Many people don't pay for the music they listen to. That has several reasons. On the one hand there are people that just don't want to pay for anything. On the other hand there are people that don't pay for a reason or that only don't pay for some music.
Should I pay for the music I listen to?
First of all: Why do people make music? That, of course, differs from musician to musician. I would to assess musicians by their intentions like this:
-A1- Money: You can earn money with music. Entertain people and they will pay for it.
-A2- Art: Creating a piece of art is challenging and interesting. When you create something unique, you'll feel good.
-A3- Expressing feelings / thoughts: Music is a way to cope with your sorrows, anger, but also you can express love and happiness with it.
-A4- Fun: Making music can be fun, alone or in a group.
-A5- Appreciation: It's easy to brag when you can play an instrument very well (unless it's a triangle or something).
Now of course you can't say "he makes it only for the fun and she only for the art." Everybody makes it for reasons A2, A3, A4 and A5, but for everyone the intentions are more or less distinct.
-B2- Conformity: Some people only listen to music because others do it, too. They probably don't understand or truly appreciate it.
-B3- Dancing: Addicting rhythms are very stimulating. Also, it's part of lots of sexual rituals all over the world.
-B4- Emotions: People can feel certain emotions through music and cope with negative feelings.
-B5- Challenge your brain / Art: People think about music, interpret it, search for patterns and judge it.
So, for what reasons are you content to pay?
ad B1: I don't think anyone should pay for some meaningless background noise like elevator music.
ad B2: If you're only listening to music because you see the people in the media and your friends doing it you should pay, because it's a consumer good to you.
ad B3: Dancing music is a source of entertainment that people should pay for in my opinion.
ad B4: Should you pay for emotions? No. Nobody should pay for deep feelings.
ad B5: Here the listener also does some work, he also creates art in his mind while listening. The pleasure and entertainment gained through this kind of listening is a product by the listener and therefore he shouldn't pay for it.
So, if you like an album you should consider why you like it, why the artist made it and how much you think that the artist deserves the money. Also, you should consider if the artist still is alive (what is the point in paying for music by people that are dead? Why should anyone still pay for a Michael Jackson album?) and how much of the money you spend goes to the artist and if there is another way to send the artist money (for example merchandising, donations, ...). The labels get way too much money.
After considering this, you should decide how much you pay for the album.
Should I pay for the music I listen to?
First of all: Why do people make music? That, of course, differs from musician to musician. I would to assess musicians by their intentions like this:
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| Deep Purple - I like them, but should I pay for their albums? |
-A2- Art: Creating a piece of art is challenging and interesting. When you create something unique, you'll feel good.
-A3- Expressing feelings / thoughts: Music is a way to cope with your sorrows, anger, but also you can express love and happiness with it.
-A4- Fun: Making music can be fun, alone or in a group.
-A5- Appreciation: It's easy to brag when you can play an instrument very well (unless it's a triangle or something).
Now of course you can't say "he makes it only for the fun and she only for the art." Everybody makes it for reasons A2, A3, A4 and A5, but for everyone the intentions are more or less distinct.
The next point I consider is: Why do people listen to music? That also is a mix of interests:
-B1- Boredom: Yes, I think this is an important reason. Music is very often abused as a "background noise".-B2- Conformity: Some people only listen to music because others do it, too. They probably don't understand or truly appreciate it.
-B3- Dancing: Addicting rhythms are very stimulating. Also, it's part of lots of sexual rituals all over the world.
-B4- Emotions: People can feel certain emotions through music and cope with negative feelings.
-B5- Challenge your brain / Art: People think about music, interpret it, search for patterns and judge it.
So, for what reasons are you content to pay?
ad B1: I don't think anyone should pay for some meaningless background noise like elevator music.
ad B2: If you're only listening to music because you see the people in the media and your friends doing it you should pay, because it's a consumer good to you.
ad B3: Dancing music is a source of entertainment that people should pay for in my opinion.
ad B4: Should you pay for emotions? No. Nobody should pay for deep feelings.
ad B5: Here the listener also does some work, he also creates art in his mind while listening. The pleasure and entertainment gained through this kind of listening is a product by the listener and therefore he shouldn't pay for it.
So, if you like an album you should consider why you like it, why the artist made it and how much you think that the artist deserves the money. Also, you should consider if the artist still is alive (what is the point in paying for music by people that are dead? Why should anyone still pay for a Michael Jackson album?) and how much of the money you spend goes to the artist and if there is another way to send the artist money (for example merchandising, donations, ...). The labels get way too much money.
After considering this, you should decide how much you pay for the album.
People should consider this when they talk about the illegal downloading of music. You can't generalise the value of music and you can't lump together all file sharers.
