Pick On Someone Your Own Size
Published October 01, 2002
It has recently come to our attention that you are at risk of losing the few remaining fans (collectively referred to in the past by the Artist as "Friends") you have on the Internet (and otherwise) who have been legally purchasing copyrighted material owned by the Artist for years including, but not limited to, 8x10 glossy pictures, jewelry, magazines, tickets for concerts that were cancelled, mediocre albums from the likes of T.C. Ellis and Carmen Electra, underwear, perfume, and recordings (the "Authorized Material") without any regard to the ultimate quality of the product. You are hereby put on notice that the dissemination of any such Authorized Material in the future without the prior express apology from the Artist for this unwarranted attack upon his Friends may cause immediate and irreparable harm to Paisley Park's reputation and to the Artist's valuable proprietary right in his name, image and likeness and would also constitute a willful violation of both the trust we have put into him and loyalty we have shown him over the years.
Accordingly, we hereby demand the following of you and any person or entity with which you are affiliated: (1) that you immediately cease and desist from the dissemination or copying of that silly legal notice you sent your Friends; (2) that you deliver to us all copies of NPG Magazine you owe us (or a refund); (3) that you deliver to us all such copies of Authorized Material (Crystal Ball) which have been ordered and charged to said Friends credit cards but which have not been shipped yet; (4) that you provide full refunds to those who have cancelled their orders with 1-800-New-Funk; (5) that you remove all references from your web pages or web sites regarding the ordering of Crystal Ball until such a time as you can guarantee one week delivery of said album. We further demand that you advise us immediately of what steps you will take to prevent the dissemination or further distribution of such legal notices or exploitation of your Friends by you, any affiliates or related entities.
You are hereby placed on notice that the continued dissemination of that legal notice, or other exploitation of your dwindling fan base is not in your best interest and is a serious violation of the loyalty your Friends have shown you through thick and (fiber-optic) thin. This letter is without prejudice to Friend's legal and equitable rights, all of which are expressly reserved.
Please understand that this is not a threat of a boycott of his music; we will continue to listen to and enjoy every song he puts out. It is simply a statement of our intention to not purchase another product from the Artist until he shows proper respect for those who have made him what he is.
I look forward to hearing an apology from you immediately but in no event later than the close of business on April 3, 1998. I or any of my Friends can be reached at
- Pick On Someone Your Own Size
- Published: October 01, 2002
- Type:
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: News, Music: Pop, Music: Hip-hop, Music: Rock
- Writer: Eric Olsen
- Eric Olsen's BC Writer page
- Eric Olsen's personal site
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Comments on this articleComments
Good point, Chris, thanks.
And this after Island Records sued Negativland into the ground 'on behalf' of U2, based on Negativland's use of mateiral related to that bunch of Irish 'rockers'. Another duality.
interesting... might also find this interesting as well... thanks...
Thanks Matthew (?), looks very interesting indeed, will follow up.
No, just a visitor of his site. Matthew also linked to this site yesterday too (but for some reason the links and quote are no longer there.)
Prince: "Regardless of industry spin, eye love my fams and thank them 4 ALL their support, even the bootleggers! Peace and Love Christ." - Prince, 6/8/00
Also listed temporarily here:
(In prince's own words on page 6 of the liner notes of his official 5cd "Crystal Ball" boxset)
"9. Movie Star - D'Angelo's favorite bootleg. His love 4 this track inspired its inclusion..."
Prince has an interesting way of expressing to his fans how he feels about bootlegging. From accepting it in interviews & liner notes, to sueing one of the folks that bought the 5CD set simply because of what was mentioned in the article above. Not exactly what they teach in business school. Is the lawsuit just a way to drum up publicity for Prince's own upcoming 3CD live album coming out this fall? Seems like a pretty cheap way of getting it in the short run, but quite expensive in the long run based on just a few of the responses here.
As posted here by Prince on his official website less than 2 months ago:
What is 4 sure, however, is that, in spite of its many claims 2 the contrary, the recording industry has yet 2 provide evidence that P2P is actually detrimental 2 music making as an artistic endeavor, and even as a commercial venture. It is worth remembering, 4 xample, that sales of music CDs actually increased when Napster was at its peak, and declined after Napster was abruptly shut down. Even economists who thought that file sharing "should b" hurting the recording industry r now xpressing their doubts, based on what they say is simply not happening.
More importantly, many well-respected artists have sided with Internet users against corporate greed and actually use the Internet 2 promote alternative ways 2 distribute their music and reach out 2 a non-captive, legitimate audience of authentic music lovers.
This does not mean, of course, that all 4ms of file sharing r equally innocuous. There is little doubt that, when people use the Internet as a substitute 4 radio, i.e. as a way 2 discover new music, it can help promote the work of artists. But when a young junior high school student downloads tracks off the Internet and makes CD-R copies of them that he then sells 4 $5 in the schoolyard, it hurts sales of the original CD and it's disrespectful of the artist - regardless of how small a cut of the actual CD price the artist actually gets after all the xecutives and the middlemen in the recording industry have taken their piece of the pie.
Still, can we really go as far as 2 say that digital technology is creating a "nation of thieves" who no longer recognize the just value of art?
Contradiction anyone?
Hi,
Just read your dialog regardingPrince copyright issue. I have just been suspended from eBay for 1 year for selling an official Prince DVD which is available on many online shops like amazon, hmv etc... as well as retail shops. Obviously these people who are in charge of that holy mission are targeting independent music sellers who can not fight back easily. I make my living on Ebay and the only way i could resume is for Prince's people to withdraw their complaint which i guess not going to happen. The DVD Prince Glory Years has even an authentic EAN number but these things do not mean anything unless you are HMV or some other big company that can defend itself. They do not even bother to provide a contact to discuss the subject with. Do you have any idea what i can do about this? Best Regards...
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What's interesting is it seems like artists whose careers are in decline are the only ones upset by all this new fangled internet music sharing. Run "U2 Live" through a Google search and you find a ton of sites offering "pirated" CD's or downloads. Heck, one site even has almost every U2 show ever done available for download.