More than 150 artists and musicians call on the winners who will take the stage at the ADISQ gala on Sunday evening to show solidarity in their speeches so that they carry the voice of self-producers. These creators finance and manage their music recordings themselves outside of the record company network.
Posted at 7:31 am
In a letter addressed to the nominees, the signatories regret that ADISQ members who have decided to produce their own production are kept away from the board and have no voting rights at general meetings.
“With the gala we celebrate the world of production, but we suppress home production, even though it has largely become the majority,” explains Guillaume Déziel, former agent of Misteur Valaire and one of the initiators of the letter. “There is an unease in the environment; There is a reality that has changed, but the system under which we govern does not take this reality into account. That is problematic. »
The current situation “allows the maintenance of an industrial model that directs a large part of our public funds first to its producer members and not to starving artists,” warn in particular the signatory artists Daniel Boucher, Pierre-Philippe Côté (Pilou). , Safia Nolin, Alexe Gaudreault, Sébastien Fréchette (Biz), Stefie Shock, Catherine Major, Joe Bocan, Steve Hill, Luis Clavis, Chloé Sainte-Marie and Philémon Cimon.
The president of the artists’ association Tania Kontoyanni, her vice-president Pierre-Luc Brillant and the former minister of culture and communication Christine St-Pierre also spoke.
In Quebec, more than 80% of producers are artist-entrepreneurs.
The open letter, published in Le Devoir on Saturday under the title “The red carpet of enslavement” and consulted by La Presse last Thursday, is intended to be a call to action on the part of the recipients, who will grab a golden statuette on Sunday evening . “If you are lucky enough to stand in front of a nostalgic speaking microphone, do not hesitate to claim in front of a million viewers that artist-entrepreneurs who are members of ADISQ should also have the right to vote and govern in order to “participate” in the fate of our music industry. »
Due to ADISQ’s “control over a large portion of state subsidies,” artists are often forced to sign with a “recognized” producer and give up “valuable rights,” the signatories further regret.
The letter highlights that two ADISQ administrators – who receive grants – are also members of the SODEC board, which awards the same grants. There is no self-producing music artist sitting there. Decision makers “ensure that producers remain important intermediaries between you and the public; that without it you will not have access to grants designed to accelerate your career,” it reads.
“Being able to choose”
In an interview with La Presse, Dominique Lebeau, who has produced his solo albums under the name Domlebo since leaving the Cowboys Fringants in 2007, regrets that David Bussières, spokesman for the Regroupement des artisans de la musique, is the only artist – and self-producer – among the sixteen members of the Cultural Enterprise Development Corporation (SODEC) Music and Entertainment Commission. The Commissions must be consulted on any proposed financial assistance programs in their area.
We need to tell artists: ‘Be careful, you’re playing a trick on the people who work in the industry.’ Maybe we should be better represented and have more space if we want to work with these people…”
Dominique Lebeau
SODEC recently set aside a million-a-year allowance for self-producers, but they must be “registered” to benefit, disqualifying about four out of five artist-entrepreneurs.
Guillaume Déziel emphasizes: There is no question of waging war against SODEC or ADISQ: “The aim is that the two worlds of production and self-production can coexist.” »
“It’s as if we were organizing a labor market table with employers and employees, but excluding the self-employed,” says author and rapper Biz, who gives his name at the end of the letter.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
Sébastien Fréchette, aka Biz
Sébastien Fréchette, his real name, remembers that Loco Locass’ first album, Manifestif, as well as all of his shows, were self-produced. “Artists are realizing more and more that even though they bake the cake, they don’t have the biggest tip. »
Biz assures that Audiogram has served Loco Locass well, but points out that “not all record companies have this ethic and this quality”, hence the desire to show solidarity towards self-producers. “And at some point you ask yourself: Do you want to be a sailor on a liner or the captain of your boat? »
The democratization of the means of production has led to a takeover of power, he states: “I have the right to exist, I have the right to recognition, I have the right to subsidies.” »
Contacted by La Presse, singer-songwriter Joe Bocan explains that she has experienced all the pitfalls of self- and co-production, especially when preparing an album for children. “They always found a good reason not to subsidize it. I had to do everything myself, without paying a dime. »
PHOTO BERNARD BRAULT, LA PRESSE ARCHIVE
Joe Bocan
In her opinion, the muzzle of self-producers in ADISQ’s leadership is a symptom of much broader structural inequalities in the music industry. “There is still a lot to do, the entire mechanism needs to be changed,” she says.