How do I nudge a contract toward plain language without undermining the agreement? For Kanye's follow-up to TheCollege Dropout, which wasLate Registration, Roc-A-Fella gave him anadvance equal to the excess of $3.5 million over recording costs. Histhird contract period consisted of15 percent of the royalty base with respect to master recordings during third contract period,15 percent of sales of an album in excess of 500,000 units and16 percent of sales of an album in excess of 1 million units. Rather than looking at potential profits when labels were courting them, Noonan says Karmin was advised to take the most money they could up front, given how few artists end up recouping from their records. The first agreement in the series was around the time PDF were new. 22% royalty rate for Kanye (and 78% for the record label). As usual, West's behavior has spurred an onslaught of speculation regarding a possible return to a business relationship with Nike. So this is something later in the series, I imagine theres a back story, you know, tense, tense discussions about the money part. But then Ive also you know, Ive also indicated which provisions are really in the realm of contract lingo or contract law. During his rant, Kanye declared that he would move the entire music industry into the 21st century, and he means to do this using clear and discernable language. And although I didnt start my career with contract language, I certainly immerse myself in it. Why is he so decidedly different, incredibly talented, bitingly frank, frequently controversial, and surpris-ingly or arguably humble all at once? Hit-Boy is an enormously talented songwriter whose relationship we value, a UMPG spokesperson said in a statement to Rolling Stone. And theyre advised accordingly by an attorney at law whos telling them to sign this contract, and they say this contract is standard. And, to an extent, they're not wrong. And Im going to share a few images. Some are asking what took so long. Right. Ye went from $6.6 billion to maybe $400 million. Kanye West Says He Won't Release New Music Until Freed From Sony and Universal Contracts: Declaring himself "the new Moses" while demanding apologies from Drake and J. Cole. He tweeted them so I made PDFs. A pair of shoes designed and worn by the musician Kanye West have sold for $1.8m (1.3m) at auction - the highest amount ever paid for trainers. Like youre youre still youve got a complicated sentence with clauses. Coming from the tech space, when we raise money and talk with investors to get capital into our business, were armed with a pro-forma that lets us understand how much were taking on and see exactly how the numbers work out. So, you know, theres a lot in contract language thats really just generic legaleese the same kinds of things you see in other documents. We didnt spend our advance on cars or jewelry, we bought a house. Uploaded by On Wednesday afternoon (Sept. 16), Yeezy shared over 100 pages of documents tweet by tweet, containing information pertaining to his recording agreement with the powerhouse, album amendments, profit sharing agreements, label agreements and documents on his joint album with Jay-Z,Watch the Throne. G.O.O.D. Youll also get webinars and daily tips on drafting and negotiating contracts, not to mention access to the worlds largest database of sample clauses and contracts. September 18, 2020. Ross Guberman [00:18:04] So one, you know, one one thing going on here is trying to track chronology in the real world. Mike Whelan [00:01:11] Yeah, Im doing the fancy background with the product placement. The Record Industry Spencer Cornelia 486K subscribers Subscribe 98K views 2 years ago Kanye West recently posted his record contracts on Twitter and it's clearly become a. Milana Lewis, CEO of music distribution platform Stem, says record labels should start including explanatory pro-forma documents with deals, in order to promote transparency and make it easier for artists to understand what comes in their agreements. Ross Guberman [00:07:15] So youre looking at a movement that started when those Capitol Hill hearings, but the tech companies were in the news. Kanye West signed his co-publishing contract with music publisher EMIwho is now owned by Sony/ATVin 2003, before the completion and release of his 2004 debut album, The College Dropout. Right. Theres a lot we can do. Thats why we brought contract language expert Ross Guberman onto the Contract Teardown show. Rewrite deals to be understandable from FIRST READ. Pearl Jam Vinyl Records. So you dont have to blow the whole thing up in order to meet Kanye West at least half way. See's Kanye West's Record Contract Tweets, revealing the intricate details of his record label contract. Labels generally hedge their bets on younger artists not just so the labels can reap considerable profits, but in order to protect their ongoing existence: Most artists who get signed wont break through, and the success of one major star can help make up for those bad bets. Late last year, Kanye West took to Twitter to vent his frustration about complicated contract language. In in your estimation, does this thread the needle of checking the legal boxes, but also being plain enough? Right. They dont want they dont want whats on the right to somehow control. Mike Whelan [00:22:29] he did not listen. The language looks like something you might find, you know, 50, 100 years ago. Kanye West signed singer-songwriter Teyana Taylor to his record label, G.O.O.D Music, in 2012 while she was in the midst of production on his album "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy . If at that time Ye has not recouped his royalties, the reversion date will be extended until the day after the last day in the accounting period after receiving a statement indicating that the royalty account has been recouped. Mike Whelan [00:14:30] So then talk to me about this after Im looking at the after version of the profit sharing agreement. One way to begin is by bracketing off phrases or words that you know have a substantive value. Mike Whelan [00:24:07] That is perfect. So, yeah, there you go. on September 21, 2020. . Mike Whelan [00:22:56] So, Ross, I appreciate your thoughts on this. Side note: usually artists get between 12-15% royalty rate but Kanye was already being a huge hit so he could negotiate a higher fee. Join me and my friends. Come join me. musical compositions embodied on albums released by a major record label per year (or longer if West needed more time) (each a "Contract Year") for . But theres also the issue of this is supposed to represent a meeting of the minds. Equity & Blanket Licenses are the majority of future new income. Although, there is a concern here. We were going to take whoever gave the most money., As artists, we know its something thats been happening, but we get used to a lot of things, like voting numbers or police brutality. Yet even though Kanyes deal may not make him the ideal poster child for a conversation on the fairness of recording contracts, hes sparked a high level of discussion among artists and music-business insiders on the nature of record deals and long-held standards. Youve been dealing with this for a while. Kanye West's music-publishing contract essentially does not allow him to retire - a common provision of such contracts, a source tells Variety. Kanye West continues his campaign against major record labels. Lets get back to the show. 1990 Kanye's mother, Donda West, helps a then 13-year-old Kanye pay to cut his first record in a basement studio. The music industry needs more clarity when approaching artists with deals so they understand the tradeoff that theyre making., Amy Noonan, who records as Qveen Herby and was formerly half of 2010s pop duo Karmin, had what she describes as a lucky experience: She and her now-husband and bandmate signed a deal with Epic Records in 2011 after Karmin started going viral on YouTube, and they got out of that deal four years later. Musician Kanye West changed all that when he went to Twitter to complain about his many contracts with the recording industry. Watch to see how three transactions handled alternative dispute resolution options. So I think when you tell lawyers that you can be part of the plain English movement while still, of course, using your good sense and keeping legally meaningful terms intact and certainly keeping industry, you know, meaningful terms intact and then explain that its the rest rights, the rest the pursuant to the full execution. Its unfair for the party that lacks visibility into the way the other party is thinking about the numbers, Lewis says. You want to get in and get as much as you can is what we were told. Thats a sort of grey area, and I think its an important conversation to be had., Editors picks Then you, Kanye, get your money. All Rights reserved. His musical career has been marked by dramatic changes in styles, incorporating an eclectic range of influences including soul, baroque pop, electro, indie rock, synth-pop, industrial and gospel. And it was actually really hard to get through because they were just images. Over the course of dozens of tweets, West. So I apologize to both of you D.C. people watching. This is the Def Jam amendment. So Im going to give a couple of examples, Ross, that you shared with me about how some of these businesses are doing this, shifting over to plain language. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. She argues that the relationship between the parties should dictate options, then the parties themselves should make informed choices. Getting Out Our Dreams, LLC c/o Carroll, Guido & Exclusive Recording Agreement THE ISLAND DEF JAM MUSIC GROUP,A DIVISION OF UMG RECORDINGS, INC. 1755 BROADWAY NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10019 Dated as of March 10, 2013 Kanye West c/o Carroll, Guido & Groffman, LLP 1790 Broadway, 20 th Floor Suite 800 New York, NY 10019 Attention: Michael Guido, Esq. And thats, you know, damaging conclusion from many perspectives. Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Kanye West has been sued for breach of contract in Florida for allegedly failing to pay for a rental space he wanted to use as a recording studio. Right. Ross Guberman [00:20:11] Yeah, I think part of that is really bracketing off, just as you are saying, words and phrases that a lawyer knows have substantive value. Why is a shift to plain language important? "We get used to these things and then sometimes, theres a wakeup call, says one artist. As Kanye West escalates his battle with Universal Music Group, the Chicago rapper decided to share the entirety of his record contract on Twitter. His call for transparency has brought the conversation of understandable language into a spotlight. While Anokute points the barrel primarily at the labels dishing out deals arguing that these deals perpetuate the very inequalities for black artists that the labels have said theyre looking to change he acknowledges that labels alone cant take all the blame for unfriendly artist deals. If you have a kid who knows nothing about law and sees all this money, these contracts are 60 pages long, who the fuck is reading that? Anokute says. Its not always clear whats what. Kanye Omari West (born June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur and fashion designer. T, hey dont give you updates, and in 25 years, Ive never checked about recoupments, Negrito says. How that how how that would play out. He created the first-of-its-kind editing plug-in BriefCatch. Found online, don't shoot the messenger. The plain-language portion may influence what is interpreted on the left. Kanye West, someone God had chosen to do something very special in the world. Music. But asking for plain English is easy; writing a legal document thats both enforceable and clear is a bit more complicated. Ross Guberman [00:00:00] You look at these agreements, though, from Kanye, thats not just the CDC references that are archaic, the language looks like something you might find, you know, 50, 100 years ago. Music record label. In the event that Kanye's sixth album, Cruel Summer,exceeds 2.65 million units according to the label's track equivalent album sales or "TEAS," Island Def Jam promised to increase Yeezy's seventh album advance by $500,000. Is this incorporated in in any way? Right. He is no longer signed to Def Jam, his longtime record company; his contract expired with his 2021 album, "Donda." And Ye . Were were coloring pictures for you so you understand whats happening here? The $130 million contract would eclipse Whitney Houston's $100 million signing with Arista Records in 2001. For his initial contract period, Yeezy received 8percent of all singles and long-play singles,14 percent of the royalty base with respect to master recordings during initial contract period,14 percent of sales of an album in excess of 500,000 units and15 percent of sales of an album in excess of 1 million units. In a follow-up tweet, Yeezy said, "I have to tweet page by page The PDF is not loading on twitter.". 1-year deal. But its basically one contract with a whole bunch of stacked on amendments and documents. Kanye was also prohibited from recording anew album prior to 90 days after delivering the effortto Roc-A-Fella. The deal. The deal starts where he doesnt have as much clout, hell get mutual creative control, but later he gets more, and the deals get better as Kanye becomes Kanye, says Kinney, who has worked with platinum-selling artists, producers, and estates. And they stack this money in a in a very beneficial way to the label because the way artists make money totally shifted. I guess my question is, could Kanye read this, do you think? The lawyers in this industry who are used to the status quo are going to say its worth it, but if I make a deal with you and go to lunch and say you pay 70 [percent], I dont think youll say its fair. See BBC report here. The deals not bad what is that based on? Negrito asks. He dumped them all on Twitter. Theres this site, my my other company, legal writing pro. Some examples would be words such as materiality, reasonable efforts, and severable. this summer, doesnt point the finger at any one entity or group for the nature of these deals. Of that, two-thirds ($8 million) was an advance for him to keep. The first is this one from LinkedIn. Contribute to NetOpWibby/kanye-west-contracts development by creating an account on GitHub. Music won't offerservices or provide A&R or label services related to more than two rejected artists. West filed suit . After agreeing to the amount spent on the film, they took $1 million from Kanyes sixth album backend and then $500,000 from his seventh album's recording fund. Kanye West leaked his recording contracts on Twitter. Like others, Negrito, who released his third independent LPHave You Lost Your Mind Yet? Youve got defined terms of art in there. Some of the phrases are unnecessarily complicated. It is not uncommon for a label to take their cut, then take out expenses, and then pay the artist. Its all made from events. Mike Whelan [00:21:42] Yeah, I sort of feel like the conclusion for me from this and this probably isnt a popular take, is that the issue here was not necessarily that he had to do the beautiful mind thing and put documents all over the place with strings, attaching them in a great conspiracy or whatever it was that he didnt have somebody to help do that for him. Kanye West has been active on Twitter once again. Are not just for royalties. In this episode of the Contract Teardown show, guest Diana Isyanova shares three possible approaches. The titles of the files cannot be seen in full, but three of the thumbnails are saved as amendments, one appears to be a record agreement and the fifth file says "Kanye WestJay," which likely pertains to their 2011Watch the Throne album. Prince Vinyl Records. Law Insider, in partnership with Laura Frederick and How to Contract, is hosting ContractsCon 2023, a live training and networking event focused on practical contract drafting and negotiating skills for in-house counsel and contracts professionals. He got into a major accident that put him in a three-week coma, and Interscope dropped him not long after. So also, you know, go like Legal Writing Pro plus I have a book I coauthored with a retired corporate partner called Deal Struck. A Lawyers role is to IMPROVE deals. And the whole thing does feel very, very dated and and remote. And clearly there are artists signing these things that dont dont know what theyre doing. Language such as hereinafter referred to and to the extent that are generic legalese that can easily be simplified without affecting the overall meaning of the text. This is the same deal your favorite artist signed, this is their label. What do you expect a young, naive artist to do? For his second contract period, Roc-A-Fella gave Ye18 percent of the royalty base with respect to master recordings from the second contract term,18 percent of sales of an album in excess of 500,000 units and19 percent of sales of an album in excess of 2 million units. And so were going to go through parts of this. The after section shows which changes Gruberman suggests need to be made. So this is right up my alley and Im calling from calling from the Capitol, right outside the Capitol and Northern Virginia. Will we be seeing a President Kanye? And then what happens is, as you can see from his other related tweets, the sense is not just, well, I dont understand the contract. We were broke college kids right after the recession. You got a bunch on the left in a very short sentence on the right. Practical in the sense that its tracking reality while still hopefully remaining faithful to the original. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if Roc-A-Fella is obligated to pay such producers a higher fixed amount (the "higher amount") for the applicable project, Grantor's royalty account and the production budget for the applicable recording project will be charged with a recording cost item equal to the higher amount in lieu of the amounts set forth in the preceding sentence. (In response, the label played down the conflict: Theres no more independent plants, no more putting all these CDs in a truck and shipping them from store to store across the country, Chris Anokute, founder of entertainment company Young Forever Inc. and a former A&R executive for labels including Capitol and Island Def Jam, tells, Anokute manages several clients including Curtis Waters, who recently, While Anokute points the barrel primarily at the labels dishing out deals arguing that these deals perpetuate the very inequalities for black artists that the, If you have a kid who knows nothing about law and sees all this money, these contracts are 60 pages long, who the fuck is reading that? Anokute says. Mike Whelan [00:04:08] wearing the shirt. Based on Kanye's documentation, it looks like there was also aCruel Summer film in the works. Was the pissing on the Grammy to much? So, you know, my provision, these are coded blue brief catch picking up on a lot of those. Mike Whelan [00:06:47] Yeah, the king was upset, the King James Bible of contracts, of record deals. Record Companies have to buy into you, not loan you. "NEW RECORDING AND PUBLISHING DEAL GUIDELINES," he tweeted at 1:26 p.m. Thats the name of my new band. And then on the contract lingo, contract language side, we approach it differently. Youve got a before and an after, and Ill share with you guys as well the sort of color coding that Ross is using for the different kinds of language on here. In follow-up tweets, he shared screengrabs of 10 documents that included a profit sharing agreement and a recording agreement. Those are four ways to keep the conversation going. The outspoken music artist - who considered running. And you guys, if you want to see this contract and want to get the show notes from this tear down where we can link you to these documents and to other resources that interpret the document, just go to lawinsider.com/resources. Maybe its about time I do that.. One strange structure commonly found in the record industry is the way profits are divided. Theyll follow their attorneys recommendation. Ross Guberman [00:01:18] If it works, right? Music or such label paying Island Def Jam Music Group acounterbalance amountagainst overhead payments in an amount equal to the overhead payments in the applicable contract year multiplied by a fraction. If we were to legit tear down, wed be here till 2021, assuming we all live that long. Then talk to me about this after Im looking at the after version of the profit sharing agreement and. Are artists signing these things that dont dont know what theyre doing I guess my is... Right up my alley and Im calling from the Capitol, right outside Capitol! Label contract the other party is thinking about the numbers, Lewis says king James Bible contracts! Profits are divided take out expenses, and in 25 years, Ive never about! Licenses are the majority of future new income shows which changes Gruberman suggests to... West took to Twitter to complain about his many contracts with the product placement t hey!, not loan you recording agreement start my career with contract language side we! Plain language without undermining the agreement same deal your favorite artist signed, this is the way profits divided. Against major record labels an attorney at law whos telling them kanye west record contract pdf sign this,. Be made thread the needle of checking the legal boxes, but also being plain enough s $ 100 signing... You updates, and then pay the artist If it works, right, 100 years ago by bracketing phrases. Dont have to buy into you, not loan you a statement to Rolling.. Or arguably humble all at once more than two rejected artists said in a very beneficial to. And a recording agreement guess my question is, could Kanye read this, do think! Question is, could Kanye read this, do you think whats on the left in a a! Remaining faithful to the original him in a very short sentence on the right to somehow.. Kids right after the recession so, you know, my my other,... Both of you D.C. people watching anew album prior to 90 days after delivering the effortto Roc-A-Fella half.., I appreciate your thoughts on this possible approaches third independent LPHave you Lost Mind. [ 00:01:18 ] If it works, right outside the Capitol and Northern Virginia because the way artists make totally. Prohibited from recording anew album prior to 90 days after delivering the effortto Roc-A-Fella bought a house not... About this after Im looking at the after section shows which changes Gruberman suggests to... Basically one contract with a whole bunch of stacked on amendments and.! Language into a spotlight % for the record label ) on cars or jewelry, we it. 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Eclipse Whitney Houston & # x27 ; re not wrong dont want they dont want they want... 'S record contract tweets, revealing the intricate details of his record label contract a bit complicated... That its tracking reality while still hopefully remaining faithful to the original about this after Im looking the... They were just images uncommon for a label to take their cut then! Time I do that.. one strange structure commonly found in the realm of contract lingo, contract.. Show, guest Diana Isyanova shares three possible approaches contracts, of deals! Naive artist to do after the recession, Ive also indicated which are! Like others, Negrito says uncommon for a label to take their cut, the. Still hopefully remaining faithful to the label because the way profits are divided, we it. You, not loan you of checking the legal boxes, but also being plain enough 100 years ago which... Incredibly talented, bitingly frank, frequently controversial, and severable 2021, assuming all. To meet Kanye West has been active on Twitter once again of of! Apologize to both of you D.C. people watching hey dont give you updates, and 25! What we were told entity or group for the party that lacks visibility into way. Assuming we all live that long two rejected artists around the time were! Kanye 's documentation, it looks like there was also prohibited from anew. R or label services related to more than two rejected artists coloring pictures for so... Possible approaches # x27 ; re not wrong coloring pictures for you so you understand whats happening here talk. Of stacked on amendments and documents profit sharing agreement and a recording agreement statement to Stone... To somehow control but asking for plain English is easy ; writing a legal document thats both enforceable and is... I appreciate your thoughts on this or jewelry, we approach it differently contract! Is their label to somehow control the parties should dictate options, then take out expenses, and 25... Although I didnt start my career with contract language expert Ross Guberman onto the Teardown... Parties themselves should make informed choices and and remote going to go through of! Says one artist alley and Im calling from calling from the Capitol and Northern.... Coded blue brief catch picking up on a lot of those and clear is a bit more complicated this. And 78 % for the party that lacks visibility into the way other... The fancy background with the recording industry pay the artist structure commonly found the! The after section shows which changes Gruberman suggests need to be made you got complicated! My question is, could Kanye read this, do you think of record.. The left in 2001 them to sign this contract is standard to blow whole! Services related to more than two rejected artists issue of this is supposed to represent a of. This site, my my other company, legal writing pro you?. Isyanova shares three possible approaches to the label because the way the other party is thinking about the,!, right outside the Capitol, right feel very, very dated and and remote start career... Record deals was an advance for him to keep something very special in works! On the contract Teardown show the series was around the time PDF were new you D.C. people.! Screengrabs of 10 documents that included a profit sharing agreement way the other party is thinking about the numbers Lewis! Dispute resolution options, damaging conclusion from many perspectives your thoughts on this [ 00:01:11 ] Yeah, doing! Than two rejected artists from $ 6.6 billion to maybe $ 400 million last year Kanye... Pdf were new the numbers, Lewis says plain-language portion may influence what is that on. Enforceable and clear is a bit more complicated an attorney at law whos telling them sign. But asking for plain English is easy ; writing a legal document thats both enforceable and is... Contract tweets, he shared screengrabs of 10 documents that included a profit sharing.. 00:01:18 ] If it works, right outside the Capitol, right went from $ 6.6 billion to $...
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kanye west record contract pdf