Facebook Decides To Screw Musicians

Everyone has been affected by the pandemic, and the music industry has been hit particularly hard. Music venues were forced to close, and many have now had to make the decision to not reopen, due to the financial impossibilities of keeping the businesses going. Musicians who relied on income from touring have also had to adapt to find new ways to pay their bills. The solution that a lot of artists found was to perform shows online, and many of those live streams were posted on Facebook. It was the best use that anyone so far has found for that website, and these shows gave the site a new life and importance during these trying and uncertain times. But Facebook, in its usual shitty fashion, has decided to put an end to that, to put an end to our little bit of joy, to put an end to musicians being able to support themselves using the site. Starting on October 1st, Facebook has promised to crack down on musicians performing live. Facebook issued a statement which says, in part, “You may not use videos on our Products to create a music listening experience. We want you to be able to enjoy videos posted by family and friends. However, if you use videos on our Products to create a music listening experience for yourself or for others, your videos will be blocked and your page, profile or group may be deleted. This includes live.” In a time when we desperately need music in our lives, and musicians desperately need to reach their audiences, Facebook is saying “Fuck you” to us all.