Linkin Park hates WMG
p2pnet.net News:- Linkin Park says it wants to dump Warner Music and is hinting it may start using the Net to distribute its songs.
Canada’s Edgar Bronfman jr and friends,Warner Music Group’s new owners, "will be reaping a windfall of $1.4 billion from their $2.6 billion purchase a mere 18 months ago if their planned IPO moves forward," says a press release (registration required) from Linkin Park.
Does this mean WMG will pass some of the money to the group, one of its most important band ‘assets,’ and to its hard-pressed workers?
Forget it.
"… of the planned $750 million raised by an IPO, only about $7 million will be put toward the company’s own operations, with no money going to WMG artists," says Linkin Park in the statement headed Linkin Park Opposes Fleecing of Warner Music, Demands Immediate Release.
The band says it’s been responsible for about 10% of Warner Music’s record sales, selling over 35 million records worldwide in just five years.
"After reading numerous and daily articles about how WMG executives and corporate raiders have ridden the coattails of the creative community to extract massive rewards, Linkin Park has become increasingly offended and discouraged," it goes on.
"We couldn’t be more grateful for the support we receive from all our fans around the world. We feel a responsibility to get great music to our fans. Unfortunately, we believe that we can’t accomplish that effectively with the current Warner Music".
So now Linkin Park wants out and is, "weighing all of their options on how to best get new music to their fans".
Among the possibilities are more, "touring, merchandising and endorsements," it says, rather than leaving its future, "in the hands of a weakened WMG".
Fiona Apple songs were released online for free, "and for years, bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish have performed new material live and let fans tape for free," says Linkin Park pointedly.
The statement quotes music industry lawyer Peter Paterno as telling the New York Times, "The (WMG) guys who are running this thing are looking at it pretty cynically. It’s becoming more and more apparent that this is nothing more than a financial play for the investors. It’s not about the music or the employees; it’s about a return for private equity investors. It’s kind of astounding when you sit back and look at the audacity."
"The loss of future Linkin Park recordings will be disastrous for WMG," adds the band. "While there are hundreds of bands signed to the WMG roster, the music business is still a hit-driven industry. For example, the delay of just two new releases from EMI acts Coldplay and Gorillaz recently forced EMI to announce to the marketplace that it would be unable to meet its earlier projections."
(Thanks, John Paul)
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See:-
Edgar Bronfman jr and friends – Want to buy shares in WMG?, p2pnet, March 12, 2005
online for free – The unsad tale of Fiona Apple, p2pnet, March 17, 2005
May 2nd, 2005 at 10:36 pm
Its sad. Warner Brothers used to be one of the great record companies. Janes Addiction signed there in the 80s, when they had their choice of labels.
May 3rd, 2005 at 12:21 am
Linkin Park is one of those talentless group of jackoffs that wouldn’t be anywhere without payola of their record company to get them all over radio and MTV. Now that they have exploided the system, they want to break away? LP never would be as big as they are without WMG building them up.
I hate both WMG and LP. So I guess it’s good news that the scroundrels are now fighting each other. Keep sharing, everyone.
May 3rd, 2005 at 7:03 am
Sane commentary.
Oddly enough – it’s money that is driving both sides’ arguments.
Won’t somebody think of the music?
May 5th, 2005 at 9:39 pm
You know, as much as I hate WB, and as much as I sereously hate the so-called music that Linkin Park makes, I have to say it’s fantastic that one of the worlds biggest pop group is going digital, instead of leaving the crap to the record labels. Now we have to resort to mudslinging LP for their music only, rather than their (or rather, their record label’s) capitalist piggotry.
Trevor Hook
http://cybersphere.nori-nori.net
May 14th, 2005 at 12:46 am
Yes, the whiny little snobs have always got to criticize. Why don’t you do something with your pathetic life?
Good for LP, blowing off their label.