I stumbled on this while going through our Twitter. The letter speaks for itself, but I have to say that I wholeheartedly agree with what NJ White has to say. In fact a lot of other people have too, as this letter has been gaining some headlines lately. To give some perspective, Whitey, the band in question, is actually very well to do, and they have had their music in a lot of TV shows (Breaking Bad, Sopranos etc.) which we all know and love, so these aren’t some two bit amateurs we are talking about.

We’ve been contacted by people like this as well, and to say the least, it’s frustrating beyond all belief. In hindsight, I now find it to be total bullshit that ESPN didn’t have the budget to pay us for using our music. The worst part is that we went through with it, and when I really ponder on it, I wonder if turning the offer down on a matter of principle would have been better. Exposure be damned.

Speaking as a musician, I think we need to value our music a whole lot more and make it clear to people like this that if they have the dough, then it’s only fair they pay us a fair share for our involvement in media. Sure, I can listen to a myriad of bands on Spotify for free, or just download it, but making sure a band get what they deserve, services an entirely different need on the part of the band, beyond me just consuming their music like goldfish crackers just so that their music is ‘heard’.

Invest in Quality Music

-Nik