In the past years, one of the main musicians that has sought to fight the rampant piracy in today's world is Prince (or The Artist Formerly Known As Prince). He is a multi-talented, versatile artist that's know for hits like "Purple Rain", "When Doves Cry", and "Little Red Corvette". Want to listen to any of these songs? You'll have to buy it (...or by some chance hear it on the radio)! That's right. you won't be able to look up his music on YouTube or any other site for that matter.
Prince has made it very clear over the years that he takes his music being pirated very seriously and feels that no one should be able to own (or apparently listen to) his works without proper compensation. He sees the piracy of his music like "carjacking". As far as ownership of the music, I agree. Yes, Prince is a self-proclaimed "artist", but clearly he sees his art as a product as well. He SHOULD reap the financial rewards of work that he worked hard to create. I understand that completely.
However......I still think he's a bit extreme. In a campaign called "Reclaim The Internet," he threatened to sue sites like YouTube, Pirate Bay, and eBay, which allow people to listen to, make unauthorized copies of, and buy his music at cheaper prices. He won't even allow fans of his music to dance to or cover his music on camera without proper permission. Trust me...this man doesn't play any games! In one case, Prince even sued the mother of a toddler that was dancing in a video to a snippet of his music.
Prince seems to be against the digital age and the Internet altogether. In one interview he was quoted saying that the Internet was "unhip" and "outdated". He claims that digital media "affects a different place in your brain" and he believes that music needs to go back to the analog sound. He also refuses to release any new material until the problem of piracy is stopped.
As I said before, I believe that he should be paid for the ownership of his music, but when he won't even allow his fans to pay homage to him, has he gone a little too far? One thing's for sure--Prince has a big ego! He believes that his music is worth more than "Diamonds and Pearls" and anything in this entire world.
Clearly he's a from a different time in music. Today's artists are dependent on the Internet to publicize their music and hear from the fans. With his music not being available on the Internet, he won't be able to reach brand new generations of fans, as artists like Michael Jackson managed to do. True...he's a legend; however, in this day and age, can his legacy live on without his music being available online? Has he gone too far? Is he asking too much?
