the line of "selling out"

N

Noah Nelson

New member
i got in an argument with my friend, maybe someone can help us..
Is it selling out if you record someones shitty song for $20 out of your room?
essentially you are, but does the money line cross further? lol at what price is "selling out"
 
If it's worth $20 to you to do it, and he's happy with what he gets for the $20....it's a business transaction that you are both happy with, so what anyone else thinks is irrelevant.
If you did it for free....would that be "not selling out"....??? :D

"Selling out" is really applied to someone creating "art" just for the sake of making money off of it...so I don't see how it applies to a studio recording situation.....but honestly, even when creating "art", it's the same thing. If you enjoy doing the art, and people are willing to pay you for what you create....it's all good, otherwise everyone in the music biz is guilty of "selling out".
The minute money is transacted....regardless of the amount....you are selling something. Nothing wrong with that if the transaction is acceptable to all parties.
 
Yeah your scenario doesn't really apply to "selling-out" how it is often referred to. It doesn't usually refer to any monetary transaction. It usually refers to, as miro said, making music for the express purpose of making as much money as possible, without any regard to its integrity. And even then, I think its a stupid phrase because I can't think of anybody who "sold out" (i.e. their previous fans accusing them of creating more commercially acceptable music aka music the fans don't like as much) and didn't enjoy the new music they were making. You can argue that Queen sold out in the 80's, due to the fact that they were their most popular in the early/mid 80s and their songwriting quality, imo, went downhill....but whose to say they didn't want to write the music? Who am I to judge? They probably loved what they were making, and that's what matters.
 
I've always had a problem with the whole "selling out" scenario. Most people are quick to throw that label when a band or artist starts to become commercially successful. Most times though the artist is just making music and trying to stay abreast of their talents. People get upset if that direction is different then the way they think the artist should go. Now to me if an artist produces something that he doesn't believe being forced by a label or producer then that's closer to selling out IMHO
 
I think there is a fuzzy, but real line between "selling" and "selling out."

Here's an example to illustrate how I feel: Jimmy Buffett made lots of songs before "Margaritaville" hit it big. He sorta got lucky with that song. No sell out- yet.

But in time, it seemed like every song he wrote/sand/recorded was "Margaritaville Redux." THAT was a sell out. Can't blame him for mining the vein, I suppose, but his songwriting was, IMHO, much better before then.
 
Someone told me, write this and sing it this way and I will pay you a crap load of money, I would sell out. I would create my art some other way. I mean really, I sell out every Monday through Friday.

If you want to stay pure, good on you, but if you want to live a good comfortable life making "art", what the heck. The rappers have always had it right, they would put their name on dog crap if the money was right.

The line "sell out" is for haters and those who never were and will never be.
 
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