Thanks to SiriusXM satellite radio royalties, many artists make a living from their music and even better with the ShineX platform, created by Guillaume Drouin. However, SiriusXM will renew from this Friday the programming of its three French-language music channels. Picture of the situation.
Posted at 7:00 a.m.
“I had nothing to lose,” says singer-songwriter Éric Goulet. It is as if someone had told me: there is a treasure buried at the bottom of the lake and, if I find it, I will give you some money and take a share of it. »
It wasn’t until last spring that the veteran of the Quebec music scene heard of ShineX. And it is thanks to the platform created by Guillaume Drouin that he was able to see tens of thousands of dollars appear thanks to unclaimed SiriusXM satellite radio royalties in the United States. “It was a nice surprise, let’s say. »
In the case of Éric Goulet, ShineX was exceptionally able to go back as far as 2012. “It’s as if I had hired a private detective”, illustrates the one who has a vast catalog as a solo artist, but also with the Simple Possession and The Dogs groups. “Part of the royalties is shared”, he specifies.
“Sleeping Money”
Recently, while doing analysis, ShineX noticed for example that there was an unclaimed sum of some US$800,000 for 300 Canadian artists and record labels (for English-speaking songs) for a period of four months in 2020.
The word is getting around, but I’m still telling people that they have tens of thousands of dollars lying dormant in the United States.
Guillaume Drouin, founder of ShineX
Several record labels have called on his services in recent months, including Cult Nation (Charlotte Cardin) and Bravo (Coeur de pirate). “I didn’t know that ShineX could also help us with missing royalties. Their system works very well. These are sometimes enormous sums for the artists”, indicates Kyria Kilakos, director of Indica Records.
While he was a financial planner and that he took care of the royalties of the singer of his former group, Casabon, Guillaume Drouin found that the royalty system was rather opaque, in particular that – very paying – of the SiriusXM satellite radio.
“I envisioned a platform where musicians could just type in their name and see their songs playing on SiriusXM in real time with how much royalty it generated. »
For Guillaume Drouin, the key is “transparency”.
Supported by a programmer who computerizes his ideas, Guillaume Drouin therefore created the ShineX platform, which artists can use for around twenty dollars a month or for other services. “There are a lot of artists who can make a living from music because of SiriusXM. And for labels, it is income that allows them to exist. It’s big, ”he argues.
Neighboring rights
Last week, French-speaking songwriters demanded two million dollars from the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) for what they consider to be an error in the model for the redistribution of radio royalties.
“We just take care of neighboring rights, while SOCAN takes care of copyright”, explains Guillaume Drouin, specifying that the neighboring right remunerates its performer and the owner of the recording. When a song plays on a SiriusXM network station in the United States, the neighboring right represents a very large sum, approximately US$20 for the performer and US$25 for the producer (regardless of the number of listeners to the channel ).
“For an artist who produces himself, it’s US$45 spin sums up Guillaume Drouin.
It’s much more profitable than on SiriusXM in Canada. And according to Guillaume Drouin’s calculation, it’s 11,000 times more profitable than Spotify.
Why are satellite radio fees so high? Under Canadian and US law, SiriusXM is obligated to return a specific percentage of its revenues. In the United States, where there are approximately 35 million subscribers, it is 15.5% of 8 billion in revenue (in 2020). In Canada, there were 2.7 million subscribers in 2017 (according to a CRTC document), but the royalties required are around 4% (and they can also be used for event sponsorships).
It should also be noted that SiriusXM pays a royalty each time a song is played and not on an average, as commercial radio stations do.
List errors
Many artists and record labels use SoundExchange (a US digital collective rights management company) directly to collect US royalties from SiriusXM. In Quebec, others do it with SOPROQ (producers) and ARTISTI (performers).
It often happens that a mistake is made in the royalties or that a song is not listed, underlines Éric Goulet.
PHOTO HUGO-SEBASTIEN AUBERT, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Éric Goulet in his old studio, in the Rosemont district.
For French-speaking artists, there may be a name error just for an acute accent.
Eric Goulet
“The advantage with our platform is that people can verify that it is the right amount, argues Guillaume Drouin. Since everything is tracked in real time and royalties are usually paid within three to four months, it is also a financial planning tool,” he adds.
Programming change
Sirius XM has dozens of music channels, including three in French. As of Friday, ICI Musique will no longer be in charge of the French-language pop station and the French-language country-rock station. SiriusXM is in the process of hiring a programmer who will add to the one already in place.
The latter, Marc-André Pilon, tells us that Influence Franco will become the pop and hip-hop channel. Attitude Franco will be dedicated to rock – in a broad sense –, while Les Racines musicales will be dedicated to country, folk, trad and “roots” genres. “There will be a greater place for Aboriginal artists,” he announces.
Given SiriusXM’s generous royalties, Marc-André Pilon is as busy as one might imagine. “I interact a lot with promotional agencies. »
However, it is reassuring for artists: the programming of SiriusXM’s three French-language music channels will not change at all.
According to our information, artists and labels are nevertheless on the alert.
For his part, Guillaume Drouin ensures that ShineX will immediately note if a song leaves a channel or enters it. It is also reassuring for the future of SiriusXM and its royalty system. Revenues are growing in the United States and the next license renewal with SoundExchange is in 2027. In Canada, it is in 2024 with the CRTC.
Guillaume Drouin, who manages ShineX from his home on Île d’Orléans, will also start doing business in the United States. “The expertise I have and the data are unique in the world”, assures the Robin Hood of musicians who turn on SiriusXM.