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What is the future for music after COVID-19? VOL I
In this essay, I will try to highlight the contour of an alternative to the financialization of music. in a COVID world patience is running out, we have witnessed organizations and individuals who called themselves progressive dodging accountability when asked to take responsibility for their oppressive behavior. Meanwhile, some corporations are thriving and millionaires getting richer at such a scale that in 2020 we have the “honor” to have the first trillionaire.
As put by Zarinah Agnew in Xenofeminism: the tldr on technomaterialism
Technologies should be re-engineered for the actual benefit to society, not to propagate existing oppressions. It calls on feminist technologists to build tools to protect humans from oppression and also to build new freedoms (‘freedom-to rather than simply freedom-from’). For example, in the past we have been defined by our gender and reproductive roles, however we need not be limited by this. An ability to give birth or bear offspring does not determine gender. Any feminism based on ‘natural ideas of a woman’s role’ is a thing of the past. We should aim to distribute these roles across the entire population.
in the case of the new hegemony of the streaming platforms not only technology is used to propagate existing oppressions, but it’s used to solidify the predatory mechanism that were in the inception of the music industry.
indeed the music industry has a long track record of offering a rotten deal to artists.
This year artists with a widespread platform came forward on how they signed a deal who didn’t benefit themself.
the artist often asks people to stop streaming their music hosted on those service until the situation is cleared out as they don’t benefit from it, only the record label and the streaming platform does.
Azealia Banks, Megan Thee Stallion, Mykki Blanco were all vocal about how unfair and sketchy their contract was. With hashtag like #FreeMeg and #FreeTheStallion.
Those practices are not a flaw in the system, it’s how the music industry literary work since it’s inception.
You also notice how those toxic record deals are especially targeting young black women.
