The often romanticized and glamorized world of fame and fortune that is the music industry has long carried notable baggage of personal controversies, contract disputes, and battles over creative control. As music and technology evolved over the decades, so have the complex issues surrounding music ownership and the power dynamics between artists and record labels. However, each hard-fought face-off has sparked important conversations and shifted industry currents for decades thereafter. Let’s look at some of the most impactful battles in the music industry since the 1990s.
MASTER OF YOUR DOMAIN: TAYLOR SWIFT VS. SCOOTER BRAUN
Taylor Swift recently wrapped up her record-breaking Eras Tour, exactly 1,989 days after losing control of her first six albums in a now famous dispute with former music manager Scooter Braun. In 2018, Swift left Big Machine Records, where she had recorded these first albums. The following year, Braun acquired the record label in a deal that included taking control of the masters for this material, while Swift was also openly trying to retain ownership of her work.
A lengthy public dispute ensued, during which the label and masters were sold again to a private investor not affiliated with Swift, who was still open to acquiring ownership of her early music catalog. Famously, the artist was able to re-record most of the albums in question, under terms that would allow her to retain ownership of the masters. However, not sooner than three years had passed since she originally left Big Machine Records.
While this time frame was somewhat typical of record deals in the past, the resolution of this dispute likely changed these terms for good across the music industry. Swift’s re-releases were a smashing commercial success compared to the original versions, which has led record companies to try to hedge against another “Taylor’s version” situation. Some contract offers now try to prohibit artists re-recording their music for up to 20 or even 30 years. Good-faith artist representation is now a whole new ballgame.
MUSE AGAINST THE MACHINE: PRINCE VS WARNER BROS.
One of the largest disputes to highlight the power dynamics between artists and record labels was the high-profile conflict between Prince and Warner Bros. Records in the early 1990s. In addition to an artist’s ownership of their work, this stand-off spoke to other challenges faced by artists in negotiating fair contracts and protecting their creative rights.
Prince was vocal and determined against label interference in the creative process, as well as in the scheduling and manipulation of the artist’s vision in terms of distribution and release. Throughout his career, he raised awareness for artists’ rights while stubbornly and creatively setting his own course in how his music reached its audience.
The trail he blazed inspired other acts, such as Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Chance the Rapper, and more, to find ways to circumvent traditional promotion and distribution routes and release albums directly to their fans when they wanted and how they wanted. His Purpleness was perhaps the foremost artist to stand up for not putting the creative juice through a strainer or the inspiring muse on a corporate schedule.
MISTRUST THE PROCESS: MICHAEL JACKSON VS. SONY
For more than a decade, Michael Jackson seemed to enjoy a highly successful collaboration with Sony Music Entertainment — his partnership deal reportedly granted him half of what the company earned on his music, he was one of very few superstars at the time to have reversion rights to their recordings, and his contract had Sony pay what were at the time unusually large advances for recording fees and video costs, as well as for marketing and promotion.
In the early 2000s, however, the collaboration went sour when Jackson reportedly felt that Sony may have intentionally shortchanged the promotion of his “Invincible” album. The artist was very openly critical of the label and its head at the time, insisting that Sony was not providing sufficient support for his creative vision or promoting his music aggressively enough.
Another more recent controversy echoes similar claims from an artist about their label — Canadian artist Drake took to legal maneuvers against Universal Music Group and Spotify, claiming unfair promotion, marketing, and distribution practices that may have benefitted Kendrick Lamar’s music to Drake’s detriment.
Both artists are signed to UMG, which has denied any unethical practice of undermining either of the two or any of their other artists’ interests. However, the dispute did flare up discussion regarding the influence of modern-day algorithms and streaming platforms on the reach and success of musicians.
DON’T HOLD BACK THE MUSIC: RAYE VS POLYDOR
In 2021, British singer song-writer Raye had millions of monthly listeners on Spotify, multiple Top 20 hits to her name, songwriting credits for top-tier artists including Rihanna, Beyoncé, and John Legend, and a four-album contract with major UK label Polydor Records since 2014. However, no album of her own had been released. That year, Raye opened up about the frustration of her solo recordings being long-shelved, despite her appeal to the audience, while her promotion was limited to collaborations or writing credits for other voices. She parted ways with the label very soon after and quickly achieved her success as an independent artist — the debut album she finally released in 2023 earned her a record-breaking seven BRIT award nominations and six wins in 2024.
Her dispute with Polydor shined a light on something that is not uncommon in the music industry — the road to a debut album can be questionably long for some artists who excitedly sign multi-album deals with big labels and then find themselves sidelined and reserved for mixtapes, collaborations, EPs, and tastemaker tracks for years. The reasons, if given, tend to not be very straightforward and can include:
- economic considerations, like the label deciding it would rather not invest in the album campaign
- highly subjective judgment call, like the label not vibing with the recordings or not feeling it would achieve a certain level of success if released
- reasons not necessarily tied to the talent of the artist or the quality of their music, such as conditioning the investment by the artist building up a certain following or surpassing a certain mark in the charts
- or even something as arbitrary as the person who signed the artist leaving the record company.
DEALING IN DIGITAL: DR. DRE VS DEATH ROW RECORDS
Adding the digital sphere to music promotion and distribution does not always automatically add to an artist’s revenue streams. Such was the high-profile case of Dr. Dre, who took the Death Row Records label to court over unpaid digital sales revenue.
After co-founding the label in 1991, Dr. Dre exited the record company. In 2008, Death Row was sold, along with its catalog. The new owners set out to capitalize on the music through digital sales, with campaigns including a re-issuing of Dre’s The Chronic. The renamed WIDEawake/Death Row sold and distributed Dre’s music online and included it on various compilation projects without consulting with the artist or honoring royalties from these sales. A court ruling has since granted Dr. Dre 100 % of proceeds earned from these digital online sales and limited the record label to selling the album in the format it was in prior to Dr. Dre's company exit in 1996 — old-fashioned cassette, CD, 8-track, and vinyl.
Other long-standing, high-profile artists, such as Eminem and Pink Floyd, have also had to fight for their rights to digital royalties and recover millions in unpaid fees, due to contracts that predated digital downloads and streaming.
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