Kiddie copyright crime. Where are you, RIAA?
p2pnet news view | P2P | Music:- On TechDirt , Mike Masnick says Dave Title told him about a public elementary school in New York City (PS22).
It’s a “heartwarming story making it`s way around the webosphere about an adorable elementary school chorus that sings covers of pop songs, including works by Coldplay, Survivor and Fleetwood Mac,” says Dave on MyMediaMusings.
Not surprisingly, the videos are now doing the rounds on YouTube, say both posts.
“It turns out that this particular video make it all the way to Stevie Nicks herself,” blogs Title, going on »»»
Just got word from Stevie Nicks tour manager that she was completely blown away by the PS22 Chorus rendition of her song Landslide! He said she asked him to replay 2 times afterwards, crying each time she watched! Talk about humbling!! And the kicker??
She invited the PS22 Chorus to sing the song at Madison Square Garden for the upcoming June 11th Fleetwood Mac show!! Holy cow!!! Thanks must go to Perez Hilton for getting our video out there and making this incredible opportunity happen for the kids! Unbelievable!! LINK
Wonderful, right?
However, Title notes, “this seems like a video ripe for takedown by the RIAA,” continuing »»»
These kids did not get the rights to perform this song and they are now spreading their cover for free! This is just the sort of activity the record industry seems to keen on stopping – whether it is a chorus of school-kids or a couple of people doing a karaoke version of the latest Beyonce tune.
Of course, the idea that this video could somehow create a direct negative impact to the sales of Fleetwood Mac songs is simply absurd. That won`t stop groups like the RIAA from spitting out takedown notices and DMCA claims faster than you can say, hey, that was cute.
Admittedly, the world of copyright law is beyond complicated but we need to find a way to let people legally play with all the content released into the world. People are going to play with it no matter what so it`s really just a question of whether or not energy is spent prosecuting people or facilitating them. I wonder which choice would make more money in the long run.
Indeed, says Mike on TechDirt.
“Hopefully the RIAA knows better, but, remember when the Girl Scouts were threatened for singing songs around the campfire?”
MyMediaMusings – Dear RIAA, Shut Down PS22 Quick! They`re Evil Thieves!, May 27, 2009
TechDirt – Will The RIAA Shut Down Public School Kids From Singing Pop Songs On YouTube?, May 28, 2009
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