UK artist/activist Billy Bragg enters streaming debate at MusicTank

Acclaimed British independent singer-songwriter and activist Billy Bragg, who recently waded into the controversial streaming-music royalties debate, is a keynote speaker at the next instalment of MusicTank in London on 7 April.

Organized by the London-based think tank of the same name, MusicTank is the series of debates held to provide artists with insights into developments within the ever complex industry.

And the theme of the next session (the first in 2014) is called Murky Waters: The Economics of Streaming for Artists. It focuses on the economics behind this new streaming model, especially the artist’s share of the revenues.

High-profile artists like Thom Yorke of Radiohead have attacked the rapidly growing streaming services and criticized them for virtually delivering very little in terms of artist royalties.

In the firing line have been Spotify, Deezer, Rdio and the recently launched Beats Music, among others.

Bragg recently entered the fray when he asked artists to question all labels about royalties paid, instead of focusing only on the streaming services.

Bragg and other MusicTank speakers will explore whether more transparency about how royalties are calculated could help alleviate the distrust still felt by many.

“If this is to be the future, then all parties need to understand how they will come to be paid, and that’s an area that for many artists is still unclear,” Keith Harris, MusicTank chairman, says. The debate takes place at London’s University of Westminster. More details can be found at https://www.musictank.co.uk/events/streaming-march14