The Lion Keeps His Rights

Hank Medress died the other day. He was 68, and he had lung cancer, and he used to sing with a doo-wop group called the Tokens, back in the 1950s and ‘60s. The Tokens had a huge hit with a song called “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” in 1961, and then some more minor songs on the charts, and then Medress moved on to producing records for other groups like the Chiffons, and Tony Orlando and Dawn, and even David Johansen in his “Buster Poindexter” incarnation. The last thing Hank Medress was doing before he died was working as a consultant to Sound Exchange, which was described in his obituary as “a nonprofit group helping musicians collect royalties.”

That’s kind of ironic, because Medress got rich off royalties for “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” but the guy who actually wrote the song and recorded it in 1939, Solomon Linda, never got a penny of royalties in his life. Mr. Linda died in poverty, in segregated South Africa, in 1962, aware that his song—sung by some white guys from Brooklyn—was a worldwide hit. It’s only within the last few months that Linda’s daughters, who have also spent their lives in poverty, have settled a legal case for payment of a share of back royalties estimated to total some $15 million. I don’t know whether Hank Medress or Sound Exchange were involved in the settlement, but I kinda doubt it.

But maybe it was just that Solomon Linda was on Sound Exchange’s list of “Missing Artists.” This is a roster of people whose royalties can’t be paid because they’ve totally disappeared. For instance, Ted Nugent. God only knows what happened to him—he’s like the Judge Crater of pop music. And what happens to the royalties for these missing artists? Does Sound Exchange just keep them? If so, they’ll be keeping a lot more money once the new royalty rates for online streaming go into effect 0n July 15.

The whole RIAA/Sound Exchange royalty issue is pretty complicated, so rather than try to explain it here I’ll just refer you to Liz Berg’s post, below. Just be aware that this new, unilaterally declared royalty system is going to be especially punitive to listener-supported radio stations like us, WFMU, because although we’re not a commercial station, we’ll be charged commercial rates. So that’s why I’ll be boycotting RIAA/Sound Exchange music on my show this Friday, and many of our other DJs will be doing the same on their shows all this week.

Whimoweh, my ass.

Comments

[bartelby]

As a kid we had the Tokens 45 and I must have listened to it hundreds of times. For much of mmy adult life I was under the impression that the song was "traditional" and sung by dockworkers. It wasn't until one day I was idly googling that I turned up stuff like you have here. It's a shame really, I still like the Tokens version.

[Barrett Golding]

Adam Rosen of Oakbog Studios did a nice mix-medley of the many covers of Lion Sleeps:
http://www.oakbog.com/lion.html

[Jim Russell]

I hate to inform you, but you CAN'T avoid SoundExchange by boycotting only RIAA-controlled music. SoundExchange has secured the rights to collect NO MATTER WHO CONTROLS THE COPYRIGHT!!!!

See this page:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/4/24/141326/870

This is why you really should fully participate in the Day of Silence.

[Ryan M]

How does this work exactly? I ask because Silverchair, which at least in the music industry must have been the biggest taxpayers for the Australian Government in the 1990s, is on the list. Is this just for royalties gained from US airtime?

[Station Manager Ken]

Jim -

There are lots of recordings that SoundExchange is not allowed to collect on, including recordings that never came out on record in the first place, as well as recordings from record labels that have explicitly given us permission to webcast free of the DMCA. (We've received hundreds of such waivers from artists and small labels.)

Then there's public domain material and many other categories as well, including the fact that SoundExchange only has reciprocal agreements with three countries on the entire planet. So in fact, there is TONS of music that SoundExchange doesn't have rights over.

What you are referring to is the fact that SoundExchange has the right to collect fees on material from record labels that are not members of the RIAA. But as you can see, that's far from the end of the story. That is also only true if a webcaster has "opted in" to the statutory agreement with SoundExchnage, and there is currently no statutory agreement to opt in on.

I'm all for protesting these rates and I'm glad so many stations are doing so. But the "Day of Silence" only serves to perpetuate the false myth that SoundExchange and the RIAA control all the music on the planet.

-Ken

[Clayton]

If labels have the right to grant permission to stations, then contacting elected officials is only one part of the solution. Write letters to the labels themselves, as well as the artists they represent. Let them know that the inherent unfairness of this decision is enough to make you stop buying their records altogether, and that you will have no truck with such an evil regime. And be polite!

[Jim Russell]

Ken, I really hope you are right, but fear you aren't. If the Copyright Office really did grant SoundExchange the compulsory license that SoundExchage *said* they did, it's really dicey even if you get waivers. Watch that carefully constructed legalese about SRCOs ("sound recording copyright owners"). This is purposely intended to encompass all the things you mention.

Again, I hope you're right. By any reasonable interpretation of the Constitution you should be right. But that don't mean squat when the federal government is pwned by the RIAA.

[Station Manager Ken]

Jim - I've checked and double checked our approach with several lawyers who are well versed in this issue, so I think we're OK. Our waiver was written by a lawyer who studied the DMCA very carefully.
-Ken

[Chris]

Our pals - Jim, Ken, and Wanda at 3wk.com participated in the day of silence. I believe internet radio offers us an alternative choice to the crap commercial radio is trying to cram down our throats. It is absolutely censorship when they are treated this unfairly. If You visit http://www.3wk.com/ there is a link to easily contact your senator or congressional representative, and urge them to pass the new legislation which will bring royalty fairness back to the web.