Kanye West shares new details about how he wants to re-imagine music industry

Kanye West shares new details about how he wants to re-imagine music industry after recent series of tweets critical of the business

  • The Grammy-winner has questioned industry practices and inequities 
  • West says ‘the balance of power is too off’ in the business
  • He says his goal is for every artist to own their master recordings 

Kanye West took his battle in the music industry off of Twitter and on Billboard.

‘You have to adapt,’ the 42-year-old star on Tuesday told Billboard. ‘You can’t have old rules for new games. No other business in the world would suggest you don’t adapt to a completely new supply chain and income sources.’

The Jesus Is Born artist told the outlet that ‘the balance of power is too off’ in the business and that ‘the gap between major label profit and artist profit too wide.’

The latest: Kanye West, 42, took his battle in the music industry off of Twitter and on Billboard, telling the outlet, ‘You can’t have old rules for new games.’ He was snapped last year in NYC 

He vowed, ‘I will work to re-think the design of the entire way we move in this space.’

The Can’t Tell Me Nothing artist said that his ultimate goal of raising the issue via Twitter and in media is for every artist to own their master recordings.

‘I’m committed to doing whatever is necessary so artists own their own copyrights,’ the Grammy-winner said. ‘The response is awesome because everyone knows this is a broken system that needs to be fixed.’

He used an analogy about purchasing a house in describing the inequities of the music business and its infrastructure.

Focused: West said that his ultimate goal of raising the issue via Twitter and in media is for every artist to own their master recordings

Focused: West said that his ultimate goal of raising the issue via Twitter and in media is for every artist to own their master recordings

Motivated: Kanye said his goal is to 'Free All Artists by any means necessary'

Motivated: Kanye said his goal is to ‘Free All Artists by any means necessary’

‘Currently, artists take advances to make records and yet when they repay those advances the record company still owns the records,’ he said. ‘Imagine a bank lending you money to buy a house and then when you’ve repaid that mortgage, them telling you they still own it.’

He said his goal is to ‘Free All Artists by any means necessary.

‘I will work to rip apart the structure we are attached to that pays people for music,’ he told the outlet. ‘We cannot have designed streaming, but not designed a new method for payment and ownership around it where we all benefit. Predominantly the EQUITY I.E THE ARTIST!!

‘The balance of power is too off, the gap between major label profit and artist profit too wide; and I will work to re-think the design of the entire way we move in this space.

Speaking out: West previously addressed his grievances in a series of tweets

Speaking out: West previously addressed his grievances in a series of tweets 

West cited the change in technology, saying that ‘streaming re-invented the wheel and we all stuck on the sidewalk wondering if we have cab fare.

He added: ‘We have to get out the Matrix. It will happen: Remember, Ye told you so!!’

The music superstar noted that his ‘brand and influence goes way beyond just music and that of course is meaningful to [companies including] Vivendi, as it is to Adidas and many other conglomerates.’

He added that ‘if that helps me be able to help free all artists, of course I’m going to use it.

The Bound 2 singer is in litigation with Universal Music Group for his master recordings, and also received a settlement from EMI last year. West did not reply to question as to whether he would rerecord his tracks, Billboard reported.

West tweeted Wednesday that he will give artists on his G.O.O.D. Music label the 50 percent share he has ‘of their masters.’