Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker Discusses Whether or Not Music Should Be Free

Photo by Pooneh Ghana

This morning on BBC Radio 6, Mary Anne Hobbs welcomed Tame Impala‘s Kevin Parker to discuss whether or not music should be free. Overall, he doesn’t seem to think illegal downloading or free streaming is a big deal. “I guess I’m not saying that I think music should be free, but I do think that if people can get it for free, there’s nothing anyone can do to stop them,” he said. “It’s kind of a waste of energy to try and force them to pay for it if they don’t have to.”

Listen to the segment below, and listen to the full interview with Parker here at the 2:07:30 mark.

He says that when he was younger, he experienced music both ways: saving up to buy CDs and listening to illegal downloads. He said he doesn’t think listening to music for free “cheapens” the art or experience.

“For me, it just shows that it’s not really about how much you pay for it or even whether or not it’s physical—it can still have the same effect on you. I’m not really sure what that says about artists making money in the future. Like, obviously artists need to make money and stuff like that, but if you do something good or if you make good art or make good stuff, the wealth will find you in some way. Not to be kind of overly spiritual about it, but it’s not the kind of thing that’s worth complaining about.”

Parker says he doesn’t demonize fans who listen to music for free, saying “however you’ve got to do it, do it.”

 “I used to download music illegally. Everyone has. No one is innocent. Everyone has done that. If someone says, ‘Hey man, I love your album, it really got me through a breakup, but I downloaded it for free,’ I’ll be like, ‘Good! That’s good!’ Maybe he didn’t have the money for the album, but if he still listened to it and it’s an important part of his life, that’s all I can ask for. I don’t want his twenty bucks.”

Parker says he’s OK with making money from licensing Tame Impala’s music for movies and ads for “good money.” “It just means that the corporations are paying for it, and they’re the ones with the money.”

Read our feature on Tame Impala.

Watch Tame Impala perform “It Is Not Meant to Be” for Pitchfork.tv:

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