while she sleeps
[photo via Spotify]

While She Sleeps launch merch highlighting reality of streaming statistics

While She Sleeps have launched a shirt to highlight the struggles of making money as a musician with streaming. 

The shirt design shows how artists rely on things like merch over streams to make money because of the way the business works. 

Read more: Halestorm have “two albums’ worth” of material for next release

“One t-shirt is the equivalent to 5000 streams on Spotify. 76% of all music in 2019 is streamed and not bought physically or digitally. Band merchandise is the most direct way of supporting an artist,” the design reads. 

The band also penned a lengthy letter about why they made the shirts. 

“This is about how you can support the music you love,” the letter begins. “Not just our band and our music – this is aimed at every working band trying to make music and get it out there. Today, we are launching a free-to-use design to highlight the realities of being a band today.” 

“It doesn’t matter how successful you look from the outside, the music industry is a tough place to survive,” it continues. “There may be thousands of people listening & coming to shows but that doesn’t mean there are thousands in the bank. There’s also a long line of people with a straw in the glass who are going to make sure they get a drink before it gets to the aritst.”

You can read the full letter and see the shirt design below. 

The shirt costs about $30 and is available here

More news

Speaking of streaming, Slipknot vocalist Corey Taylor called out those services for the way they pay artists and got real about the business side of making money as a musician.  

At the beginning of the year, the Copyright Royalty Board ruled that royalties received by songwriters would increase by 44 percent during the next five years. 

Spotify, Good, Pandora and Amazon later appealed the ruling, citing that it harmed copyright owners. 

With that in mind, Nils Lofgren of Bruce Spingsteen’s E Street Band to complain about the wealth of Spotify while artists “don’t get paid for (their) work”. He shared a streaming check he received for $7.01. 

Taylor quote tweeted it, and added his opinion about the matter and talked about the major case.  

No one points this out. And while Congress has passed legislation to right this wrong, almost all the streaming services are APPEALING, which means we STILL don’t get paid for our work. But please people, by all means- stream away,” he said. 

Then, a fan asked how artists do make money, and Taylor explained and said “streaming is pricing artists – old AND new – our of careers”.

Then, someone asked if he streamed music. Taylor said he buys albums and thanked Apple Music for being the only major streaming service not trying to appeal the legislation.

Someone then tried to defend streaming, and Taylor explained his problem is with the companies behind the services, not the just services themselves.

The same person tried to bring in artists paying attention to their contracts, but Taylor said that wasn’t a relevant point.

“All due respect, this isn’t about contracts right now because they don’t reflect the service righteously. And even if the streaming service pays the label, WE still don’t get paid. This is about PUBLISHING. They’re offering OUR work and not paying for it,” he wrote.

That person then asked him why streaming wasn’t regulated, and Taylor explained a bit.

“Because as long as the RECORD LABELS get THEIR money, they don’t CARE if the ARTIST gets paid at ALL. Or who plays their music- unless it’s a critic on @youtube THEN THEY’RE UP IN ARMS,” he said.

Another person tried to say that it makes sense that Slipknot doesn’t make money through streaming since rock is ‘one of the least popular (nowadays) genres”.

“All due respect, I simply do not believe the ‘rock and metal isn’t popular’ idea. Our shows are sold out, our numbers are just as high as anyone else’s and we’ve been #1 every time. This isn’t about popularity, because it happens in EVERY GENRE,” he said in response.

Taylor went on to explain to fans the benefit of buying music over streaming for artists.

“Any service where you can buy the album, or songs at a time. Even buying a song singly makes us more than simply streaming it. The irony here is, if the streaming services adhered to the payment scale  that Radio has to abide by, we’d all be paid fairly,” he said.

Then, someone asked why he didn’t pull his music from the services, and he gave a blunt and truthful response.

“Because if you don’t own your masters, you can do fuck all to stop what the labels do,” he said.

Taylor made a lot of points about streaming, so it will be interesting to see how the case plays out.

What do you think about While She Sleeps making merch that displays the realities of making money in the music industry? Sound off in the comments down below!

See more: 30 albums turning 10 in 2019

[envira-gallery id=”197607″]