RSSPlaying for tyrants: the ultimate sell-out?
Feb 27
Of Interest, The Business beyoncé, godspeed you! black emperor, libya, live show, mariah carey, rolling stone, touring, usher No Comments
It seems the recent events in Libya have led to some people in the music industry questioning the performance decisions of such big stars as Beyoncé, Usher and Mariah Carey. In the past, all of them played for the current ruler everyone loves to hate, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, and/or members of his family.
Industry Lashes Out at Mariah, Beyoncé and Others Who Played for Qaddafi’s Family (rollingstone.com)
Given the apparent trend of musicians moving to 360 deals with large music corporations, and the use of product tie-ins to see a recording move a few more units, what else is left? Sure, there remain the acts that will not bite at the big fish because they know there is an equally big hook beneath it, but those artists are getting smaller in number, and the reasoning against such deals is getting weaker as the industry falters. So if playing for a big corporation is alright now, is playing for a dictator the new “selling-out”?
Of course, according to acts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, simply being involved with one of the majors leads to connections with bomb makers such as Lockheed Martin. Is that any better than doing a one-off show for a ruler that buys those bombs?
Plus, given how nice America and so many other countries were with Libya before the recent uprising (and, to some extent, even during), can one really judge a touring artist for who they played for in the past? Should artists, labels, agents and so many others involved be expected to keep abreast of political movements, relations and ethics? In a case like China, which has a terrible human rights history, should the people of that country be denied a performance from such big acts because their leader has questionable practices?
