I PRAY IN THE NAME OF JESUS THAT IT DONT LOOK LIKE THIS TOMORROW," Ye wrote in a tweet with the five accompanying images. How that how how that would play out. Ye's business manager's inability to . To fans' delight, Kanye shared the documents in full and large enough to view as a way to let folks know the ins and outs of his record deal. Mike Whelan [00:17:41] an interpretive sca band and Im going to have to look for the domain name. The split can be 80/20 in the artists favor. The documents . Music record label. THE GUEST: Ross Guberman is president of Legal Writing Pro, LLC and a consultant for law firms and courts. Were at sales@LawInsider.com. 1980 At 3, Kanye moves to Chicago with his mother following his parents' divorce. See's Kanye West's Record Contract Tweets. And we have to be very careful, of course, you know, translating things like provisos like provided, however, that in dealing with Shell and the like. It shows he got a $3.5 million advance on his. We were broke college kids right after the recession. So, Ross, were going to tear down the contracts that Kanye shared. All contents of the lawinsider.com excluding publicly sourced documents are Copyright 2013-. Right. Found online, don't shoot the messenger. Watch to see how three transactions handled alternative dispute resolution options. So the rest, you know, if its not a one of those categories, its either an industry term of art or just normal English talking about finance or recording. Were going to deduct a million dollars. Rap superstar Kanye West is leading a revolt against . Kanye also has a right to have a digital store, in which he can sell his album and the deluxe version on a website, but the deluxe is only exclusive to him for 90 days. One hundredpercent of video costs of any video production costs in excess of $300,000 per video isrecoupable from audio-only record royalties. Youre not trying to make it really friendly for consumers, but you are trying to make it friendly for business people while still preserving, as you can see in the rewrite as most of the actual terms of art. After that point, UMG can distribute the albums on their own. What am I looking at here? Soundtrack: The Great Gatsby. This helps cut down on negotiation time, which can lead to making better deals. If youre with a major you have invested your songs as shares in their power to get equity and deals. The breakdown for this amount was:$1.5 million was to be distributed to record the album. This is what were going after. So thats, you know, the kind of thing you see in a lot of consumer facing agreements these days, especially with what these tech companies that are under the gun. The first agreement in the series was around the time PDF were new. An advance constitutesany moneypaid, costs incurred or costs to create videos. Theyre there of the, you know, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, if any. The after section shows which changes Gruberman suggests need to be made. Ye says he wants his four children to own them. Every audio file, every asset, every deal stored WITH the money. Artists like Kanye feel that they are being cheated. Gruberman emphasizes that you can preserve the contract law-based elements in the before section while still simplifying the text in a consumer-friendly way. (In response, the label played down the conflict: Theres no more independent plants, no more putting all these CDs in a truck and shipping them from store to store across the country, Chris Anokute, founder of entertainment company Young Forever Inc. and a former A&R executive for labels including Capitol and Island Def Jam, tells, Anokute manages several clients including Curtis Waters, who recently, While Anokute points the barrel primarily at the labels dishing out deals arguing that these deals perpetuate the very inequalities for black artists that the, If you have a kid who knows nothing about law and sees all this money, these contracts are 60 pages long, who the fuck is reading that? Anokute says. This is the same deal your favorite artist signed, this is their label. What do you expect a young, naive artist to do? 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(In response, the label played down the conflict:We pride ourselves on our industry-leading track record of putting songwriters first and helping them to achieve their creative and commercial goals. Leveraging Scooter Braun's reputation and influence within the music and entertainment industries, Scooter Braun and the Scooter Braun Projects team work around the clock to put its clients in a position to make their dreams come true. Theyre taking risks and investing in acts, Kinney says. However, Gruberman says this is still a good way to use plain language for understandability. Practical in the sense that its tracking reality while still hopefully remaining faithful to the original. ), Rather than looking at potential profits when labels were courting them, Noonan says Karmin was advised to take the most money they could up front, given how few artists end up recouping from their records. I didnt know this was the thing, but apparently its a Twitter meme. It was an emotional breakdown about contracts, which just doesnt happen enough. Adidas said on Tuesday that it was cutting ties with Kanye West, ending what may have been the most significant corporate fashion partnership of the rapper and . If Im the lawyer there, there are terms of art. He got a $12 million pool of money to make "Yeezus" in 2013. Maybe its about time I do that., Like others, Negrito, who released his third independent LP. Youve been dealing with this for a while. But its basically one contract with a whole bunch of stacked on amendments and documents. And although I didnt start my career with contract language, I certainly immerse myself in it. As lawyers and contract drafters trying to implement plain language, we have to find a way to do this while staying true to the contract. Before we do, Ross, I want you to tell me about yourself. Money and Music must stay together. The . In a follow-up tweet, Yeezy said, "I have to tweet page by page The PDF is not loading on twitter.". ET. That was pretty awesome. And there there are lots of there are lots of issues in the original that many, many, you know, entertainment law specialists would probably argue over which which actually, you know, brings up another issue is, is is this plain english movement really just for the clients or are you actually uncovering some conflicts or ambiguities or vagueness or nonsensical expressions altogether in the original if youre, you know, challenging yourself to put them in terms of normal people can understand? Almost no artists recoup so the system obviously doesnt work, but its tempting. Kanye West has posted dozens of pages of record contracts, and a video of a Grammy being urinated on, in a lengthy string of tweets criticizing the music industry. . Of that, two-thirds ($8 million) was an advance for him to keep. Russ and I are going to do a pretty fun and weird thing today. The record label / publisher is a service provider that receives a share of the income for a limited term. $20.99 Used. For example, LinkedIn has made some effort to provide easy-to-understand language. Histhird contract period consisted of15 percent of the royalty base with respect to master recordings during third contract period,15 percent of sales of an album in excess of 500,000 units and16 percent of sales of an album in excess of 1 million units. Its its unfortunately the the words and phrases that are operative to. However, they were only thumbnails that could barely been seen by the naked eye, even when enlarged. Wests contract could even be considered favorable among superstar contracts, with Universal heavily investing in Wests works, entertainment attorney Christiane Kinney says. In fact, according to one of his recent Instagram posts, the Three Stripes offered to buy Ye out of his contract for $1 billion. Not every artist has time to read the, Amy Noonan, who records as Qveen Herby and was formerly half of 2010s pop duo. The first contract Kanye posted, dated April 13, 2005, is our earliest look at his deal with Universal through its subsidiary, Island Def Jam. Most comprehensive library of legal defined terms on your mobile device. Artists re-signing these stops. During his rant, Kanye declared that he would move the entire music industry into the 21st century, and he means to do this using clear and discernable language. So, you know, the fine print, so to speak, does exclude the rewrites on the right. You know, its a little some people would say, well, you dont want to mess around with indemnification, but in this case, it seems close enough to the original to be faithful legally while still being understandable. But there theres a lot you can do there, as the GE example has shown. Prince Vinyl Records. Miguel Candela / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images file So lets tear it down. He says the industry must holistically evaluate how to improve for any major changes to shift. Kanye shared a 2005 superseding agreement of his original 2002 recording contract and a handful . Based on Kanye's documentation, it looks like there was also aCruel Summer film in the works. Artists must be dependent on no one but themselves to manage their catalog. G.O.O.D. He shared the dramatic, rant-fueled background and then took Kanyes request seriously. Everybody go get it. I think this is also, frankly, probably closer to what somebody like Kanye West could demand. Why are artists paying a 20 percent distribution fee off the top?, Related This method perhaps isnt as friendly to consumers as LinkedIns method, but its close enough to the source material and still understandable. Mike Whelan [00:17:34] Yeah, I like the phrase sufficient moneys. Who made this up so that record companies get 70 percent of the money? KANYE WEST, an individual, and WEST . Equity & Blanket Licenses are the majority of future new income. While Anokute points the barrel primarily at the labels dishing out deals arguing that these deals perpetuate the very inequalities for black artists that the labels have said theyre looking to change he acknowledges that labels alone cant take all the blame for unfriendly artist deals. However, phrases like notwithstanding anything to the contrary and promptly may seem unnecessary, but they have a legal layer thats important in order to maintain the integrity of the contract. He declared his contract was industry standard, but that didnt mean it was fair. We get used to these things and then sometimes, theres a wakeup call Fantastic Negrito, When they left their deal, they chose not to try and buy back their masters, having put out only one album with Epic and feeling they still had their best musical years ahead. How can you rewrite a contract to be understandable without losing the original intent? So we know recouped doesnt mean the same thing. This is the same deal your favorite artist signed, this is their label. What do you expect a young, naive artist to do? Using plain language isnt just a benefit to clients. The Nike Air Yeezy 1 Prototypes beat the previous . In 2011, Kanye and Jay-Z joined forces musically and created theirWatch the Thronejoint album. So so as I play this in the background, tell me about some of the phrases that youre seeing in this that are just driving you nuts. They will help you draft better contracts faster. So you dont want to run around changing materiality. Its an exclusion, a liability. So we know there is going to be some language that must be included to avoid undermining the agreement. Advances are loans with 75% interest rates (or worse). Rock Kanye West Vinyl Records. Kanye West's War Against Record Contracts Could Actually Work for Kanye, Anyway Kanye West wants his rights back. So heres an amendment. All Rights reserved. But first, the record labels getting their money. If Kanye wanted to release his tentatively titled project, Lost Yeezus Tapes, he could have and it would've been considered a press and distribution album. Logic tweeted that Def Jam refused to pay for a remix of his recent song Perfect that would feature Lil Wayne. But asking for plain English is easy; writing a legal document thats both enforceable and clear is a bit more complicated. And thats why the color coding comes in. I AM ON MY KNEES THIS MORNING," he tweeted before dropping the proof. Im Mike Whelen. Guberman starts by assuring that several companies are already implementing a plain language strategy in their contracts. "UNIVERSAL WONT TELL ME WHAT MY MASTERS COST BECAUSE THEY KNOW I CAN AFFORD TO BUY THEM," Kanye tweeted on Wednesday (Sept. 16). Roc-A-Fella was to approve any "recording elements,"which are listed as: selection of individual producer(s), selection of compositions to be recorded, specification of accompaniment, arrangement and copying services, selection of dates of recording and studios where recording is to take place. There are there are archaic phrases that that for this to be legally binding, for me to stay out of trouble, need to be in there. Blues singer Fantastic Negrito, a two-time Grammy winner, first signed a major record deal with Interscope in the Nineties, giving him what he says was a $400,000 advance. Looking back, I've thought many times about what makes Kanye Kanye. It's unclear if it actually will. "And y'all still gave him contracts, documentaries, endorsements . Uploaded for archival purposes. West's contracts laid it all out. For the sixth album, Kanye received a $12 million advance. He says the industry must holistically evaluate how to improve for any major changes to shift. And they dont completely replace the jargon that lawyers need to include. So its cut down on negotiation time and led to better, you know, better deals. To be a little bit difficult to argue that. It would also give Adele the largest record deal for a British musician by surpassing . We didnt spend our advance on cars or jewelry, we bought a house. Over the last few days, Kanye has been vocal about trying to obtain his music masters from Universal Music Group, the parent company of his own record label, G.O.O.D. The rest went for recording costs, sample clearance, and other costs involved in making the album. Ross Guberman [00:07:15] So youre looking at a movement that started when those Capitol Hill hearings, but the tech companies were in the news. From that money, $4 million was allocated to recording costs. He was given a $6 million advance for his seventh album with $3 million designated to recording costs. Lets rewrite the deals to be understandable from first rate. Mike Whelan [00:03:02] Thats right. Kanye West is at war with the music industry over the ownership of masters and unfair contracts. In 2012, the label released its debut compilation album Cruel Summer.In 2015, Pusha T was appointed the president of the label . There are no reviews yet. Broadly, what Ill say is theres this really weird profit sharing structure with this with these deals, because what the the record label will do is say we get our money, then we take expenses out. Right. Several artists have voiced their own grievances in response to Kanyes call for transparency. Tell me what people are talking about. As for Kanye's royalties, the percentages varied for his first, second and third contract periods. Contract #3. Why should the lawyers watching this thing care other than the sick entertainment value of watching somebody have a breakdown about contracts? Ye. this summer, doesnt point the finger at any one entity or group for the nature of these deals. The equity is the Artists. If you have a kid who knows nothing about law and sees all this money, these contracts are 60 pages long, who the fuck is reading that? Anokute says. How are businesses shifting to using plain language? Push this button right here that will allow you to join Law Insider at a premium subscription. Musicto other labels within the UMG group of labels, if no other UMG group of labels wants to enter into an agreement through G.O.O.D. Mike Whelan [00:22:56] So, Ross, I appreciate your thoughts on this. The after section is where GE has broken down the text into something more friendly for business people. And for Kanye and for all these performers, they were really giving money based on albums, unlike CD sales, which is not a thing anymore. Ye went from $6.6 billion to maybe $400 million. So youre seeing some attempt by LinkedIn. The rapper and his team signed an agreement on January 5 with the venue for a 25-day rental totaling $125,000, expenses of $20,000, and four new office chairs for $813, the lawsuit says. Right. Youre going to sign the amendment. And, you know, this sort of juncture between functional language and legal language languages is my sweet spot. Theyre paying for all of the promotion of music videos and concerts because its coming out off the top. Right. Epic spent a fortune making that Karmin album. But there is some movement, especially in the tech industry, also consumer facing company, some movement, and then a little bit, too, in the more staid commercial world. So I think when you tell lawyers that you can be part of the plain English movement while still, of course, using your good sense and keeping legally meaningful terms intact and certainly keeping industry, you know, meaningful terms intact and then explain that its the rest rights, the rest the pursuant to the full execution. Kanye Omari West is born in Douglasville, Georgia by the proud parents Donda Williams and Ray West. Musician Kanye West changed all that when he went to Twitter to complain about his many contracts with the recording industry. Kanye West continues his campaign against major record labels. Contract #1 [PDF] Contact #2 [PDF] Contract #3 [PDF] Contract #4 [PDF] Contract #5 [PDF] Contract #6 [PDF] Contract #7 [PDF] Contract #8 [PDF] Contract #9 New Recording and Publishing Deal Guidelines [ PDF] Its not always clear whats what. So, Ross, this document, why does it matter? August 6, 2021 3:35 PM EDT. And whether whether its, you know, a lawyer literally turning the contract into plain language or turning to Kanye and saying, let me tell you what this means. We were lucky because we were careful. I will never work for a major record label again, Anokute says. "Today artists get just 12% of the money the industry makes. And they stack this money in a in a very beneficial way to the label because the way artists make money totally shifted. So come join us right now. In the event that Kanye's sixth album, Cruel Summer,exceeds 2.65 million units according to the label's track equivalent album sales or "TEAS," Island Def Jam promised to increase Yeezy's seventh album advance by $500,000. GOOD Music (stylized as G.O.O.D. If you are interested in being a guest on Contract Teardown, please email us at community@lawinsider.com. And then on the contract lingo, contract language side, we approach it differently. #kanyewest #dramaalert #grammyWanna continu. This is subject to G.O.O.D. But its all too new to know whether in any kind of dispute that language would actually be entered as evidence. So the tool, the tool were looking at brief catch, you know, there you go. A month ago, Kanye West had an emotional breakdown on Twitter. Kanye West signed to Roc-A-Fella Records, which was under Island Def Jam Music Group, whose parent company is Universal Music Group, on April 13, 2005. If you push this button, youre going to save big. Rosss balanced language approach will help you meet your clients demands for both clarity and effectiveness. How do I nudge a contract toward plain language without undermining the agreement? He admits that while this is still a complicated section in general, someone like Kanye could understand it enough to know what he is signing. He created the first-of-its-kind editing plug-in BriefCatch. Ross Guberman [00:22:25] Well, you know, we dont know whether the lawyers did and he didnt listen or whether. You know, the I remember the general counsel, GE Aviation said, you know, a 12th grader, a teenager should be able to read this. He tweeted them so I made PDFs. And, to an extent, they're not wrong. Blues singer Fantastic Negrito, a two-time Grammy winner, first signed a major record deal with Interscope in the Nineties, giving him what he says was a $400,000 advance. Island Def Jam can also recoup 100 percent profit ofCruel Summer/Hawaii costs. He was also responsible for50 percent of the total amount of out-of-pocket expenses incurred or paid by Roc-A-Fellain connection with the preparation of his album's artwork. You should need NO ONE else to understand the business youre in. You want to get in and get as much as you can is what we were told. But if Kanye West 's statements last year about slavery being a choice were out of bounds, he's taking more of a Prince-like tactic in his ongoing efforts to extract himself from his record. The Record Industry Spencer Cornelia 486K subscribers Subscribe 98K views 2 years ago Kanye West recently posted his record contracts on Twitter and it's clearly become a. We want to hear it. Right. Maybe even my own lawyer is not really looking at the language from my point of view. Mike Whelan [00:01:20] Pretty classy nightstand, Ross. Yet even though Kanyes deal may not make him the ideal poster child for a conversation on the fairness of recording contracts, hes sparked a high level of discussion among artists and music-business insiders on the nature of record deals and long-held standards. Almost ALL new deals now are based on ALL songs going to a store or app. Uploaded by Theyre not to be I mean, this is classic, completely unnecessary, archaic language you see in a lot of commercial agreements. The decline centered around controversial anti-Black and antisemitic comments and other erratic behavior. One thing that could be highly damaging in any industry is having a client going around feeling as if the company or even their lawyer is trying to take advantage of them. Kanye West gave the world a rare glimpse into the music industry 's labyrinth of recording contracts last week when he tweeted out his own paperwork with Universal Music Group and then. I mean, there there are many words and phrases that do need to remain intact because the risk of trying to translate them informally into common terms is is much bigger than any benefit. on the Internet. Mike Whelan [00:11:02] Hmm. Whats the language that stands out to you as particularly harmful to the understanding of the parties, which is really what a contract is supposed to do, right? Prior toKanye's relentless tweeting session, heinformed his followers that he wasgoing to share 10 of his contracts with UMG, the parent label to his G.O.O.D. Ross Guberman [00:09:03] Yeah, exactly. A lawyers role is to improve deals, not charge for contracts we cannot understand or track. In this episode of the Contract Teardown, Foster Sayers joins Mike live at ContractsCon to beat up the ChatGPT Terms of Service. West is also no longer with record label Def Jam a Universal Music Group subsidiaryas he has fulfilled his contract, Forbes reported Thursday, and his own label, G.O.O.D. Ross Guberman [00:01:07] Im doing well, its good to see you and good to see your room, too. West filed suit . musical compositions embodied on albums released by a major record label per year (or longer if West needed more time) (each a "Contract Year") for . The after version that Gruberman shares is shorter, which is one benefit to cutting out unnecessary language, but it also better tracks the chronology of the real world. If youre part of a team, just email us if youre in house or in a law firm. And youll see with this contract, this is an old contract that was really based on who gets money from from the music. I want you to do me a quick favor. Language such as hereinafter referred to and to the extent that are generic legalese that can easily be simplified without affecting the overall meaning of the text. He ended the spree with, 'Whew that was a lot guys," and then tweeted a video of himself peeing on a Grammy award. He says that what he wants to do specifically is move the entire music industry into the 21st century because he didnt feel like that was adaptive. Well see you there. Mike Whelan [00:03:50] I realized after I got dressed to have our conversation that Im wearing the shirt that apparently everyone in D.C. wears. So you pay to see your money!!! In the contract Kanye shared, a lot of the language used to describe this relationship is obviously archaic and can be simplified. Rather than looking at potential profits when labels were courting them, Noonan says Karmin was advised to take the most money they could up front, given how few artists end up recouping from their records. During his rant, Kanye declared that he would move the entire music industry into the 21st century, and he means to do this using clear and discernable language. So we want to talk briefly about this profit sharing piece, this image here, because theres a lot of language that might lead to artists not understanding that theyre getting into that pretty crappy deal, honestly. In in your estimation, does this thread the needle of checking the legal boxes, but also being plain enough? He dumped them all on Twitter. Kanye Westmade good on his promise by sharing the many pages ofhis recording contracts with his label Universal Music Group. West also made his feelings towards the label clear in 2020, when he tweeted images of his record contract, noting he felt he was treated unfairly. For Kanye West's profit share agreement with Island Def Jam/UMG, there was a 50 percent profit split for his sixth and seventh album, whichincludes distribution, marketing, recording and any other expenses. So notwithstanding anything to the contrary, the Shall problem, you know, using Shal for both obligations and future events, words that seem familiar, like promptly that have a legal layer causes. So you dont have to blow the whole thing up in order to meet Kanye West at least half way. My KNEES this MORNING, '' he tweeted before dropping the proof, with Universal investing! Jam can also recoup 100 percent profit ofCruel Summer/Hawaii costs remaining faithful to original. Over the ownership of masters and unfair contracts is where GE has broken down the text in a consumer-friendly.... Used to describe this relationship is obviously archaic and can be simplified ; all still gave him contracts which. Tracking reality while still simplifying the text into something more friendly for business people about. For contracts we can not understand or track are loans with 75 % interest (. My sweet spot who made this up so that record companies get 70 percent of money! Maybe its about time I do that., like others, Negrito, who released his third LP! And phrases that are operative to and concerts because its coming out off the top and Im going to big... Still gave him contracts, documentaries, endorsements musically and created theirWatch Thronejoint! And I are going to do Kanye feel that they are being cheated time, which can to! Never work for a remix of his original 2002 recording contract and a handful get equity and deals get. Distributed to record the album catch, you know, blah,,..., even when enlarged musically and created theirWatch the Thronejoint album call for transparency looking the. On contract Teardown, please email us if youre part of a team, email. His first, second and third contract periods 6 million advance on cars or jewelry, we a! Moves to Chicago with his label Universal music group for plain English is easy ; Writing a legal document both! As for Kanye 's royalties, the fine print, so to speak, does this thread needle. Contracts could Actually work for Kanye, Anyway Kanye West continues his campaign against record. # x27 ; s contracts laid it all out on their own grievances response. [ 00:01:20 ] pretty classy nightstand, Ross cut down on negotiation time and led to better, know! Your favorite artist signed, this sort of juncture between functional language and legal language languages is my sweet.... After that point, UMG can distribute the albums on their own of that. Phrase sufficient moneys listen or whether language strategy in their power to get equity deals. Favorite artist signed, this document, why does it matter Def Jam refused to pay for a musician... A British musician by surpassing he wants his four children to own them would Actually be as., $ 4 million was to be some language that must be included to avoid undermining the agreement, language... That Def Jam refused to pay for a limited term improve for any major changes to.. Universal music group to beat up the ChatGPT terms of service artists favor contract! Not understand or track debut compilation album Cruel Summer.In 2015, Pusha T appointed. Being a GUEST on contract Teardown, please email us if youre with a major you have your. 1 Prototypes beat the previous a plain language for understandability to provide language. One entity or group for the nature of these deals contract that was really based who! This thread the needle of checking the legal boxes, but its one! Umg can distribute the albums on their own West is at War with the recording industry on Twitter record. Stored with the music industry over the ownership of masters and unfair contracts dont have to look for nature. For Kanye 's royalties, the record label again, Anokute says my career with contract language, want... Then took Kanyes request seriously remix of his recent song Perfect that would Lil! For understandability see your room, too a British musician by surpassing rewrite a contract to be language. One but themselves to manage their catalog are already implementing a plain isnt... What we were told thing up in order to meet Kanye West demand. ] Yeah, I appreciate your thoughts on this of money to make quot! Up in order to meet Kanye West had an emotional breakdown about?... Label again, Anokute says risks and investing in acts, Kinney says with Universal heavily investing wests... Still simplifying the text in a very beneficial way to the original, if any that are... To Kanyes kanye west record contract pdf for transparency artist to do a pretty fun and weird thing today Perfect that would feature Wayne... ( or worse ) so we know there is going to do 400.... His rights back deal stored with the money the industry must holistically how! They & # x27 ; s business manager & # x27 ; all still gave him contracts, with heavily... Taking risks and investing in acts, Kinney says and can be simplified whole bunch of on... New deals now are based on all songs going to tear down the contracts that shared. From from the music watching this thing care other than the sick entertainment value of watching somebody have breakdown. Of watching somebody have a breakdown about contracts clarity and effectiveness are being cheated, moves... Manager & # x27 ; ve thought many times about what makes Kanye Kanye: Ross Guberman [ ]. Mean it was fair of these deals lawyers need to be distributed to record the album the phrase sufficient.! Morning, '' he tweeted before dropping the proof these deals and West. Money!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That language would Actually be entered as evidence it matter re not wrong musically and created theirWatch Thronejoint! Of $ 300,000 per video isrecoupable from audio-only record royalties Agency via Images! Following his parents & # x27 ; ve thought many times about what makes Kanye! 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Universal heavily investing in wests works, entertainment attorney Christiane Kinney says Summer film in the works, Kinney.... Brief catch, you know, this document, why does it matter any major to..., youre going to save big contract lingo, contract language side, we bought house. Recording contract and a handful amount was: $ 1.5 million was allocated to recording costs one entity or for. S contracts laid it all out says he wants his four children to own them, Anyway Kanye West least! Join law Insider at a premium subscription being plain enough, Ross, this still. Meet your clients demands for both clarity and effectiveness to maybe $ 400 million totally shifted we can understand. In response to Kanyes call for transparency some effort to provide easy-to-understand.... Legal boxes, but also being plain enough happen enough West is at War the! Artists make money totally shifted paying for all of the promotion of videos! S business manager & # x27 ; re not wrong GUEST: Ross Guberman is president of language... Their label for both clarity and effectiveness reality while still hopefully remaining faithful to the label because the way make! Tweeted before dropping the proof blah, if any 2005 superseding agreement of his original 2002 recording contract a... Of watching somebody have a breakdown about contracts must be included to avoid undermining the.! And investing in acts, Kinney says when enlarged any video production costs excess. Via Getty Images file so lets tear it down million was to be distributed to record the album shared a! Assuring that several companies are already implementing a plain language without undermining the agreement the artists. Still gave him contracts, which just doesnt happen enough contract that was really based on all songs going be. Back, I want you to join law Insider at a premium subscription his... For plain English is easy ; Writing a legal document thats both and..., please email us if youre part of a team, just us. Documentaries, endorsements videos and concerts because its coming out off the.! And, to an extent, they & # x27 ; s to... Down the contracts that Kanye shared, a lot you can preserve the contract,... A major you have invested your songs as shares in their power to get in and get as much you. Is easy ; Writing a legal document thats both enforceable and clear is a provider! Or worse ) a store or app is still a good way the... For this amount was: $ 1.5 million was to be understandable without losing original. Their money before section while still simplifying the text into something more friendly business... Sayers joins mike live at ContractsCon to beat up the ChatGPT terms service.