UK government announce “the best deal in the world” to boost artist earnings – but industry says “much more needs to be done”

The UK government have announced details of what they call “the best deal in the world” the help boost the earnings of budding songwriters and legacy artists, but the music industry say that much more still needs to be done”.

• READ MORE: UK falling far behind in battle for venues and artists: “Music becomes a middle and upper class sport”

Today (Tuesday July 22), the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have announced a “major boost for UK music creators” by sharing new measures to support legacy artists, songwriters and session musicians. They claim that the changes – made in partnership with major labels – will “deliver tens of millions of pounds in new investment to support musicians by 2030, rewarding artists for their work and driving growth”.

Backed by UK arms of major labels Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group, the plans put forward by the Creator Remuneration Working Group (CRWG) – chaired by Creative Industries Minister Sir Chris Bryant – include a new framework for the renegotiation of contracts by artists who signed record deals before streaming became commonplace, as well as bolstering their existing work through digitisation.

Not only that, but the CRWG and the major labels have revealed plans to support songwriters and composers via the payment of per diems and expenses for recording sessions. The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and Musicians’ Union have also agreed to an uplift in session musician fees of up to 40 per cent for pop sessions and 15 per cent for classical to ensure they are more fairly paid for their work.

“Streaming has totally revolutionised how audiences discover and enjoy music, and how artists connect with their fans across the globe,” said Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy. “But we have heard loud and clear from creators that more needs to be done to ensure they are fairly compensated when their work is used on streaming platforms.”

She added: “That is why I am delighted that the industry has agreed these new measures, which will go a long way to making sure our talented artists and creators are properly rewarded for their hard work, while driving growth through our Plan for Change.”

At a time when artists are struggling to make a living more so than ever before, pressure is mounting to see that the upper echelons of the music industry pay back into the grassroots to ensure the talent pipeline remains open. As Sir Chris Bryant MP told NME, action must be taken to move with an ever-evolving landscape.

“We were in an era of illegal pirating, and that was a disaster for everyone,” he told NME. “Not only did we see a dramatic fall in the amount of money that individual artists were making, but the amount of money that record labels were making as well.

“Then we moved to the streaming world, which is obviously better than the world of illegally stealing content, but it still provides real challenges. Nearly half of the artists in the UK earn less than £14,000 per year. That just isn’t enough to live on.”

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Sir Chris explained how the landscape facing legacy artists was unrecognisable from when they may have first signed their deals with record labels and publishers.

“One of my concerns has been legacy artists: artists who are important in the streaming world and sometimes their work suddenly comes back into prominence, but they hardly earn anything from streaming because they’re still on legacy contracts,” he said. “What we’ve been doing through the Creator Remuneration Working Group is trying to get the record labels to preferably wipe off all overdue balances. If they’re not going to do that, then to renegotiate with legacy artists so that they’re not on five, six, seven per cent of royalty rates are on something more like 25 to 30 per cent. That’s what they would be on if they were signing a new contact today.

“What I’m really pleased about is that the BPI – that represents all the record labels, both big and small – has produced a set of principles that all labels say that they’re going to sign up to. That will mean that I expect any legacy artist who wants to have a negotiation of their contract will end up with that and be able to earn more money. Each of the major record labels have also said that they’re going to engage with a process of revitalising that back catalogue: working with legacy artists to see if they can get more streams, but there’s no point in getting more streams if you’re not going to get any more pay. That’s why it’s part of the renegotiations that have to happen.”

Sir Chris added: “I’m confident that in a year’s time, when we do a review of all of this, we’ll be able to say: legacy artists are getting a better deal, they are being paid more, they’ll be able to renegotiate their contracts if that’s what they want.”

The MP also explained how “songwriters often get a really tough deal” too – and that steps were being made so that they wouldn’t go out of pocket.

“Even if they get an advance from the label or the publishers, they end up having to come for long days and distances and they’re completely out of pocket and can’t make ends meet,” he said. “That’s why I’m really glad that for the first time, the big labels have committed to a £75 plus expenses per diem for songwriters. We’re also working with the Ivors who are putting £100,000 per year into a special programme for songwriters.”

Asked if the CRWG had been having conversations with music streaming giants – after Spotify attracted criticism from artists after claiming they’d paid out £7billion in royalties, with growing controversy of remuneration for creatives – Sir Chris admitted that aspect was “the more difficult bit for me and it wasn’t within our remit here”.

“The deal that they strike is a worldwide one with Spotify, Apple and Youtube,” he said. “It’s difficult for the UK to force them to come to a different set of provisions. But look, there is an argument that if this doesn’t work out and deliver for musicians in the UK then we should look to introduce an equitable remuneration clause in copyright law. That’s always our backstop power if that’s where we need to go.”

“I honestly feel that this deal that we’ve struck here in the UK is the best deal there is in the world. I want to make sure that the whole pattern of music in the UK is better remunerated. We’ve got some of the strongest music content in the world, and we want to make sure that people can prosper in that field. A key part of that, incidentally, is making sure that we have music education in every school in the land.”

The Council of Music Makers – who represent the Ivors Academy, the Featured Artists Coalition, the Musicians’ Union, the Music Producers Guild and the Music Managers Forum. – responded to the news, telling NME that while the help and support of the Government was greatly appreciated, longstanding issues with streaming inequality remain largely unresolved.

“We will ensure our members are fully aware of the label-led initiatives to come out of this process and very much welcome the new commitment by labels to pay per diems to songwriters, ensuring songwriters are not left out of pocket,” a spokesperson told NME. “The major labels have confirmed they will not pass the cost of these per diems onto featured artists and it is vital this principle is adopted across the industry.”

They continued: “Over the next year, we will support music-makers to test these initiatives and whether they can deliver meaningful change. The major labels have made bold estimates about the value and impact of these initiatives – but we are not convinced they can be substantiated.

“Nevertheless, we will work in good faith with the government to measure the actual impact of these provisions over the course of the next 12 months. We will need the support and engagement of our members as we seek to do this, and will communicate with members of the five CMM organisations on how they can help.”

However, the CMM argued that “much more still needs to be done”.

“In 2021 Parliament’s Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee raised several fundamental issues regarding the streaming business model, calling for ‘a complete reset’,” they added. “These issues remain largely unresolved, as major labels say they will not address systemic inequities in the way streaming works voluntarily.

“This means our copyright law is currently failing to empower and protect the UK’s human creators because of the inequitable policies of major rights-holders. The Council Of Music Makers remains committed to reaching a fairer settlement for all music makers, and we will now collectively pursue other legislative measures to achieve positive change for those that create the work our industry is built on.”

Earlier this year, Sir Chris and the government confirmed a price cap for touts and consultation into ticketing and dynamic pricing. With the UK grassroots suffering “the complete collapse of touring” with one venue closing every two weeks, there is also mounting pressure for the music industry to show “tangible progress” in working towards a ticket levy for artists and venues in this half of 2025.

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