Aloe Blacc's "Wake Me Up," a collaboration with Avicii, was a big hit, especially in the digital world, but his pockets are not reflecting the performance results.
The singer-songwriter penned the hit single with two other writers, but confirms that the trio has banked minimal streaming revenue from the song, even though it has become the most streamed record ever on Spotify.
“It was the most streamed song ever on Spotify and at Pandora, for 168 million streams to the three writers, we earned a little over $12,000,” Blacc told Contact Music.
Blacc believes this corporate takeover and the way artists’ royalties are paid from digital outlets is one of the core reasons for great written songs.
He explains:
“You're not feeling the music that you're listening to. There's a lot of people out there forcing hits, trying to make things out of nothing, and that comes from the climate in the music business – over the past two decades there's $7 billion missing from the music industry and people are trying to get that money back any way they can.”
“There are a few songwriters out there who are really fighting for change and there a lot of really good songwriters out there that are putting out music that may not make it to the mainstream.
“The goal here is to incentivize songwriters in a major way by working with Congress to change the laws to make sure they have a say in what the value of their song is worth.”
“A song like Imagine by John Lennon is worth a statutory rate equal to Who Let the Dogs Out? I don't think intrinsically that makes any sense.”
Here’s hoping that these folks get their fair share.
Founder and Creator of Singersroom.com and IncredibleWork.com. Follow me on Instagram at @gary.gentles.
