My Creative Commons decision

Since I'm having a time coming up with blog posts while I'm working on my next album, here's one I've been meaning to blog on for a while and never managed to do it.

Creative Commons.

So, why offer any of my work under CC? Why not go the traditional copyright route?

Simply put, CC is a way for creators of content to maintain their ownership of a work (or works) and still allow legal sharing. When I started this whole 'creative lifestyle' thing, I heard this quote:

"An artist's worst enemy is anonymity." (Or something similar)

And unfortunately, it's true. If nobody reads your awesome book, they don't know about you. If no one hears you play, no one knows about you. Likewise, if no one knows you're an artist, they don't tell their friends, co workers, etc. Anonymity kills careers, and it does so without even flinching.

I didn't want that. But let's talk about that little "word of mouth" thing…

We are in the age of technology, and it is busy changing our culture every second. Sadly, the current copyright model is far, faaar behind. The most notable reason is the practice of sharing. We live in a world of social networking, which boils down to the practice of sharing information with your friends. Traditional copyright explicitly forbids this practice — even scholarly use of materials (citations, quotes, excerpts, etc.) is iffy, depending on interpretation of the law. At its worst, such things are considered outright theft.

I didn't want to penalize any potential fans for sending a copy of one of my songs that they legally purchased to their friend with a note to "check out this." That excited sharing is what keeps art alive, what keeps it fresh and relevant. Art is, by it's very nature, a shared experience. Where would our famous Michaelangelos and Rembrants be today if no one had seen their work and wanted to share it with someone else? Music is art. Why should the experience of it be any different than visual media?

Creative Commons has the leg up here. By releasing my work under a CC license, I not only retain the rights to my work, but I enable those who enjoy my work to share it with others.

For more info on Creative Commons, please visit their website, or if you'd like to read more about the license I use, please see this page.