Jeff Tweedy and music piracy
There’s no denying it, music piracy is still a very prickly topic to talk about. It has achieved the mythic status of politics and religion as a subject that should not be discussed. As the debate rages regarding subject even artists themselves are being forced to take sides in this intellectual debate.
But one artist that really put forward a very interesting opinion with regards to “theft” is Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy. In an interview with Wired Tweedy had this to say about piracy, “A piece of art is not a loaf of bread. When someone steals a loaf of bread from the store, that’s it. The loaf of bread is gone. When someone downloads a piece of music, it’s just data until the listener puts that music back together with their own ears, their mind, their subjective experience. How they perceive your work changes your work.”
What Tweedy said makes a lot of sense and echoes my own sentiments (now you know where I stand in this debate). I just hope that the record companies finally realize this basic piece of logic, too. What we need is not a witch hunt but a basic understanding of what the internet and file sharing has brought in order to change the status quo and find a happy medium between technology and old, obsolete laws.
Jeff Tweedy, Wilco, Wired, music piracy
June 8th, 2007 at 8:25 pm
Windows Vista is the best example of a witch hunt, and this is one of my reasons for boycotting the OS.
I’m a bit surprised with Jeff Tweedy’s sentiments regarding piracy. At least, until I read the Wired interview. Great read, Mel.
August 25th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
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