Samples Etico.

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By supporting sampling we are supporting creativity, creativity in the new musical artists, and we need these artists, because music is a part of humanity, every human culture have its own music. And sampling is now part of the evolution in music, and it should be an ethical practice, so the new artists can express themselves more easily with a new ethical and legal law, that provides equality to both artists, the one being sampled and the artist creating a new track.

“Technology was defined in the fuller sense of “technological capability” and included the complex of individual and organizational skills wich operated on hardware so as to produce a capability”.(James Avery Joyce, 1978). Sampling is part of music technologies, that helps artists create, as artist Robert Fitzgerald Diggs says better known as (RZA) “In the old days, not that long ago, it took 20 people to make a record. Yo had to get a bass player, keyboard player, drummer, sax, strings – all those it took to make good songs,”he said, citing guitarist-pal Jonhn Frusciante’s efforts to legitimize sampling in music. “Now, that material is inside your sampler, inside your laptop.”(Jen Yamato, 2015). People is creating new technology, to create new music, because people needs music, and music needs laws and ethical behaviour for its new technologies. Without it artist will

As RZA says “art is something that’s made to inspire the future. If you utilize somebody’s artistic expression blatantly, to [the point] where it’s an identifiable thing, then there should be some sort of compensation to the person that inspires you.”(Jen Yamato, 2015). It is true the fact that the artists should give compensation to other artists work, but they should also think about respect to other artists and ask for permission so they don’t feel like “they are building a house on their land”.

Respect for the work of other people should be an ethical practice, in everything not just in music, Laurence Sterne says “Respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others guides our manners.(Arnaud Romeo, 2011). So artists need to create a respectful community with laws that are based on equality.

Citating RZA “I’ve been in situations where I’ve sampled something and the original copyright holder took 90 percent” he said. “That means they ignored all the programming, drumming, keyboard playing I played on top of it, they ignored every lyric, every hook, everything that we built to make it a song. And we wound up selling more copies than the sample version- but yet they took 90 percent of the song.” He also said “When you hear an A chord to the D to the E, there are over one million song wih that same progression. And each one of their songs is identified as their own. The point being that art will continue to inspire the next generation, and we will find duplication.”(Jen Yamato, 2015). What RZA meant is that art is inspired by another work of art, and laws should not allow taking 90 percent of an artist you inspired with your work.

Like Baauer song “Harlem Shake” they took all the royalties of the song and he didn’t got paid for his work. The law should have gave him recognition for his work, and not only to the artists involved. With the next charts I will show the popularity of the “Harlem Shake” track and the sales it got. In Chart 1. Popularity you can see the song achievements in the year 2013 and in Chart 2. Certifications the number of sales around the globe.

Chart 1. Popularity

Obtained from Wikipedia.

*Ultratop 50(49), Ultratop Flanders Dance(36), Ultratop Wallonia(31), Ultratop Wallonia Dance(66).

Chart (2013) Position

Australia(ARIA) 61

Belgium(Ultratop* Average) 36

Canada (Canadian Hot 100) 93

Italy (FIMI) 85

UK Singles (Official Charts 72 Company)

US Billboard Hot 100 4

US Dance/Electronic Songs 1 (Billboard)

Chart 2. Certifications

Obtained from Wikipedia.

*Sales figures based on certification alone. ^Shipments figures based on certification alone.

In conclusion sampling could be a ethical practice if artists that are using it respect the law and clear the samples they are using, and the law needs to be more equal with the new artists, because it is not ethical to take 100% of the royalties of an artist work, it also needs to be clear preventing loopholes. And add a ethical responsibility campaign promoting respect between artists and promoting collaboration via sampling technologies. I will like to finish this essay with a quote from RZA “If I was in a situation of political power, I would be like, ‘Look-there’s a 50 percent statutory maximum, and then we work our way down from that based on the context of the song and based on its usage’. Bong”. (Jen Yamato, 2015).

References.

Blackmore, S. (2000). The Power Of Meme’s. Retrieved May 10, 2015, from https://www.psy.cmu.edu/~rakison/memes.pdf

Creativity: Unleashing the forces within (p.208). (1999). New York: St. Martin’s Griffin.

Diplo Clears 'Harlem Shake' Samples. (2013, April 26). Retrieved March 23, 2015, from http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/diplo-clears-harlem-shake-samples- 20130426

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Joyce, J(1978). Human rights: International documents. Alphen aan den Rijn: Sijthoff & Noordhoff

Legal issues surrounding music sampling. (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2015, from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_issues_surrounding_music_sampling

Lindenbaum, J. (1999, April 8). MUSIC SAMPLING AND COPYRIGHT LAW. Retrieved March 23, 2015, from

Region Certification Sales/Shipments

Australia (ARIA) 2x Platinum 140,000

Belgium (BEA) Gold 15,000^*

New Zealand (RMNZ) Platinum 15,000*

United Kingdom (BPI) Silver 200,000^