Well, I was rummaging around, looking for interesting information, and ran across a rant written by Cortney Love about the RIAA and piracy. Really interesting. She brings up some interesting points. I've also learned (from my favorite, non comic website: How Stuff Works that, as I suspected, the performing artists are not due any royalties from traditional distribution methods (CD, TV, Radio). And as a brief filler, here's all the players in getting a song out:

• Songwriter
• Publisher
• Recording Artist
• Record Company

Of those, in the typical arrangement, the Songwriter (Who does own the rights to a piece of music and the lyrics) sells the copyright to the publisher, who aggrees to split the royalties 50/50. The publisher promotes the song and issues licenses to a Record Company, who then hires a recording artist, who, helps them produce a recording (as a work for hire). The record company now owns the copyright to the recording, which they then use to manufacture CDs and issue to stations for performance, etc... Now notice, the artist (the person we most associate with the song) was used as work for hire. This means that they have no right on any level to any royalties. Most artists are promised a fraction of sales, but the record company steals this money back by means of Recouperation. They charge the artist for actually printing the CDs, packaging them, promoting them, etc... So effectively the artist (who isn't required to be paid) is being charged to earn the record company money... Serious BS.

Not that I have any talent mind you, but if I where an artist, I would use the same rule I use as a contract programmer: The record company pays me a flat fee for my labor. Basically, I will sell you my time for $500,000 to record 15 songs, which you will then make $11 million on. No recouperation, no nothing, just state and fedral taxes for self employment. My employer doesn't charge me for staples and envelopes to send out copies of my work with their name on it, neither should the record company.

But like I said, I don't have any talent... So really I guess that's more advice for up and coming artists.

As for my life, more Mario Party 5, and the Art test that I havn't studied for. If I'm lucky, they'll ask be about a bunch of art terms that come from latin. I did the C final, peice of cake... El Gooney Shive is still cool, creapy, and pleasently strange while Megatokyo is confusing me. Fred, if you read this (never, ever, ever do I expect that...) hurry up and finish this camera sequence so we can figure out what the heck's going on!!! And what's up with Ping?! Why sad? Anc What is this malfunction?! PLEASE finish your plots so I can follow along... Oh, and keep up the good work. ;)