing to being a real performer that I could ever hope to achieve.

Then the pandemic hit, my head bleeding so profusely I could barely see. No more public singing.

Fortunately, as a cheap and tawdry substitute, I leaned into Smule™ heavily. morning, noon, night time, I’d find a spot to croon away my troubles, boosting my endorphins and improving my vocal skills. I’d learn tunes in Portuguese, Tagalog, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, and Indian, not necessarily well but learned. Practice makes better, never perfect. And I learned how to upload songs that I wanted to sing and share with others.

I felt confident about staying off the canvas and holding my own until the music publishing referee got involved. Bruce Springsteen had just released his single of Hello Sunshine © to YouTube and, in my excitement, uploaded a karaoke version to Smule™. Others were joining and performing their interpretations of the new hit. Then one day, I clicked on the link to see “This song has been disabled for licensing reasons.” Oh well.

As I got faster and more efficient and uploading obscure, esoteric, or forgotten tunes to Smule™, the referee got more involved in the match. No more Bruce Springsteen songs. No more Elvis Costello songs. No more Paul Simon, Led Zeppelin, or Cream.

The spinning back kicks to my gut was the news that Bob Dylan sold his rights to Universal Music Publishing Group.

America’s Bard? Nooooo! I found myself back on the canvas, reeling and trying to catch my breath.

I fully understand and respect the need to recognize artists’ creative output and products. But I also believe that creativity is not man-made, we are merely channels by which the universe expresses itself and makes itself known to us in a language we can receive.

We should have dialogue and discuss compromise around creative expression, especially as others choose to honor artists by interpreting their works. It must start with proper attributions for the creators.

I write this as I mourn the loss of classic Dylan interpretations I’ve heard, song, and uploaded.

Things will never return as they were. Any opportunities to share the language of music should be enhanced as a public good, not put on the shelf as an additional revenue stream.

And, for Christ’s sake, ring the damn bell!

NeuroBadger