And talking of free music, Radiohead's Thom Yorke has been talking to the Hollywood Reporter about his band's much hyped 'pay what you want' download promotion for last album 'In Rainbows'. And he reckons the whole venture was a 'moment in time' project, rather than a viable long term alternative business model for the record industry.
Yorke: "It was a one-off in terms of a story. It was one of those things where we were in the position of everyone asking us what we were going to do. I don't think it would have the same significance now anyway, if we chose to give something away again. It was a moment in time". He added, rightly methinks, that promotions like the honesty box download principle are more appropriate for established rather than new artists. He observed: "We are about that direct relationship [now] because we are big enough to establish that".
Yorke has been doing some media this week to promote his band's involvement in a new worldwide MTV campaign to highlight and stop child slavery and sex trafficking. Called EXIT - End Exploitation And Trafficking - the MTV campaign will launch with a special video jointly produced by the TV channel and the band for their song 'All I Need', which will premiere on MTV around the world tomorrow.
Explaining his support for the initiative, Yorke told the Reporter: "All power to MTV for taking this on because it's obviously going to be difficult for them in terms of the advertisers. If you talk about slave labour, then the issue of cheap goods from the East is all about that. With the ['All I Need'] video their lawyers had to beg to make sure there wasn't a single white [trainer] with a logo on it because the implication would be a little too close. But the implication is still there. If [MTV] are able to break the taboo of enslavement and put it onto the agenda then it's a good thing. If they get people to think in terms of the profits we make in the West because of cheap labour, then that's a good thing".
In an official statement on the EXIT campaign, MTV boss Bill Roedy told reporters: "We are always looking for more creative, innovative ways to talk to our audience about key issues and we aim through this highly visual campaign to raise awareness of Human Trafficking. Trafficking is a crime which violates the basic rights of its victims: the rights to freedom, equality, and dignity. We endeavour to support and advocate these rights - and empower our audience - through initiatives like MTV EXIT and other MTV projects".
As I understand it, MTV is encouraging other broadcasters to air programming from its EXIT campaign, including the Radiohead video, to give the campaign the widest possible reach. There's more information on it all at http://www.mtvexit.org.