‘Record contracts are just like – I’m gonna say the word – slavery,’ Prince once famously warned young artists.
Most struggling musicians can only dream of signing to a label, working hard to gain the recognition of studio executives so they can be catapulted to superstardom.
However, in 2015, one of the most iconic singers of all time blasted the industry as ‘slavery’, stating he was ’emancipating’ himself from the ‘chains’ of his label.
Could it be that this life goal for many is actually a poisoned chalice?
The music industry, much like acting, is a high-risk but high-reward gamble, which some stars tragically pay for with their lives.
More and more artists — including Demi Lovato, Megan Thee Stallion, and Raye — have spoken out about negative experiences after signing; from extreme pressures to having little creative control.
For years, Liam Payne had been open with fans about his struggles with suicidal ideation and substance abuse, largely rooted in his issues with fame, making his shock death at age 31 all the more heartbreaking.
Adding to his struggles, it was revealed that the One Direction icon might have been let go by his label Universal’s Capitol Records just days before his fall.
Sources told MailOnline: ‘Liam’s advance was massive and he didn’t recoup [it]. Out of all of the One Direction boys, Liam was on the wrong path musically.’
While the circumstances around Liam’s death are yet to be confirmed, fame is well known for being unforgiving and the pressures of the success-hungry music industry will, inevitably, take a toll.
So what does signing to a record label actually mean and why does this dream often turn into a nightmare?
What does signing a record deal actually mean?
Each contract is unique but most record deals, especially early in the musician’s career, will include handing over the rights to original recordings and giving the label a cut of any money made.
In return, the label provides a sum of money in advance to help pay for the recording, production, and promotion of an agreed number of albums.
This doesn’t assure commercial success but the connections provided by the label can bring an unknown artist out of obscurity and into the spotlight.
However, the huge catch here is that the freshly signed star is now on the hook for that massive cheque, known as the unrecouped balance, which can be worth millions.
There have been some infamously bad deals over the years, with Elvis’ manager Tom Parker reportedly taking a 50% cut of all his earnings.
Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor had a very public falling out with his original label TVT, who were reportedly restricting his creative freedom by insisting upon specific sound and certain producers.
Since the label is the one fronting the cost, these creative run-ins can be common, especially for newer artists who have less negotiating power.
This can escalate to labels blocking musicians from releasing music, as seen with Megan Thee Stallion in 2020 when she took her label, 1501 Certified Entertainment to court.
She got a temporary restraining order that allowed her EP Suga to be released, only to run into further issues in 2021 with Something for Hotties not having enough ‘original’ material and possibly forcing her to release two extra albums.
In court, her lawyer argued she was ‘young and naive’ when she signed in 2018 at 23, calling the contract ‘entirely unconscionable’. According to court documents filed by her team, 1501 ‘took complete advantage of her and fraudulently induced her to enter into the contract.’
With the release of her second album, Traumazine, Megan filed another complaint after which she and the label agreed to part ways, having settled outside of court.
This isn’t a modern problem by any means as George Michael took his label Sony to court in 1992, famously stating he was being treated as ‘no more than a piece of software’ when it came to creative output.
What have artists said about the pressures of signing?
Most artists will not be upfront in disagreements with their labels, simply opting to jump ship when a better deal is on the cards thanks to their success.
Joni Mitchell renounced the entire industry as a ‘cesspool’ in 2002, telling W magazine her 18th album Travelogue would be her last (only to release Shine five years later).
‘I’m quitting because the business made itself so repugnant to me,’ she said at the time. ‘Record companies are not looking for talent. They’re looking for a look and a willingness to cooperate.’
The now controversial Kanye West once took to X to slam his label EMI, owned by Universal Music Group, over his masters and likened his treatment to ‘modern day slavery’.
This language mirrored that used by the ‘artist formally known as Prince’, who seemed to have endless disputes about creative control until he eventually launched his own label.
During his 1995 Brits acceptance speech, he stated: ‘Prince. In concert: perfectly free. On record: slave.’
Ye went as far as posting pictures of his record contracts dating back to 2005 on his now-deleted account, although industry experts noted he actually had a rather good deal and renegotiated after every album.
‘If somebody wants to bemoan the evils of the recording industry, I’m not sure that Kanye is the poster child,’ entertainment lawyer James Sammataro told Vice at the time.
However, these cries have been echoed by others as Demi Lovato spoke of their unrelenting schedule after signing to Disney’s record label while still working on numerous TV and film projects.
‘I filmed Camp Rock, then I worked on my album,’ they shared in their documentary, Child Star. ‘I wrote it, recorded it within about a month and then I went on tour.’
Their diary consisted of filming TV, shooting a movie, recording another album, touring, filming another movie, recording another album, and filming another TV season.
‘It was back-to-back-to-back-to-back,’ Demi revealed. ‘Nobody really knew how to stop the machine. The train just kept moving, there were never any pauses.’
The Confident singer has suffered from multiple overdoses, complications from bulimia, and mental health issues, which they have attributed to early exposure to the industry and their bipolar disorder.
While Demi’s case included their acting career, it was a pathway offered to many child stars such as the Jonas Brothers, Sabrina Carpenter, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, and Britney Spears.
Olivia Rodrigo, who is not signed to Disney’s label, told The Guardian she was ultra-conscious of cost when recording her second album, producing ‘more anxiety and doubt.’
She said she was thinking: ‘Oh my God, we’re spending thousands of dollars and I feel like I’m not writing anything good.’
Some days, Olivia simply went into the studio and cried.
How have musicians fought back?
Over the years, numerous artists have pushed back against record labels by suing them, usually in hopes of gaining back their masters.
Master recordings are the original version of a song and those who hold it control the rights to that music, plus receiving a cut of any money made from them.
It would be impossible to discuss masters without mentioning Taylor Swift who has made her bid to control her music a very public affair, re-recording and releasing each album again.
After Big Machine Record owners Scott Borchetta and Scooter Braun reportedly blocked her from performing her old songs live in 2019, Taylor took to Tumblr to release a damning statement.
‘I feel very strongly that sharing what is happening to me could change the awareness level for other artists and potentially help them avoid a similar fate’she said.
‘The message being sent to me is very clear. Basically, be a good little girl and shut up. Or you’ll be punished. This is WRONG. Neither of these men had a hand in the writing of those songs.’
By re-recording her songs, Taylor strips the value from the original masters and ensures she receives 100% of the profit from her 17-year career, rather than Scooter.
Masters have become a huge battle in the music industry right now, with Rina Sawayama publicly calling out The 1975’s Matty Healy at Glastonbury stating ‘he also owns my masters’.
Both The 1975 and Rina are signed to Dirty Hit, with Matty serving as director until April 2023 and the four band members are also shareholders.
Raye’s public calling out of her former record label, Polydor, is one of the most memorable in recent times, with the singer-songwriter posting a thread on X stating she had been blocked from releasing music for seven years.
‘There’s an awful pressure on signed artists to make a hit song,’ she shared, adding that once she was signed her safe space to vent trauma ‘was taken’. She said: ‘My musical safe space was tainted.’
‘It didn’t take long for me to see that the dreams they lured me with were hot air,’ Raye told Variety. ‘As soon as I was signed, I was told the R&B I’d said I was excited to make wouldn’t sell in the UK. So to cater to the market – for now at least – I needed to write dance music, 120 BPM.’
She concluded: ‘I was trying my hardest to be what they wanted me to be, but they didn’t care about who I wanted to be at all.’
Days after her tweets, Raye was released from her label and went independent — and straight into the charts.
In 2022, Raye spoke to Metro about the impact this had on her, sharing: ‘Freedom of expression, telling the story the way I want to tell it regardless of how it will perform. It’s about building myself as an artist because I’m fully in control of my career for the first time.’
With streaming stripping much of the profits from releasing music and touring becoming more expensive, artists are forced to push back against labels just to make a living.
An overhaul of the industry is desperately needed and with more artists going independent, labels might find themselves under pressure to adapt or be left in the dust.
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