Fleet Foxes Lead Singer OK With Illegal Downloads

The long and short of it is that Fleet Foxes lead singer Robin Pecknold really doesn’t care if people illegally download their music. He downloads music illegally too, so hey, at least he’s not being disingenuous about the issue.

In a candid interview with BBC News, Pecknold said he did not object to file sharing and believes his access to the once-mighty Napster helped him discover a wealth of great music.

“That was how I discovered almost everything when I was a teenager – my dad brought home a modem,” Pecknold told BBC News. “That was how I was exposed to almost all of the music that I love to this day, and still that’s the easiest way to find really obscure stuff.”

You must admire his honestly in a time when illegal downloading is the scourge of the music business. But the way Pecknold sees it, illegal downloading has actually helped the music scene, allowing new bands, like Fleet Foxes, to attract audiences from all over — a marvelous conduit, albeit deemed by many unlawful, for the opportunity of  musical discovery.

I’m not losing money as an artist at the moment, or having to present to any board why the music division is in shambles, but for now I have to go with the gospel of the Fleet Foxes frontman; he understands the importance of the Internet as it relates to new music, new bands and how the people who love that kind of awesome stuff can find out just what the heck is going on. 

Pecknold sums up the illegal file sharing issue:

“I’ve downloaded hundreds and hundreds of records – why would I care if somebody downloads ours? That’s such a petty thing to care about. I mean, how much money does one person need? I think it’s disgusting when people complain about that, personally.”

Amen, brother! I mean, no, that’s wrong. Whatever.

Do you agree with Robin Pecknold’s thoughts on illegal downloading?

Source: BBC News