By SN
Wednesday August 26, 2009
Techdirt – Aug 25th 2009:
It’s the story of Roxanne Shante, one of the first female hip hop stars, who came out with a hit song in the 80s (when she was 14-years-old), leading the way for other female rappers. Of course, like so many 
other artists, she found out that the big record labels weren’t so great after all. After two albums, when she realized that her label was basically stealing from her, she called it quits from music. At age 19, however, she remembered that Warner Music has put a clause in her contract, promising to “fund her education for life.” She figures they put that in as a “throwaway, never believing a teen mom in public housing would attend college.” But, attend college, she did. She didn’t just get a bachelor’s degree, but went all the way through to a PhD. in psychology.
Of course, Warner Music, already having done plenty to try to cheat her out of her contract, worked 
hard not to pay. But the dean at, Marymount Manhattan College, where she attended for some of both her undergraduate and graduate degrees, read over the clause and simply kept sending bills to Warner Music. Warner (so nice of them, as per usual) ignored the invoices until Shante threatened to go public with the story of Warner Music Group not living up to their contract promises on something so basic as funding her education. In the end, Warner Music had to pay up around $217,000 for Shante’s education
Good for her!
Score one for an artist. My personal opinion is the clause should be mandatory for all contracts with minors!
Excellent. Great to see music industry story with a happy ending (for someone other than a record company exec).
#2– I Agree completely!
And she never has to work for the rest of her life. With her amazing story, she could go on the “motivational speaker” circuit and earn a fortune in speaking fees. Universities, churches, schools, corporations, etc.
““throwaway, never believing a teen mom in public housing would attend college.” /// Why thats the very attitude USA has towards its citizens.
Imagine if everyone’s innate potential was “invested in” rather than assumed away?
Every person born in the USA deserves decent food, shelter, health care, and education. Decent-not extravagant, just decent. By express statement, yes, it is indecent not to provide same.
Why didn’t she get a Ph.D in a real science. A dead cat can get a psych doctorate.
Good for her and I’m proud for her.
I just hope the College added a few extra charges to the bill.
And yes, this should be mandatory with all contracts involving minors.
echo #1 and #2
#7: It says “fund her education for life.”, she could get an second PhD in Physics.
I just don’t understand why more artists aren’t coming out against record labels?
#11. I agree.
Man… she should go to Oxford for a doctorate since they have to pay the bill.
#11, because most don’t have the power/$$ to have their own record labels like Trent Rezor and Insane Clown Posse so they are at the mercy of these evil overlords.
#6 Bobbo
For once (being glib here 😛 )I agree with you 100%.
It is not only the record labels that ripe off artists. I seem to remember that James Garner took a piece of the NET profits from “The Rockford Files”. Trying to figure out how the show was always in the red, he got people to look at the books of the production company. The accounting shenanigans were unreal. Five figures for a stack of empty cardboard boxes for a car to drive thru. Not including any labor or filming expenses, just for the purchase of the boxes.
So where was the RIAA? Since they care so much at recording artists and their right’s, you’d think they would have been filing lawsuit after lawsuit in her behalf against Warner.
#15–thanks Hugh. I would think most people would kinda agree with that post as it starts but then I should lose more and more as they read and then lose everyone when they catch the nom-de-post. Please don’t voice your concurrence too often. It will only make me crazy.
#18 Bobbo
I would go so far as to say you are right, only that I agree.
Too many people think they can live outside of society, just taking the bits that they want and leaving the mess for someone else. There is room for the individual in society but the price for that is social responsibility.
#7…..and how many PhDs do you have?
Perfect – a very smart lady indeed. And a good kick in the balls of a very cynical record industry. Why on earth should we support those bastards?
I wish a shift of paradigm, that we come full circle, the record industry dies and that ‘something’ take over where the creator benefits and there are no leeches anymore. The internet has all what it takes as far as distribution goes. What channel can be created to secure old and new artists quality channel? For starters, the current music providers should drop their labels, and meet their audience in live performances, and not expect to be paid zillion of dollars as in the past if they are among the 5 – 10 big sellers… John C. wrote more than one excellent article about that 5 – 6 years ago I recall. Now, who will be the smart guy to create the new platform?
consider Warner Music “Gitmo Nation Entertainment Industry” many friiends/ artists have gone in and never saw the light of day again!
COOL!
Which was the dummy in _that_ “dummy contract?”
#23, Uncle P,
I suspect there are quite a few more people with similar contracts. As they were minors this would have been a way to get the parents signature. And I doubt very much that there were many artists that ever took advantage of this clause.
Seriously she could keep getting PhDs until she dies and the label would have to pay for them all. Guinness said the record is eight. She only has eight more to go. I am glad she was able to get what was coming too her. Most musicians don’t.
Record labels are crooks and the only way that artist can make money is to get their own CDs pressed and distribute them themselves at concerts and stuff. My friend’s band got a contract with a record label and it basically said that the band would have to pay back the label if it didn’t make money. Needless to say they didn’t sign it.
If book authors got contracts with terms as bad as music artists, then no one would write books for publishing companies. Self publishing would have become a lot more prevalent. The tighter the record labels squeeze, the more musicians and music fans slip out of their hands.
Oh hell yeah Roxanne Shante was my shit back in the day.
And if you haven’t heard her music before…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsaepyi8MR0
Now you know
oops I just realized I cussed. Feel free to change it to “sheet” sorry. I was just too happy for Roxanne
6, The girl got what she deserved because she took responsibility for herself and didn’t ask the government for a handout.
Rooooo-xanne
sha-a-a-a-a-nte
(Biz markie doing the human beatbox)
Hell yeah!
Great story…I had friends that were cheated by CBS records back in the 80’s. Way to stick it back to them. You go girl…