Why Do Certain Artists Still Block Their Music? 

To quote Cory Doctorow, “Obscurity is a bigger threat to artists than piracy”

Jimi Hendrix is an example of the family trust continually blocking to the point of burying the legacy where it is now lost on the younger generation.

There was a pocket of time in the mid 2000s to 2010s when Guitar Hero and Rockband came out that really revitalize all of these artist. So many young people were introduced and had a chance to fall in love with "Old Music".

Hendrix, the Beatles, AC/DC are indeed being forgotten. I think a bellwether is looking at the younger people. I'm a high school teacher and while many, but not all, kids know Nirvana, they know nothing of the aforementioned bands. I talk a lot about music in class and most of my students just simply don't know. Rick is right

What the bands that take down videos don't seem to understand is that the general public are not ripping them off by playing their music.....but what they are actually doing is advertising their music for free and making people more aware of how great they are....Great channel Rick.

It is said that everyone dies twice. Once is when they take their last breath. The other is when their name is spoken for the last time. Thank you, Rick, for doing what you can to extend that "second life" of so many artists. 🙏 Congratulations on 7 well-spent years, Rick.

All of this is completely true, these damn greedy record labels will drive these legends into irrelevancy. The idea that their music is bigger than time and will magically continue to play even without marketing or letting it spread is ridiculous. Im a 1st generation immigrant and most of the music i discovered from the 60s-90s was through RU-vid recommendations.

Preach! It makes me so sad that Jimi Hendrix's music gets blocked since no one from the Experience is still around to say "Yes. I want my music on RU-vid" and I feel like Jimi especially would love the idea. Paraphrasing but I read in an interview from Jimi where he said he considered his music a "gift to the world" and the Hendrix estate has done everything in their power to gatekeep that gift and take anyone to court who says otherwise. I mean not to take bread from their table but it's the counter intuitive approach to music in the internet age and it's stifling Jimi's legacy!

“ Our band is so important that mentioning our name or playing a note of our music must be prohibited. We are so great that you will have to fight real hard to find our music.”

It’s mind boggling that any artist who has achieved such a high level of success and popularity would do anything to prevent more people from getting the chance to experience their work on any level!

Prince was really big on blocking during his lifetime. After his death, his stuff seems to be pretty wide open, now. He spoke about it often, too. He was solemnly against people posting his music or about his music.

i was born in 1990 and i have to say i am thankful that my parents listened to classic rock around me growing up. it's easy listening and timeless.

My son is 9 years old, a solid musician himself, and he learns about music via his old man (for the next few years) and RU-vid. Those artists you mentioned - AC/DC, GnR - he just gets less exposure to because the covers and tutorials are a big part of how music is consumed by young people. Artists that block their own fans from making new content of their old music are shooting themselves in the foot. They will be forgotten if their art can’t be refreshed and viewed.

Couldn't agree more Rick. Was teaching Prince to some 17 year olds. They had vaguely heard of him, but had never heard his music. I played them the iconic Superbowl Purple Rain, cue mind blown class. They LOVED it. Bands forget we heard them all for free on the radio.

Keep fighting the fight Rick. I'm also one of your contemporaries (b.1964), and I believe you're slowly making a difference. Perhaps its by attrition and slowly wearing them down, but regardless we can't let this great music simply pass into the shadows of memory. Hopefully some of these notorious blockers will come to their senses and realize if they want a lasting posterity and legacy, they're going to have to get off their high horse and let people actually experience their art. Can you imagine any other artform doing this? It's like Leonardo saying, "Yeah, I'm sure you'd love the Mona Lisa but first you have to pay dearly to see it and then promise not to describe it to anyone else in any way afterward." Ridiculous.

So true! So many great composers are pushed into oblivion because of copyrights. We wait until the copyrights expire, and it’s already too late. Their music is already forgotten!

The Eagles were the first band that I can remember charging more than the rest of the field at the time. When the Hell Freezes Over tour happened I had literally never paid more than 35 or 40 bucks for ANY concert. It was 100 bucks to see them. Going to a concert had never been a financial choice. It was, Can you get in the lineup early enough to get a wristband. NOBODY charged what this band that hadn’t put out new music in a decade and a half was! I remember thinking “who do they think they are?” As GF said on the album they took a 14 year vacation. And then proceeded to charge twice as much as the most popular relevant charting bands. The documentary confirmed that more than any band I’ve ever seen, they were obsessed with making every dollar they can, and not leaving a penny on the table. To a degree that really made them look like assholes. Or at least DH and GF were. I get it. I’m a musician. You want to get paid for your writing, but these guys are too much. GnR? Get serious. You had a couple hit albums. I loved Appetite, but it’s 40 years old. AND despite the hype, they were to me anyway just another LA hair band in a sea of LA hair bands. I never understood the acclaim. Old rich rockers trying to keep every cent when they’ve already made more than 99% of musicians ever will, especially nowadays. It’s the opposite of cool and rockstar-like. The business model changed fellas. No one likes it, but that’s reality. And blocking even tutorials? They literally are grumpy old men with age spots bitching about stuff only they care about and hurting their own legacy and potential immortality in the process. I’m 50 years old, STILL trying to make a living off of my own music and have zero love for the industry of today, but FFS there’s a limit to people’s sympathy and support for retired millionaire ex rock gods that have an actual staff whose sole purpose is to seek out every snippet of their music being enjoyed or god forbid studied and/or taught online. All it does is make guys who used to be the cool and influential standard look like greedy old bastards who would rather lose fans old and new than let someone like Rick expose their work to people that might not otherwise hear their material. Ridiculous.

Rick, you’re spot on. It’s a case of being both penny wise and pound foolish, as well as not understanding how consumers now absorb music. I imagine it’s difficult for some of the older mega artists to comprehend that their popularity and influence could wane over time if you only think about the ways we used to consume music. You’re doing a great service and we can only hope that they’ll eventually come around for their sake.

The biggest thing that I can't understand being blocked is when someone writes a tab for a song, whether it be a guitar or piano or whatever. Someone was a big enough fan to figure out how to write your music by themselves and you are going to throw a fit and punish them???? Crazy. What a tribute to you! Most of the tabs are wrong, but at least they are fans.

You are such a legend! Thank you for all the love you spread for music

My daughter's 8th grade chorus did a Beatles retrospective for their spring show. I was talking to the teacher and she said that probably 95% of the class had never heard a Beatles' song prior to their first practice.

What all those blockers don't realize is... If they block those videos, they're taking away exposure for those songs and bands. They are unwittingly causing they're demise. No exposure, no income. Just my 2¢

One of your best videos ever Rick. I was born in 77 and grew up knowing the 50s 60s and 70s music from my parent's 45s and the new stuff had to prove itself before I adopted it except for a few exceptional artists and songs. Some of those older artists and songs are definitely being forgotten... only so many hours in a day and only so much attention span to go around.

What some artists don't understand is that channels that talk about and share these songs introduce new people and generations to their music. Most young people now don't listen to the radio, so this is one of the only ways they come across these songs and artists. New artists like 'Ren' recognise this and use it to their advantage to help them get more exposure and even work with some of these channels doing interviews etc.

You’re so right, Rick. These artists are effectively saying “you can stream my music and buy it, but don’t you dare talk about it!” It is so stupid and against the artists’ best interests. That policy makes it all but inevitable that their popularity will decline over time quicker than it would if we were free to talk about it, teach it and introduce people to it by playing short, relevant passages and showing people how to play them and build off them. It’s a dumb, hard-headed policy that will make the music a distant memory faster.

I've got to agree. I'm a member of an online group of guitarists who challenge each other to learn a solo every week and post a video of ourselves playing it. We've done well over 100 of them to date, of all sorts of bands and genres. One of the best things about it is how much it introduces everyone to songs and bands they'd never heard of before. Guess which was the only one of my 100+ videos to be blocked, to date? Yup - Hotel bloody California. I can't say I was an Eagles fan before that, but I certainly won't be digging out their back catalogue after it!

We need to make it hurt for labels and bands to do this crap. Rick, you have been the most powerful voice speaking out against this stupidity, and are proof positive that the message holds true. The bands that don't participate in this petty lunacy are as popular as ever, and the ones who do are not only fading into obscurity, but even encouraging hatred toward their music. I used to love The Eagles. My dad was friends with Joe Walsh. But now, any time I hear them, I feel nothing but contempt for them and change the station. My son is passionately into rock music as a new guitarist, and I'm the primary influence on what he likes. We listen to Nirvana, Soundgarden, RHCP, Zappa, Hendrix etc. But I have never mentioned The Eagles once to him, as I refuse to contribute to their legacy because of their intentional malice and selfish stupidity. In the case of Hendrix, I understand that it's not Jimi's fault, so I don't intentionally dismiss his music. But we rarely listen to it because it's not just a RU-vid search away. I'm an album guy. If I can't find an unbroken album in order, I tend to not listen. Going to Spotify and having to hear a random playlist of his songs isn't for me, and thus my son rarely hears Hendrix's music to be inspired by and become a fan of it. These people are killing their legacies, one stupid decision at a time. And it will soon be irreversible as my sons generation becomes set in their ways, completely devoid of these groups, and completely uninterested in making them a part of their identity. In The Eagles' case, they deserve it. But many of these artists don't, and are becoming victims to the archaic practices of crusty old labels that refuse to modernize.

Just found your channel, your knowledge of the music industry is incredible , could watch you 24/7 , keep up the great work !

The first time I heard Stairway to Heaven I was 50 feet from the stage with 14,000 other fans at Led Zeppelin's only concert in New Zealand. They released Led Zep 4 the following day (in New Zealand), so they knew that we were all hearing their new music for the first time, and they were really enjoying blowing our minds. I'll never forget it.

Congrats on 7 years! Older established artists need to embrace new media...otherwise I feel they'll become more and more forgotten

Wow!! 7 years Congratulations Rick!! a full decade is almost just around the corner 👍

Happy Anniversary, Rick. I'm surprised I'm only subscribing now. I've been watching your videos for the longest time and they'd always come up in my feed. You are so right about the blocking policies on youtube of some recording artists. Fans can't check them out even on a demonetized post. They probably think they are so much bigger now than their followers who'd like to watch them and reminisce on how great they were.

Love when you make these videos Rick! Couldn’t agree more. To my disappointment I’ve always avoided teaching hotel California for this exact reason even though it’s one of my favourite solos!

Absolutely on point. I was also born in 62. Playing their music actually promotes their music and legacy and introduces new listeners. Gone are the days of relying on just the radio or word of mouth or gathering at friends places to play their music or at parties. Celebrate their music and spread the good vibes, that doesn't involve taking the artists money. Well said Rick Beato.

Thank you Rick!! Keep Fighting, Keep Teaching!

Only thing that makes sense it's your thinking process and how good you are elaborating in such a clear way. You are a star on your own Ricky 👍 cheers

I forget that Rick is over 60. His passion for music has kept him so vigorous and looking young! I remeber seeing Dave Brubeck when he was 90 or something. He came out hunched over and needed assistance just to walk to the piano, but as soon as he played his first note, his whole body came alive and he was suddenly Invincible! The joys of music can really keep you going. Hope you live way past a century, Rick!

Agree. I had my first strike for a Don Henley and Bruce Hornsby tune covered in my kitchen even paying tribute to their artistry with full accreditation. It was one of the most popular covers I have had in what is mostly original material. I was trying to show what an award winning song that moves me is laid bare on acoustic. Ridiculous to "block" it when so many others have covered it on the same media. You nailed it Rick, they are nailing the door shut on random discovery and word of mouth.

I'm 27 and a big Beatles' fan. I got curious about them when I was 15-16 years old so I looked them up on RU-vid (2011, 2012). There were a lot of videos for a lot of different songs, different audio mixings, live performances, lyric videos, etc. There was a community of people of all ages commenting on what they loved the most about each song, each instrument, and even the history behind the tracks. Fertile soil for getting new fans IMO, a couple of years after that, though most videos started to get deleted because of copyright, literally millions of comments from the passionate community built around The Beatles went out with them. Worst of all, when some of the songs got their official release on The Beatles' RU-vid channel, for some reason, they decided to make comments unavailable... It seems that at least thwy have not kept that last measure, but I do think the blocking of videos from the community was a strong contributor to less and less young people getting to know The Beatles and their music.

Omg you’ve made 1200 videos yay glad I’m coming to the channel now and have so much to watch!

Jimi Hendrix was such a contemplative soul, can't imagine he'd want those representing his legacy do it in the bluntest way possible.

I was born in 1990 in a home where rock music was very much appreciated. My dad collected CDs, we had cool Sony music equipment at home and a few Beatles records. I grew up listening to Abbey Road, among others, but never heard their entire discography until high school. I'm a little ashamed to admit it, but I had a period when I didn't go to school, but stayed in my room and listened to the Beatles' discography, because I felt it was important to hear it. My mom would leave for work early and didn't know anything about it. I had some problems at school, but the fact that I caught up with the Beatles' output I don't regret. In 2018, I saw Paul McCartney live in concert, and I consider it the culmination of this journey. Oh, and despite the skipped days at school, I'm doing well in life, as if anyone was worried. 😅😅

Blocking is ridiculous now. Artists will be forgotten, it’s through your great work that keeps the other artists relevant. Please do some more ECM artists - Eberhard Weber, Ralph Towner and Terje Rypdal.

As a person who owns a small Music Production Company and Independent labels, at one time I had a very similar view when I began seeing uploads of my releases on Napster and RU-vid. Hated it. But then a funny thing happened. There was more, not less interest in the music I had released. Because half of it was only released on analog format, there were distributors who reached out to me and the result was limited re-releases 15-25+ years later. I embrace it knowing that someone somewhere will always be able to discover a song that I was involved with musically (playing) and/or producing. That satisfaction that long after I am gone people will still be able to access my music via the internet and enjoy it forever. The bands who block this activity have a narrow view of their legacy that will not last forever. Besides how much money does one need anyhow?

One small data point is me. There are many bands I hadn't thought about for years, or hadn't heard about yet. This channel, especially the "What makes this song great" segments have renewed or started my interest in a lot of music. Why would someone pass up free promotion? It's baffling to say the least.

Blocking is not logical. If a label wants to make more money, they should allow more potential 'consumers' to be aware of an artist or band. Blocking reduces awareness. Lack of awareness results in fewer people listening to older releases. As ever, Rick is bang-on point. 👍🏻😀🇬🇧

God I could not agree with you more! Another commonly blocked way these artists can remain relevant is for younger viewers to see reactors of their own demographic respond with enthusiasm to the music. There's no chance a new fan would stop at exploring an artist they are suddenly excited about with a video where the person is talking over the song. Instead, I'm certain they would seek out more tunes/albums in their entirety on streaming sites (or purchase the songs outright) and that's ultimately very good for older musicians.

Rick - I think your thoughts and perspective on blocking are spot on. Super insightful. Keep up the great work.

I saw Jimi Hendrix at a festival in Los Angeles, TWICE! He appeared on Friday night and got angry because the audience was shouting at him to play his hits and left the stage. He came back on Sunday afternoon, apologizing to the attendees and jammed for THREE HOURS!!! It was cosmic.

The only way to keep old music relevant to the new comers is to have access to it on channels such as yours. They are not doing themselves any favors as the years go by. Let us all celebrate the great music of the past with future generations! Great channel and congrats Rick!

Cheers for all the history, teaching and vast knowledge, not just info!

Well done Mr Beato, you're a great servant of the music making community.

Your interview with Keith Jarrett is already widely regarded as one of the most important documentaries in the history of jazz - good on you for being so persistent with ECM to let you do the initial video that led to that interview. Apparently they are taking the long view regarding the legacy of their artists, to their credit.

46 years old, have been hearing how great the Beatles are my whole life… just never really listened to them much. If Rick would be allowed to play their music, there is a huge chance I would start listening as Rick can help you appreciate an artist.

There used to be a Music Policies tool in the old RU-vid Studio, where you could check whether a band or artist allows their songs to be used in a video, either the original recording or a cover. After RU-vid Studio Classic was removed, the tool was not ported to the new RU-vid Studio so the only way to check whether a song is allowed for use is to test upload an unlisted video in a second channel to see whether it gets blocked or not.

Good job Rick. Always enjoy your content.

So true, some artists go so far overboard worrying about DJ's, youTubers, etc making money off their work that they fail to realize that's the only way people are being exposed to it once they're off the charts. If those people can't play their songs, no one's going onto Spotify, Amazon, etc to buy their music.... they should stop and consider that if Sweet Caroline wasn't played at damn near every wedding in the US, Neil Diamond's catalogue wouldn't be worth the tapes it was recorded on by now.

Hendrix being forgotten is a crime against humanity. His music is amazing and everyone should know it.

Rick , I’m 51 , from N.Ireland and I was raised on Glen Campbell …. my wee feet sitting on top of my dad’s shoes , as we danced together… MAGIC ✨ They are both passed over now , but would you PLEASE cover the late and great Glen Campbell ?? He was SUCH an awesome guitarist !!! Love and immense gratitude for all of the work that you do - Polly from Co.Down ☘️❤☘️ ALSO - love and best wishes to your family and to all the music lovers worldwide, who have that passion within them ! Love to all ❤

“New gets newer and old gets older!” That’s a gem of an idea and statement; Marty just stated your case!

Harp all you want, Rick. Folks like Don Henley don't appreciate the fans like us that got him where he is today. And this goes for all the groups you mentioned. I see money going down the drain when there's demonetization, blocked vids, and especially tutorials. I would be so honored to have you and others talk, play and tutorial my music...Keep these 'harping' vids coming and keep us updated...Congrats on 7 years and hoping for 7 more...Thank you!

I couldn’t agree more. When videos merely “sample” music to educate or debate on topics of interest, they are doing a service to the artist, not ripping them off. God bless and thank you for your efforts to keep great music alive. I hate to imagine when AI generated music will be the norm for entertainment. I will always love the perfection of imperfections, the hiss and pop of vinyl and the off-beat of a song that hasn’t been pro-tooled. Genuine artistry which you bring to our community and consciousness.

This was my first watch of your channel. Congratulations on 7 years🎉 I couldn't agree more with your statement re the sad state of waning relevancy of so many great artists. It seems many of them are kicking and screaming themselves into obscurity 💔 I'm subbing and liking and looking forward to more of your vids 🎶❤🎶 ps - Just FYI, YT suggested your vid because I watch Professor of Rock videos.

I can't tell you how many songs that I have discovered because of your channel, or at least remembered and revisited. I recently watched a documentary called Echo in the Canyon, and immediately began to search out and download the featured songs and others from the era. How can these musicians not see the benefits of "What makes this song great" or the tutorials that you do? I raised my son doing our version of "What makes this song great?" as we would listen to every nuance and musical choice in each song. Between that and the discovery of your channel, he has bought tons of music, benefitting the artists each time. Thank you for what you do, and for keeping real music alive for this younger generation to discover. Hopefully these people will open their eyes to the fact that blocking does them more harm than good.

Good on you Rick. I was born in 1959, so I'm a contemporary of you and many of the classic artists who you have featured. You are doing this music a great service, and have reminded me on many occasions how great many of those bands/ guitarists/ albums/ songs from my past actually were. You're the reason I've revisited many of them and have consequently purchased many classic rock (and jazz) albums that I never previously owned as a result. This wouldn't have happened without your channel, and I'm certain that there are thousands of your subscribers my age and much younger who have done exactly the same - so I couldn't agree with you more on this topic. Long may you keep making your videos and putting this great music out there, because you're helping to keep it alive. These musicians - or rather, publishers or owners of copy write who block your videos (and those of others who have similar good intentions) should wake up before it's too late for them. Love your work...

Rick - I am a huge music fan and you have introduced me to so much music on your channel. I would argue that your channel is essential to ensuring the legacy of such artists remains relevant. Nobody out there is promoting such artists, and in time they will just fade away. Blocking music on your channel is so counterintuitive to what these labels should be doing. Wherever a channel is promoting their music, which is what you do, they should have an exceptions process that allows such channels to continue to promote the music. I understand why they block as the use of the music will be abused if they did not have some controls in place, however, there has to be an exception to every rule and you are it !!!

Great video! Such a great lesson for the myopic blockers.

Rick Beato is the link between the past and the present in the world of music. I've discovered great old music because of this channel. Congrats on your 7th anniversary.

Let them be forgotten. It's not a problem. My goddaughter is into Tears for Fears and Kate Bush because they appeared in Stranger Things I guess. I was so surprised that she knew Running up a Hill. Plus Phil killed it with In the Air Tonight 40 years after its release because he doesn't block.

Keep fighting the good fight sir. Cheers!

Emotions are what makes us remember our most memorable life experiences. Great music creates an emotional experience so powerful that years later you will relive the emotions felt when listening to that music. Every time you hear that music it reinforces past memories. There isn’t a single artist that dominates your past memories and the artist who keeps their music out of places where the majority of society spends their time, the artist will be forgotten. Popular music is so much more than just an asset that artists believe must be protected at all costs. If they wish to remain relevant they must spread their music not hide it 🤦‍♂️

I had no idea that Rick's audience was so young. I'm November '61 vintage. Having no talent, I hung out with a lot of musicians just because I like the way they think. After moving all over the world I have no musicians to hang out with. Rick still carries the wonder of his first love of music every day. Isn't that something?

It blows my mind that the bands/labels don’t see new media the same way they see sing placement in TV and movies. Look at what Stranger Things did for both Metallica and Kate Bush, or any of the dozens of bands Guardians of the Galaxy introduced to a new generation. These types of breakdown videos have introduced or reintroduced me to tons of music. You Tube videos are on a smaller scale for sure, but vids like Ricks always either remind me of bands I haven’t listened to in a while or introduce me to something new. It’s a shame he’s never going to break down a Hendrix song, and now that I think about it I haven’t listed to Hendrix in years, it’s a crime that he’s not in the top 500 on Spotify, but it’s also self inflicted.

This is so well thought and put out. The hard truth is here and all around.

Rick is such a cool dude! Love all your videos and ‘trying’ learn to be better guitar player…congrats on 7 yrs….I’m a newbie to your channel….I only have 1100 more vids to get caught on your channel!

I totally agree, I started playing guitar in 1963 and it was a pain in the butt having to listen to a 45 record over and over again to finally be able to play all the guitar parts.

I love the diversity of this channel. Music theory, artist interviews, song breakdowns, etc. This video, and the other recent one on the implications of AI, are also fascinating in terms of Rick’s insights on the evolution of the music industry. Hope that Rick keeps this rolling for another seven years… and another…

I’m 36 and I grew up on 90s and early 2000s rock/ metal. But now in my age I listen to music of all decades and my favorite decades of music probably today to listen to are the 60s or 70s . So I think as people get older they might hold on to what they lived in their youth as most do, but there will be a slew of other people that listen to many different decades of music and genres. Especially the creative types.

This is part of why I say we live in the best time for music in history. Because we can get all the new music, AND go back and listen to all the music from all of recorded history. So I can listen to Miles Davis, and then Orville Peck, and then Hank Williams Sr, and then Ren. It's an amazing time.

All the bands that you mentioned are 5 of my favorites (specially G’n’R) but I absolutely agree with what you say. Look at this, on your Nuno Bettencourt interview, you both mentioned how years ago you listened to a band and you just hoped that one day you could see them live. You fast forwarded and rewinded cassettes a hundred times to figure out their solos (I did it with every single G’n’R note played). But… it was the 90’s!!!! G’n’R was king!!! And the Beatles, ACDC, Eagles, etc we’re huge a couple years or decades before. But right now, guess what, it’s 2023!! Everything is immediate. There’s no surprise anymore. There’s “leaked” everything! So, just imagine for a second that G’n’R allowed videos about them. Imagine Mr. Beato analyzing the musicality and production stuff in those classic albums. Guess what, I am pretty sure there would be a resurgence of their music. Me? (for ages their number one fan) I prefer their resurgence based on their music, rather than on their gossip!! I would love for a whole new generation to listen and discover their amazing music and meaning, not only because their song appears in a superhero movie.

I was born '65. When you grow up with the music of the 70's whirling around you and then the 80's, 90's etc. it is really hard to take the many current corporate musicians seriously. We hear what they are doing, and it is sometimes at best boring. Modern artists like Ren, Angelina Jordon and a slew of others make me feel the kids are going to be alright. To them, the Beatles, GnR, Eagles, ACDC etc - those are all old music, from an era they can only read about in books or watch movies about. I don't think a lot of 70's or 80's or 90's bands would even get a look in today without a vastly different strategy and promotion plan... If they would even be allowed to exist within the modern industry constraints. I'm sure they would be just as good at playing the music, but would they even break through todays 90 second attention span and a cycle measured in days rather than months? Hard to say isn't it, because so much of success is luck and fortunate timing anyway... Cheers from Oz - we will never have the pub rock scene here we used to have either, it's almost impossible for bands to get more than a few gigs here and there now with the internet jukebox on the wall of most pubs (and pubs not really wanting the hassle of dealing with bands and payment and anything that needs more effort than a jukebox license fee or cable stream...)

I think there's a kind of balance or ratio that involves the music you listen too in your youth and the music you discover in your parents album collection, and I think that as the decades roll on by the era of the parents musical tastes roll on with them and the older stuff naturally gets left behind, and we feel a sense of loss as great music goes unheard by younger generations.

I really dig your show for many reasons. Everyone Communicates Few Connect. Critical Thinking and not dictating.. love your style bro.. keep it up.. Peace LoVe Soul & Groove

These artists are way towards the tail end of their lives, and they should be happy that guys like Rick are trying to praise them and keep them relevant to the younger generation

If a band does not want their full recordings played without money from ASCAP or BMI, I guess I could understand. But this nonsense about stopping everything, especially when used in reviews or analysis, is absolutely ridiculous. So my approach is to ignore those bands that are idiots! Keep going Rick! Your enthusiasm is refreshing and it is contagious!

We are all with you Rick 🤜🤛

"If you're watching this and you're bootlegging it, make sure that you're sending it to all of your friends, not just your swedish ones." - Bruce Dickinson, Ullevi - Göteborg, 2005 I remember reading somewhere that some bands used torrent downloiad statistics to plan their tours. I know first hand it makes sense - i downloaded a lot of music years ago in highschool and later i went to as many live gigs as i could, usually bringing other people with me. All the money i spent on concerts was way bigger than the price of albums of these bands that i didn't buy.

At 23 years old, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that there's droves of music that I'm listening to today that I wouldn't be without your work (and other creators'). So much of it that came and went before I was around to witness it, and others that I already loved that I could now enjoy with a newfound appreciation. I hope the blockers realise how much they're sabotaging themselves by doing what they do.

My first exposure to your channel was watching one of your "what makes this song great" videos. I've been a fan ever since, and congratulations on your 7th and to many many more. Getting Nuno into the studio for an interview was awesome. Well-done Rick. No way Extreme are going to be blockers.

It’s sad to realize that these groups that do the blocking are actually artists who were once at the forefront of the avant-garde of such things as “let’s break all the barriers” or “let’s free all our art from these silly rules". And now? Now not only have they become the establishment but - sadly - a more draconian version of it; more repressive and much less in touch the public whose hearts they once touched and changed for the better. You are so right, Rick. What a pity. If only these "Silly Five” - namely The Eagles, AC DC, The Beatles, Hendrix and Guns and Roses - had the ability to see themselves in historical perspective they might have seen a grumpy old knitting, moaning and groaning, suffering from nothing more nothing less than the Charles Bonnet syndrome.

My 11 yr old daughter played smells like teen spirit at her school of rock concert just last Sunday. Nirvana is her favorite band and all the teenagers that were there were singing along at the top of their lungs BECAUSE THEY KNOW IT! Bands don’t stay relevant by accident…

The video you made about Amelia by Joni Mitchell had a huge impact on me. Prior to that, I only had a very superficial knowledge of Joni's music, but that video led to me exploring her work, loving it, and she eventually became one of my favourite artists. Now I listen to her all the time. Just last night I had For The Roses on. Barely a week passes when I won't listen to some Joni Mitchell. Her music is just a part of my life now. Thank heavens she's not a blocker, because if she were, your Amelia video wouldn't exist, and I - and many others - wouldn't have been introduced to her music through it, and life would be poorer for it. By discussing older music you keep the flame burning, you keep the interest alive - and all artists need this, or else their influence and importance will gradually wither and die.

Keep preaching. The idea of blocking music is harmful to artists. It doesn't protect their intellectual property. It just holds down their exposure.

Thank you, RicK!

Rick you’re the best! The interviews, the lessons and stories you bring are A++++ much love in 2023 and beyond.

Rick your videos are milestones of musical scholarship. Please keep them coming!

Keep fighting the good fight!!

Beatles are just never out of style. You help connect the dots explaining the why behind this fact, to bring the kids out of that dismissiveness. Keep talking Beatles, Rick!

I'm very happy to see you, as always, but especially on your seventh anniversary. May your number of subscribers continue to multiply in leaps and bounds!

I have talked about this topic with my friends for years. When DVD came out and a lot of shows were held back because of music rights, it was basically the same principle. Some TV shows had to change their theme songs because the rights to the original music was so expensive. SCTV was one that was held up from DVD for a very long time for this reason. I'd make the point to my friends the live performance of The Tubes on SCTV performing "Sushi". Who in this day and age is going to remember The Tubes? Maybe it wouldn't rejuvenate their fame by putting that song on DVD but it'd get them far more exposure now than they could have ever had otherwise. But they were holding out because of money. Well, if you're going to hold out rights, you're holding out who gets to hear your music in the modern age. And these kids certainly aren't listening to radio. Same with Saturday Night Live. So many musicians keep their performances from ever being played in reruns. That's why we only got the first 5 seasons on DVD. And the episodes on Peacock don't have the music performances at all. So kids may watch the old skits on streaming but aren't being exposed to the music. So those old artists holding out for money that is never going to come their way will also fade into obscurity. And don't get me started on Pink Floyd and WKRP's DVD series set...