Music,
Movies, and… Money?
By Sandy Cobb, CMCA
Who Pays Attention? Walk into an office, gym, salon, restaurant, grocery store etc., and you commonly hear music playing
in the background. Most likely the last thing that you think about while standing in the line of say, a grocery store, trying not to sing your favorite song while waiting for the person ahead of you to finish telling the clerk about the day they had is: “Do they pay to play this music?”
The last thing you think about is: “Do they pay to play this music?”
If you are like me, you are likely focused on the tune playing trying to tune out the kid wailing for toys behind you (sorry if it was one of mine!) or the person on their cell phone complaining that the line is too long and there aren’t enough cashiers (sorry if that was my aunt) and just trying to get through the line.
Oh? You do think about it? Wait, think about what? Sorry, there was a kid distracting me… Oh yes, back to the people who want to get paid for their work. That would be, well, probably everyone. Unless of course you have all the money you want and/or need and just volunteer all your time without expecting a paycheck (if that’s you, I need a sitter, could you contact me?).
Ok, ok... jokes aside for now, let’s talk a bit about wanting 26 Community Associations Journal | June 2021
to get paid for the work we do. If I could write songs that the whole world sings (if you sang that, you are awesome!), I would want to get paid for those songs. If I published those songs, I would want to get paid too. And if I produced, or played the guitar or drums or any other musical instrument for that song, I would also want to get paid. I think you might be getting the idea. Basically work = pay.
Many people don’t think about who is getting paid for the songs they sing at the top of their lungs while driving down the street (or is that just me that does that? No... I have seen you – admit it. This is a safe place, I won’t tell.)
To Pay or Not to Pay Let’s break it down a bit. What if? ` … the community you manage has a clubhouse or community center and you play music there? Should you pay to play it? What about a TV?
` … or you are at your office and you are playing music on your phone, not too loud, but someone walking by could hear it: should you pay to play it?
` … or the community’s social committee wants to have music in the park? Or a movie? Pay to play?
Well, it depends…Now the legal stuff (don’t worry, not from me).
Based on research done by Attorney Allison Peryea (Peryea, Silver, Taylor, P.S.) it is generally illegal to play music in a
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
