Neil Young, Dr. Dre, Trent Reznor, Elton John, Shaggy, DJ Scratch, Metallica, and others have joined the fight against Napster, which the courts ruled violates copyright laws. They call it piracy. Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes had the gall to say, “Napster is robbing me blind.”Robbing him blind? The Black Crowes’ biggest fans, who buy all their records, promote them through Napster. That’s right. Free promotion! They say, hey, this is good and you should listen to it. Artists are trying to protect the control of distribution, when this “lack of control” gets new listeners who would have never heard the music.

Metallica is the worst insult of all. A previously good band sells out! They were built on metalheads copying their demos and passing them around. Fans were gained upon the same concept as Napster.

Napster is free promotion for small, unknown bands and musicians. “We should think of [Napster] as a new kind of radio — a promotional tool that can help artists who don’t have the opportunity to get their music played on mainstream radio or on MTV,” said Chuck D of Public Enemy.

Thirty percent of the files shared on Napster are not under the wing of the Recording Industry Associaton of America (RIAA). Perhaps the RIAA and big time labels like Sony and Elektra are concerned because kids are not taking what MTV and mainstream radio is giving them anymore.

Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and Nirvana said it best. “I don’t think it’s a crime, it’s been going on for years. It’s the same as people making tapes for each other…. The first thing we should do is get all the f*cking millionaires to shut their mouths, stop bitching about the 25 cents a time they’re losing.”

Independent recording artists are not joining the fight against Napster. Just like corporate radio is afraid of pirate radio, cities and colleges are afraid of flyering, the RIAA is afraid of Napster. They are shivering in their boots because Napster helps artists. It does not help big time labels. It does not help over-the-hill musicians who want the easy road to riches. Napster forces bands to work at their success. In the age of the MTV 15-minutes and corporate laziness, it levels the playing field. And I love it!

The fight, discussion, and court appeals are far from over. As a musician myself, I want and encourage fans and friends to copy, distribute, and promote my music. With pirate radio and pirate music, real and good music will prevail, and corporate crap will crash and burn.