‘It’s Time for the Two-Tier Royalty Scandal In Music to End’ — An Activist Indie Songwriter Speaks Out

A few months back, Universal Music Group (UMG) and Warner Music Group (WMG), two titans of the recording industry, quietly struck lucrative “direct deals” with Spotify. The following comes from activist independent singer-songwriter George Johnson. These agreements boosted the streaming royalty rates paid to their own songwriters and in-house publishing divisions—rates that exceed what all other American songwriters […]