15/03/2010
I missed this article yesterday… but seriously… what?
Droz, dude… ya’ sound like a clueless dick.
I understand the point of the tax break is bring in artists who will spend money outside of the studio at restaurants and hotels and strip clubs (same idea as the movie tax break), but recording music isn’t the same business as the movie business.
In fact, the music business (at least the part spending $50K+ on album recording) is a shell of what it once was. Sure Aretha or Kid Rock might be able to take advantage of this and maybe a few savvy major label artists will come to town to spend some dough on recording or mixing… but structuring this incentive like the (already somewhat dubious) film incentive, is dumb. These people don’t need to hire hundreds of locals, so the economic impact (while nice) is certainly lower even at this extremely high budget threshold.
I’m happier to read that studio owners can also reap the benefits of this tax break, but I’m guessing they have to find a way to invest $50K in their studios to do so. At least they are building a local business and in most cases working with local artists, so some of the benefits of that investment can be enjoyed in Michigan too.
While I know direct support of the arts is essentially verboten in our current political climate, I’d much rather see smaller tax breaks (lower percentage) for lower budget projects and perhaps for expenses beyond recording. Think of it as spending the same budget with a much wider audience of recording professionals and artists. Really, I’d rather see breaks or even direct artist grants that helped musicians get the basics of their own business going (recording an album, developing merchandise, booking a tour). I realize that these things tend to be run by some kind of grant board and that’s fraught with problems (friends of people on arts boards do seem to win grants more often than other people), but I still like the concept. For this industry, perhaps unlike the film industry, it seems to make more sense to support artists and professionals who are based and building their lives here in Michigan rather than trying to attract big budgets away from other locales.
What is a self-supporting, recording and touring band if not a small business that has a net positive impact on other small businesses (bars, clubs, etc.) and the area in which they make their home.
Ultimately, the problem with those crafting and implementing tax breaks for the entertainment industry is that they have no vision or ideas. Simply copying what’s already been done in New Mexico, Louisiana and elsewhere is probably valid up to a point — but it doesn’t set you apart from those places or help you grow your own market. It just encourages corporations who can deploy resources to chase the best deal of the moment to do exactly that. People who would take the money saved on tax breaks and reinvest in their band, studio, home or part of their Michigan based life aren’t really part of the equation. I realize it may not be politically viable to change that, but it doesn’t mean they “don’t need the break” or that it wouldn’t really have a more tangible impact on the lives of everyday people in communities across the state.
Quote posted at 16:28
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