Pirated by iTunes, Artist Turns to BitTorrent
Written by enigmax on February 06, 2008The Flashbulb, aka Benn Jordan, became so outraged when he discovered that iTunes was effectively pirating his music, that he uploaded copies of his latest album to BitTorrent. TorrentFreak caught up with Benn to learn more about the decision to stop distributors and ‘coked-up label reps’ from getting all the cash.
An established, but outraged musician has decided to shun conventional distribution methods by following other recent initiatives (such as Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’ promotion) by making his latest album available for free download. It’s available on BitTorrent on sites like The Pirate Bay, with so-called ‘OiNK replacement’ site, What.cd, providing the album on ‘free leech’ to encourage more downloads.
TorrentFreak caught up with Benn Jordan who told us he’s not just disillusioned, he’s ‘outraged’ that iTunes is selling his work without permission and seemingly keeping all the money.
TF: Please tell us a little bit about yourself and your musical journey.
Benn: I’m Benn and I’m 29 years old. I started playing classical guitar when I was about 5, and since then, all I’ve wanted to do with my life was make music. Now 20-some odd years later, I feel lucky to tell you that I make music for a living. I’ve been releasing albums for about 14 years on various indy labels, and in the last 5 years I’ve also been composing for television, film, and ads. Music has allowed me to travel the world, meet thousands of wonderful people, and express myself through my work. It seems impossible to me that I’m on this planet for any other reason than writing music.
My label, on the other hand, doesn’t have a complex or radical plan. Our goal is to simply compensate our artists as much as possible, and that includes utilizing the “digital revolution” to our advantage, instead of punishing our artists by punishing their fans.
TF: Tell us a little about your dealings with labels and ‘the industry’ and why you became disillusioned.
Benn: Luckily, my record contracts were always negotiated well. Once things started moving with small labels I was approached by some larger ones, but there was always some seedy stipulation that prevented me from ever signing.
Still, with a 50/50 contract, I’d be selling 2,000 albums and would get $250 for it somehow. Many people that i’d meet at my shows would say that they bought my music on iTunes, yet I’ve never signed any sort of agreement allowing iTunes to host my music, and I’ve certainly never seen a dime of money for my albums hosted there.
So I started investigating the numbers from the label, which led me to some shocking revelations about how little the artist and label was getting in comparison to the retailers. When I got around to asking about iTunes, the owner of Sublight Records pleaded with me to “leave it be”. Everyone else made an extraordinary effort to ignore my calls and emails.
When I finally got a hold of the digital distributor (I must note that “digital distributor” is the most pathetic job title I’ve ever heard), I was told that once the files are in the iTunes system, it literally couldn’t be removed or taken down for a year. So, either Apple has created a self-aware doomsday machine that cannot be stopped or reasoned with, or everyone involved is just enjoying the gravy train of ripping off artists like myself and using Apple’s backbone of attorneys as an intimidation factor.
Even after having a lawyer working for me on this matter, this is the one and only response we’ve EVER been able to get from Apple:
Dear Benn,
I understand that you are writing to the iTunes Store because you are upset about finding your own album “The Flashlight” and some of your other album as well on the iTunes Store, and that you feel that you are owned
royalties for this music that his being purchased. I am sorry that you have to found this upsetting. My name is Wendy, and I would be happy to link you to right people to talk to about this issue
So, who’s the pirate I should go after? A kid who downloads my album because it isn’t available in non-DRM format and costs $30 on Amazon? Or a huge multi-billion dollar corporation that has been selling thousands of dollars worth of my music and not even acknowledging it?
I’m not disillusioned, I’m outraged, and anyone who ever spent a dime on buying music through these distribution methods should be outraged too. Here we are pleading with people to not steal music, and then we hand them dog shit when they go out of their way to buy it.
TF: You were a member of OiNK. Could you tell us a bit about your time there and how you used the site?
Benn: OiNK was an amazing network. As an avid-collector of ultra-rare old jazz records, I’ll tell you right now that it was the most complete and diverse library of music the world has ever seen. I filled some requests by uploading some of my rarer albums there. Eventually I started being harassed by someone on the network who was sending screen grabs of my seed lists to record labels. Upon complaining, a moderator simply removed my ability to communicate with anyone on the network or post comments on torrents. I can understand the paranoia and strictness.
I guess I just sort of laughed it off and stopped using it. When Oink went down, the only thing that surprised me was that the servers weren’t hidden in some weird country.
TF: Could you tell us more about the support you’re getting from one of the so-called ‘OiNK replacement’ sites, ‘What.cd’ ?
Benn: It was really a fresh breath of air for What.cd to promote the idea of artists having involvement with their own torrents. Not only does it benefit the artist to no end, but I can’t imagine that any court in the world would be able to pin someone on copyright infringement for a torrent the copyright holder created.
TF: Aside from uploading your own albums, at times you took an anti-piracy stance at OiNK, why the big change of heart?
Benn: I don’t think my stance has changed all that much. It’d be a great PR move to say that I’m pro-piracy, but I’d be lying. I keep seeing these internet news stories saying things like “The Flashbulb Promotes Piracy”. It is totally out of control. How could I be promoting piracy if I’m uploading my own material with a “buy it if you like it” message in the torrent?
What I’m promoting is the artist’s freedom to choose what can and can’t be done with his/her music, and more importantly, the listener’s freedom to do what he/she wants with their own computer, MP3 player, or internet connection.
After a journey through miles and miles of bullshit in this industry, you learn one thing: If you want something done right, you’ve got to do it yourself. Whether you’re downloading my music to check it out, to accompany the CD, or even pirating it…I want you to have a version/rip of it that I’ve listened to and approved of.
TF: You say you’re not pro-piracy yet you downloaded stuff from OiNK and also What.cd. One position seems to conflict the other. How do you explain this?
Benn: In my case I think that visible list of downloads strengthens my point. Most of those downloads are actually albums I already own (much easier to download than to record an entire vinyl album), albums I previewed but didn’t like, or albums I simply cannot find available in a suitable DRM-free format (including CD). Some of the software, like the TomTom DVD on my list, is actually impossible to technically “pirate” because you can’t buy a US TomTom GPS unit without the software. The thing is, when a tracker gets busted, the companies count these towards their losses.
So, my new album currently has 6381 downloads at the time of this interview on what.cd alone. Using that deceitful equation, my losses are over $100,000. If I wanted to, I could subtract those losses from my profit and completely get out of paying any income taxes. It makes sense from an evil, corporate, criminal-minded standpoint, right?
Beyond that, iTunes and other services simply are not acceptable to me. No company will have any control over a product that I legally own after I buy it, period.
Oink was the biggest music library in the world. People didn’t use it because they were criminals, people used it because it was literally better than any service you could pay for. It was the stubborn behavior of the record labels, artists, and government that wouldn’t allow that music library to have a cash register at the front door.
The thing RIAA is scared of is that their billion dollar backbone can no longer shelter people from exploring music themselves. Their business plan had evolved into telling the world what they will want to listen to and buy, and now they’ll have to actually compete with talented artists again. As the people regain control of the market, music will be judged by it’s content again and will be subjected to it’s own Darwinism. It is a very interesting time for the music industry…and since my entire life is devoted to making music, bring it on. I hope that this situation with my new record proves to other labels and artists that giving people exactly what they want is the smartest way to conduct any business.
TF: How do you feel about people being heavily punished for sharing music?
Benn: Obviously, the last thing I would want is anyone to be fined or imprisoned for listening to my music. Another feature of uploading my own torrent is that it creates a little legal nesting area on a network otherwise deemed illegal by most governments and RIAA. When someone else uploads a torrent of my music, it is without my approval…on the other end of things, and more importantly, when someone raids an admin’s apartment…no police officer is asking me if I want to press charges.
TF: What happens when people donate?
Benn: If you decide that you like the album, you’ll have the option of donating directly to the artist. If you decide that you’d like a CD, you’ll be able to order it directly from my label. I’ve even hired my mother to run our shipping department since she’s the most obsessive-compulsive-perfectionist office worker that I’ve ever laid eyes on.
Finally, every detail of my album’s content, release, and business is done exactly the way I want it to be done. I hope other artists realize how liberating and profitable it is compared to the distribution system we’ve all become so accustomed to.
TF: Radiohead did really quite well after they offered ‘In Rainbows’ online for free. You’re a few days into this experiment - how is it going for you?
Benn: My donations have a way to go before they match the numbers from CD pre-orders, but I’m still crossing my fingers. In a week or so I plan to release a detailed statistical report. For some reason I really like making pie charts.
TF: I’ve listened to the album - Soundtrack To A Vacant Life - and I really enjoyed it. Could you tell us some more about it?
Benn: It was 2 years in the making, and is conceptually me attempting to write the soundtrack to my own life. Of course this means that it is much more cinematic than electronic, and the songs all connect chronologically. Those who have heard my previous albums can expect this one to be a lot more melodic, tame, and instrumental. Suggested listening is with a decent pair of headphones from start to finish.
TF: I have some, I’ll try that later. Thanks for your time.
Benn Jordan’s blog can be found here.
Previously: The Pirate Bay Fights Danish ISP Block
Next: How a BitTorrent Tracker Owner Hides from the MPAA/RIAA
129 Responses
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@13
Funniest post ever…so random…so elegant…so eloquently put…a breath of life in such a serious thread…
what the hell, squarepusher made this music already in like 2004, on “ultravisitor”. i think he just tried to elaborate on it, not very well in some cases it seems.
like all he did was mix together old squarepusher and more recent squarepusher style, with a bunch of aphex twin elements.
decent, but disapointing when you know the history behind it.
benn jordan (aka the flashbulb) is a notorious scammer.
this guy was censored from wikipedia for editing his own page with vast amounts of bullshit about what a genius he is. bloody hell..there was stuff about him being involved in the early chicago ‘acid house’ movement when he was only 12 years old.
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benn_Jordan&oldid=80816374
he has taken music equipment to gigs and pretended to play it, only to have people discover that the cords weren’t even plugged in.
he is not above doing anything for attention, and has obviously succeeded this time.
download his album if you must, but don’t donate money to him. he is lying fake.
[quote comment="282659"]Just for the record, Apple does not make a lot of money on the iTunes store. It just about breaks even. Apple pays for every single download.
This guy is, unfortunately, being screwed over his record label. Blaming iTunes is a clever PR move.[/quote]
Make it avaible to largest audience in the world. For example send it to last.fm or share it on TPB. Larger audience = more chances to be heard, and to get something out of it.
I don’t care what people say, his latest album is outstanding…
First of all, who in their right mind contacts the iTunes store to have their music taken down? That’s the support portal for customers with issues. For the love of God, if you think someone has stolen your music, you get a lawyer and go after the parent company.
Nimwit.
Second, what does DRM have to do with anything when discussing the iTunes store? iTunes effectively dropped DRM except when enforced by the parent label. Meaning, if his stuff was DRM’d, his label wanted it and not Apple.
Does this tool do any research, like at all?
This article is completely slanted to make it appear as though iTunes broke into his home in the middle of the night and stole his music so they could host it. That’s hardly the case. Someone made a deal with iTunes and the artist got screwed. That’s not iTunes fault. As always, it’s the fault of the label and possibly the RIAA. No, I’m going to point the finger at the RIAA because it’s always the RIAA.
STOP hating the distributor. iTunes is one of the reasons that most companies have been forced into releasing DRM free content. All you stupid fools that are commenting “f*ck Apple” haven’t got a clue that you are hating on the company that forced the change from the DRM chokehold to DRM free content. (and before you accuse me of being an Apple fangirl, I’m no Apple fan)
GOD, I hate lemmings.
You want to hate someone and blame someone? It’s the same culprit as always, the RIAA i.e. the labels. Could the rest of you maybe do some research and rely on something other than the word of an idiot artist who is dumb enough to contact iTunes support to have his music taken down? That’s like walking up to the gas station attendant and asking him to lower the price of gas at the pump.
This guy needs to stop smoking crack, hire a good lawyer and go about this the right way. He’s probably not going to win because I’ll bet you he signed a contract way back that stated his label controlled digital distribution and he’s screwed. Contacting some monkey in front line support is going to get him nowhere.
@50
Do you have any proofs for your claims? Or were you directly sent from iTunes? :f
[quote comment="282834"]@50
Do you have any proofs for your claims? Or were you directly sent from iTunes? :f[/quote]
LMFAO
Disagree and you’re an iTunes drones. I love it. I guess the only acceptable response in the forum is “OMGIHATEZtehAPPLE111!!!!” Appling any logic is teh bad.
What do I need to prove? Any idiot can google DRM and iTunes and the proof is in the search results. And no, I didn’t come from iTunes. I called their support staff monkeys. I pointed the finger at the RIAA.
How stupid are you?
This guy is lying just to promote himself. I’m an artist that gets paid good money from iTunes. He needs to sort things out with his label, not Apple.
BS
this is a publisity stunt
publicity*
How the hell can one have a copyright on FICTION? This why I only play and also listen to instrumental music in ALL formats, because it’s just Mathematics!! However, as soon as anyone records a “Song” of any kind with words in it, and then expects to copyright the work so nobody can steal it, they’ve already lost. The reason iTunes or for that matter, anyone, can rip off songs written with words of any kind is, because copyright means just an OPINION!! No different than the 88 versions of The Bible…it’s all copyright, meaning it’s all opinion!! which is FICTION!!
Niggy Tardust is an awesome album!
This article is BS. First, Apple isn’t responsible for paying the artist for each track sold, no more than WalMart is responsible for paying the artist. The artists’ label collects the money and is responsible for paying the artist what is owed. If Jordan is unaware of this fact it can only be because, like all too many artists, he failed to get a lawyer to help explain the 18 different ways a standard label written contract screws the artist. His label, of course, is well aware of this. Why else was he told to ‘leave it alone.’
Second, who the heck does this guy think he is that he can tell his label where to sell an album? What artist has this power. Well, maybe Bono and Mic could say, “Uh dudes, WalMart is out.” But no one else could.
The only thing sorrier than Jordan’s story is the fact that is being reported here by someone who should a) know better and b) have done a bit of checking before printing the story.
All your inspiration have never come from you, but from somewhere else. Don’t claim that you as a human are the owner of such and such.
You’re blocking your creativity insisting that you alone own anything. The more you let go, the more you will recieve.
In the days of the Trovadours, the music and compositions were disbursed to the public freely, and all received it, sang it, enjoyed it, and even tweaked it, thus improved the art.
The control of music has “gone out of control.” Wherein law suits are being brought against the public - and the internet public, that downloads music for themselves, and enjoys it.
A lawsuit is a pretty poor way for an artist to repay back the fans. So that while the artist goes wild, spending freely, traveling, gambling at Vegas, in dissipation, and drugs, alcohol and prostitutes, partying and wild times, - it is the poor sucker fan, who toes the lines, working on a 9-5- 5days a week - NOT including the sweat and anxiety of transit to and fro, and often, at a boring-soul-deadening job - these poor slobs, that buy the music, and enjoy and love the music and artists, giving their energies and souls to the artist, as well as their hard-earned money - which by the way, the recording industry is now charging an unreasonable amount.
I’m really glad that it’s evident, and you are one of a long line of examples, showing that NO one can keep hold of anything and hug it to themselves, greedily.
And this is a trend, that shows that in the future, music will be freely given and shared again. Passed around freely, as a gift of the Great Mind (did you really think God looked like a human?).
And that in giving music and poetry and writings, the artist and author, will be given back, other very valuable things. JUST as freely.
“benn jordan (aka the flashbulb) is a notorious scammer.
this guy was censored from wikipedia for editing his own page with vast amounts of bullshit about what a genius he is. bloody hell..there was stuff about him being involved in the early chicago ‘acid house’ movement when he was only 12 years old.”
I’m also guessing that someone is paying him to discredit iTunes.
Great - so as an artist you give away music and you oppose DRM. My question is how do you propose to make a living? Like it or not, sales are the bread and butter for most musicians, which is why so many are finding it impossible to live from music. What we need is a single, fair, independent, global standard for DRM - the current mess we’re in benefits no one, least of all the artist.
has stealing music over the internet caused concerts prices to go up? anyone have any good links on this sort of thing?
thanks
Yes, I agree with most of the posters that whatshisname has the wrond end of the stick entirely. iTunes pays me fine but it certainly isn’t a living. Self promotion is the the only thing I can really manage and I have long maintained that the only real value of record copmanies was in their marketing power. That said they have been peddling crap music to witless consumers for decades!
I’ve been giving away tracks for years. Some more recent rough and ready tracks as ‘ACEtone ALLstars’ started having pretty heavy download numbers so I decided to make them available at a price. See here…
http://www.acetonestudio.com/acetoneallstars.html
on the same page (at the bottom) you can either listen or download for free or if you like something you can buy an mp3.
This is not intended to be shameless promotion. But I think it illustrates that if you have contol over the music you make you can do what you like with it. If you entrust it to others, you take your chances…
Interesting interview but riddled with misinformation, naivety etc.
[quote comment="283002"]Great - so as an artist you give away music and you oppose DRM. My question is how do you propose to make a living? [/quote]
My keeping the money for himself instead of handing out the biggest part of it to the ML’s?
Besides that his artwork will stay his own this way, too. He can do whatever he want with it, without asking MAFIAA for permission.
typo:
I meant ‘By keeping’
@TF your site accused me of adding too many posts, eventho It was my first one for hours and 2nd today.
sorry, that should have read ‘Self promotion is the the only thing I can NOT really manage…’
Just go to Benn Jordan’s blog - it clarifies a lot. the interview was poorly executed:
http://www.bennjordan.com/blog/
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