My main concern is that we need to educate musicians that what it means to “make it” has to change. This is hard work since mainstream media sources provide nothing but “all or nothing” narratives for artists and what we need is to represent the possibilities and the belief that middle-classness if optimal for artists.

Also, ass I talk to musicians it is clearer to me that many of them are just not interested in doing their own promotional work. Honestly, I can’t blame them. What looks like opportunity to us looks like busywork for a person who simply wants to create beautiful sounds.

Finally, the point of production issue is very interesting. The idea of giving back and patronage is a long standing rhetoric for indies who want to do things like document scenes and be there solely for the music. In many cases those indies were mismanaged and all too often couldn’t pay their musicians. At worst they simply ripped them off. My feeling about this is that the only way to counter such naivete is with systematic education at many levels.

Great post!

What I find unique about Converse’s Rubber Tracks studio is that the sponsorship is happening at the point of production (only a few prior deals like the Bacardi/Groove Aramada one have moved in this direction). Indeed, Converse is acting very much like a traditional label, but they’re doing so under the guise of patronage and “giving back” to the music community. We’re in a moment where musicians have an unprecedented amount of agency and autonomy at their fingertips, but at the same time the exploitative potential of initiatives like these are tremendous. It definitely raises a lot of concerns about musicians’ rights in this anything-goes environment.

I’m trying not to be too cynical, but as someone who’s worked in and around the music industry for the better part of 15 years, I’m definitely observing a nonchalance and naivete on behalf of many “indie” artists today toward corporate sponsorship. It’s becoming uncritically accepted that the way to “make it” today – that is, to get a commercial break and be able to profit off your art – is to cozy up to these lifestyle brands.

That said, Converse’s grab of Synch rights isn’t new. Labels who invest in the masters keep the masters and all the rights that pertain to them. In fact, Converse is acting more like a traditional label than anything else.

That said, I really love this post because we are in this great moment of flux where musicians MUST become more and more aware of their rights as the opportunity to exploit them for their own worth are growing exponentially.