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ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus urges reforms to pay songwriters their due
Maggy DONALDSON
Sat, April 17, 2021, 2:17 AM·4 min read
Bjorn Ulvaeus, a member of Swedish disco group ABBA shown here in 2016, is taking on the cause of fair payments to songwriters in the era of streaming
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ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus urges reforms to pay songwriters their due
Bjorn Ulvaeus, a member of Swedish disco group ABBA shown here in 2016, is taking on the cause of fair payments to songwriters in the era of streaming
ABBA after winning Eurovision for "Waterloo" (from L to R, up) Björn Ulvaeus, music producer, writer and manager Stig Anderson, Swedish record producer, composer Sven-Olof Walldoff and Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad (Frida) and Agnetha Fältskog
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ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus urges reforms to pay songwriters their due
ABBA after winning Eurovision for "Waterloo" (from L to R, up) Björn Ulvaeus, music producer, writer and manager Stig Anderson, Swedish record producer, composer Sven-Olof Walldoff and Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad (Frida) and Agnetha Fältskog
Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, shown here on the red carpet for the world premiere of the film "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" in London on July 16, 2018, are the songwriters behind many ABBA megahits
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ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus urges reforms to pay songwriters their due
Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, shown here on the red carpet for the world premiere of the film "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" in London on July 16, 2018, are the songwriters behind many ABBA megahits
The pandemic's negative impact on touring has shone a spotlight on streaming income, which top superstars like Drake, shown here in 2013, or Taylor Swift benefit from but which sidelines music's middle class
4/4
ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus urges reforms to pay songwriters their due
The pandemic's negative impact on touring has shone a spotlight on streaming income, which top superstars like Drake, shown here in 2013, or Taylor Swift benefit from but which sidelines music's middle class
Bjorn Ulvaeus, a member of Swedish disco group ABBA shown here in 2016, is taking on the cause of fair payments to songwriters in the era of streaming
ABBA after winning Eurovision for "Waterloo" (from L to R, up) Björn Ulvaeus, music producer, writer and manager Stig Anderson, Swedish record producer, composer Sven-Olof Walldoff and Benny Andersson, Anni-Frid Lyngstad (Frida) and Agnetha Fältskog
Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, shown here on the red carpet for the world premiere of the film "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" in London on July 16, 2018, are the songwriters behind many ABBA megahits
The pandemic's negative impact on touring has shone a spotlight on streaming income, which top superstars like Drake, shown here in 2013, or Taylor Swift benefit from but which sidelines music's middle class
The Covid-19 pandemic's rampage through the music world has laid bare the industry's flaws, shining a bright light on "the plight of songwriters," says ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus.
The renowned artist behind the disco pop group's megahits like "Dancing Queen" and "Mamma Mia" co-wrote a report released Saturday entitled "Rebalancing The Song Economy," which urges revamping pricing structures to ensure fairness for writers behind the music.
Ulvaeus, 75, became president of the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) -- a Paris-headquartered rights network representing some four million creators and publishers across the arts -- last year, as the spread of coronavirus began devastating livelihoods worldwide.
Pre-pandemic, performing artists could count on income sources like concerts and merchandise, but "most professional songwriters are just that" -- songwriters, he said.
Now everyone is relying on streaming, which accounts for 83 percent of US music industry revenue, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.
But many artists have long said they aren't reaping the benefits, and the pandemic is exacerbating the issue.
Streaming giants pool subscription money and divvy it up based on aggregate play counts to rights-holders or management organizations, who distribute it according to their agreements.
Artists have long disparaged that dominant model, holding it favors the globe's biggest stars at the expense of music's middle class.
Right now, "80 percent goes to the Drakes, the Swifts. The niche jazz artist gets almost nothing, if anything," Ulvaeus told AFP.
"But the niche jazz artist might have 10,000 people out there who love him or her -- and if all that money went to him, he could make a living out of that."
Apple recently disclosed it pays, on average, a penny per stream, approximately double what Spotify -- which has far more users and thus more streams -- pays rights-holders.
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