Weekly Copyright Update
September 11, 2015
Did Mike Huckabee Give “Eye of the Tiger” a Black Eye?
Kim Davis was released Tuesday morning, Sept. 8, after serving six days in prison, to the sound of the band Survivor’s classic song “Eye of the Tiger.” The Kentucky clerk was jailed after refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The song played in the background as she celebrated her freedom in front of thousands of supporters including presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.
Survivor issued a statement on their Facebook page a few days later stating:
“NO! We did not grant Kim Davis any rights to use ‘My Tune -The Eye Of The Tiger.’ I would not grant her the rights to use Charmin! C’mom Mike, you are not The Donald but you can do better than that -See Ya really SoooooooonnnnnnN!!!!!!”
Co-writer Jim Peterik posted on his Twitter account,
“I have not authorized the use of Eye of the Tiger for use by Kim Davis and my publisher will issue a C&D. This does not reflect my views.”
A “C&D” stands for “cease and desist.”
There were also online rumors that the song owners might be filing a lawsuit, but any such legal action has thus far not been substantiated at the time of this writing.
The Copyright Coach will be writing more in the next few days about the potential copyright infringement implications for playing or performing a song, such as “The Eye of the Tiger,” without proper licensing or permission. CCS’s PERFORMmusic License allows churches and ministries to legally play and perform in their facilities more than 19 million songs from ASCAP, BMI and SESAC, including “The Eye of the Tiger.”
If you’re passionate about the protection of creative works through copyright then we encourage you to join the Copyright Alliance grassroots initiative – One Voi©e Copyright Advocates. It’s free. Just fill out the form below by clicking here.
By becoming a One Voi©e Copyright Advocate, you add your voice to an international network of artists, creators, teachers, legal advocates, business and thought leaders, and other supporters who are committed to upholding creators’s rights.
Editor’s Note: One of today’s challenging question is ….How can you make a decent living if you’re a musician, artist or songwriter?
Why Intellectual Property Rights Matter
BY RANDOLPH J. MAY AND SETH L. COOPER: For all its enormous social and economic benefits to individuals and society, the Internet has its dark sides. One dark side is the theft of intellectual property. Economic losses from IP theft — principally theft of property subject to copyright — run into billions of dollars per year.
…but it is a big deal. The view that intellectual property rights are less deserving of online protection than other rights secured by the Constitution denigrates IP rights. It also denigrates basic principles of American constitutionalism.
Why Recorded Music Is MOST Valuable
BY DAVID NEWHOFF:
“That’s one of the great things about music. You can sing a song to 85,000 people and they’ll sing it back for 85,000 different reasons.” – Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters –
I saw this quote posted on Facebook the other day, and I hope it’s properly attributed because it expresses something I had been thinking about shortly after I and many others criticized the pollyanna NY Times Magazine article by Steven Johnson about two weeks ago. Because by writing for such a prominent publication, Johnson elevated the economic myth that live performances for musical artists are a legitimate substitute for the near-wholesale devaluation of recorded music in our times.
5 Ways Musicians Can Save Money
BY DYLAN WELSH: So much of our focus as professional musicians comes down to making money, since it can be such a difficult thing to do at times. However, you might get just as close to financial security if you take some steps to focus on saving the money that you do make. Of course, this is true for everybody, not just musicians. Some things are (hopefully) common sense, such as not going out to eat every day, avoiding expensive coffee beverages, and regularly depositing into your savings account.
Categorized in: Blog
