• Courtney Love is none too happy about the “docu-drama” Soaked In Bleach, which revisits conspiracy theories that Love herself was responsible for husband Kurt Cobain’s death. According to Deadline, her legal team has been sending out a cease & desist order to any theater that is screening the film. The producers issued a statement, claiming that their First Amendment rights were at stake:
Most saw the letter for what it is—a cowardly attack on the rights of free speech, free expression and free choice. Courtney Love’s uninformed accusations and efforts to discredit the film are totally off base. The film examines the well documented facts surrounding the death of Kurt Cobain and it questions much of what the public has been told about those events.
I maintain that with or without legal implications, any dramatic reenactment featuring character actor Tom Grant—of the illustrious film Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas Ever—is probably a pass.
• Yesterday, Donald Trump announced his intentions to run for President of the United States of America. And he put those decision-making skills to the test when he took the stage amidst the sounds of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.” That’s right. Trump thought that an artist who is releasing a protest album called The Monsanto Years, and supports Bernie Sanders even though he is a Canadian citizen who can’t vote in the United States, would be totally okay with his work being used by a Republican nominee. Young was quick to protest on his Facebook page, stating:
[H]ad I been asked to allow my music to be used for a candidate – I would have said no. I am Canadian and I don’t vote in the United States, but more importantly I don’t like the current political system in the USA and some other countries… I do not trust self serving misinformation coming from corporations and their media trolls. I do not trust politicians who are taking millions from those corporations either. I trust people. So I make my music for people not for candidates.
Trump’s campaign manager Corey Lewandowski told Rolling Stone that the billionaire will respect the artist’s wishes and no longer use the track. He did want to point out that Trump was only using the song because he had filed the proper paperwork and wrote checks to both The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and Broadcast Music, Inc. HOWEVER. Had Lewandowski poked around on the ASCAP’s website, he would have seen it clearly states the campaign needs artist’s permission as well. It says:
If an artist does not want his or her music to be associated with the campaign, he or she may be able to legal action even if the campaign has the appropriate copyright licenses. While the campaign would be in compliance with copyright law, it could potentially be in violation of other laws, including “Right of Publicity” and “False Endorsement.”
Even if rich people think they can have whatever they want, by God, THEY CAN’T TAKE OUR NEIL YOUNG SONGS.
Lewandowski has also denied that Trump paid most of those “campaign supporters” who were cheering so boisterously during his announcement. The Hollywood Reporter uncovered an email from NYC casting agency Extra Mile Casting, requesting shiny-faced extras to “to wear t-shirts and carry signs and help cheer him in support.” Thus far, this campaign is taking off like gangbusters, eh?
• Beggars Group Labels—which includes Matador, 4AD, XL, and Rough Trade—have issued an official statement regarding their ongoing negotiations with Apple Music.
We thought it was time to update you on the situation with Apple Music, following speculation in the press, some of it ill-informed. Apple have been a wonderful partner for the last decade, and we confidently trust they will continue to be so. We have recently been in discussions with Apple Music about proposed terms for their new service. In many ways the deal structure is very progressive, but unfortunately it was created without reference to us, or as far as we know any independents, and as such unsurprisingly presents problems for us, and for our coming artist releases. We are naturally very concerned, especially for artists releasing new albums in the next three months, that all streaming on the new service will be unremunerated until the end of September. Whilst we understand the logic of their proposal and their aim to introduce a subscription-only service, we struggle to see why rights owners and artists should bear this aspect of Apple’s customer acquisition costs.
If you recall, there’s still speculation that Apple will only be paying out 58% of the subscription revenue—in comparison to Spotify’s 72% and TIDAL’s 77%—so good on Beggars for pushing back.
• Let’s see what else is going on around these parts? Bumbershoot added The Moth & The Flame and Kehlani to their previously existing lineup this morning. Telekinesis announced that they’ll be releasing their new album Ad Infinitum on September 18 via Merge. Have a listen to the new single “In a Future World” over on KEXP. (Incidentally, they’re also playing the KEXP/INXS Benefit Show on June 30 at Tractor Tavern.)
Telekinesis will be joined on tour by Say Hi, who’ll also be releasing new album Bleeders Digest on September 18 as well, via Barsuk. Their new single “Creatures of the Night” is just below.
• Now, let’s all watch Courtney Barnett on The Tonight Show! Happy Wednesday.