About two years ago, I was asked to write an article for a famous magazine about the exploitation industry in the music world. I wrote from the bottom of my heart as someone who has experienced stings, scams, and many unpleasant experiences. The more I delved into my scenarios and descriptions of what happened to me personally, the more I realized that I experienced a gentle caress compared to what musicians worldwide went through before they got to step on the red carpet and enjoy the spotlight.
Not all musicians get to stand on the coveted stages, and most experience exploitation and taste the industry’s dark side. They sometimes look for other employment alternatives; others usually pave the golden path for themselves and continue to work in the field, even if at the price of little income or extremely large profits. Still, they pay the price of the lack of exposure and the sale of the materials to others.
In this article, I will shed some light on the dark and dim areas of the music industry.
In the dazzling world of music lurks a murky underbelly of fraud and exploitation for beginning musicians and established artists. The stories of exploitation are many, spanning decades and genres, and while the faces and names may change, the underlying narrative remains unsettlingly consistent.