Prince just compared record deals to slavery


Prince's advice to younger musicians is perfectly clear: Don't sign record deals.
"Record contracts are just like — I'm gonna say the word — slavery," he told a group of journalists in Minneapolis on Saturday night, NPR reports.
Prince said he wants artists to have more control over how their work is distributed and the revenue they gain. He also talked up Jay-Z's Tidal streaming service, which he now has a deal with. Ideally, he wants to see artists get paid directly from streaming services instead of through record companies.
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"We have to show support for artists who are trying to own things for themselves," he said.
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Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
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