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4:00:59 PM    

I think he means, for instance, that he doesn't like the music that some anonymous producer might put into the mouth of some talentless 18-year blonde girl in order to reap the huge profits of making her a "star" in the eyes of the teenybopper contingent.

On the other hand, artists need to make a living. The way the star system works, a few stars make a ton of money, and 95% of the acts signed by the record companies don't make anything. Moby is complaining about overcompensated stars, but it's also important to keep in mind that non-stars need money for food and shelter and some of the pleasures of life if they want to be able to commit themselves fully to their art.

So we still need a music industry, because that's what enables money to go from the wallets of music lovers to the wallets of the musicians who need it. (MAYBE tipjars can take up the slack, but that's far from proven.)

We need a music industry in which mass-marketing isn't the only way to sell music. Then a sizable percentage of money now going to the stars will go to the non-stars. Redistributing half of of the wealth of Britney Spears and her handlers would enable what, 100? 1,000? talented non-stars to make an honest living.

We need another way to sell music.

Let's work on it together.
8:45:34 AM