Rihanna, Bieber 'make false songwriting claims'

[Deleted]

Rihanna, Bieber 'make false songwriting claims'

Songwriter Heather Bright has claimed that artists such as Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Kanye West appear in songwriting credits on tracks they haven't contributed to.

Bright, who has written songs for artists such as Britney Spears, Akon and Michael Jackson, has revealed that more and more artists are claiming publishing rights, despite having had no input.

When asked whether songwriters earn more money than the artist, she told Free Wired: "It depends on who you are. Rihanna takes publishing, Justin Bieber takes publishing, Kanye West takes publishing. On all the stuff that they don't write, they take publishing."

Bright wrote Justin Bieber's track 'Somebody To Love', which was originally intended for Usher.

When questioned on how the teen star managed to get a writing credit for the song she replied: "Umm… How did he get a writing credit on it? That's an interesting question. I don't know. (laughs)"

The composer did have praise for artists like Lady GaGa who do write their own material, stating that "it's amazing" they manage to find the time to do it.

"They have to write on tour, all of those artists who actually write!" she added.

www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a312660/rihanna-bieber-make-false-songwriting-claims.html

[Lockheart]

I'm surprised by Kanye but we all knew the other two couldn't write to save their lives

[strikeleo]

I actually don't trust the girl, to be honest.
Rihanna has never taken credit for songs she didn't write. If you check the Loud writing credits and even GGGB, you will see she wasn't credited as a co-writer or writer in any track.

[California Cheers]

Apr 4, 2011 8:18:06 GMT -5 strikeleo said:

I actually don't trust the girl, to be honest.
Rihanna has never taken credit for songs she didn't write. If you check the Loud writing credits and even GGGB, you will see she wasn't credited as a co-writer or writer in any track.

exactly rihanna is not gonna claim she wrote something if she didnt, a few of her albums have no songwriting credits from her.

[#LisaRinna]

Pretty sure Kanye writes his verses.

[when the pawn...]

Also...there's a difference between getting a songwriting credit and a publishing credit...not sure how it broke down with the songs this girl is referring to. And yeah, I'd be surprised if Kanye isn't writing, though his real trade is producing/directing.

[kt1990]

Not surprised at all. I believe the article.

[Deleted]

The only one that makes sense imo is Bieber. The only significant contribution Rihanna made on Loud was being an exec prouducer. She doesn't really co-write many of her song so I really don't get the accusation. Kanye seems like he is heavily involved in his work. There's just ssomething fishy about Bieber. He didn't co-write that much on his debut and I highly doubt that he co-writes his music.

[#LisaRinna]

Apr 4, 2011 9:00:50 GMT -5 @drag27 said:

The only significant contribution Rihanna made on Loud was being an exec prouducer.

She was listed as a writer in at least half of the songs on Rated R though. idk this girl could be either lying or telling the truth, I guess we'll never know for sure about anyone.

[Deleted]

It sounds believable enough but idk. These are the same claims constantly being made about Beyonce which just seem to be people just trying to create drama.

I don't see how a "publishing credit" is putting someone on blast either because that's different from being put as a songwriter.

[Deleted]

Apr 4, 2011 9:03:56 GMT -5 #LisaRinna said:

Apr 4, 2011 9:00:50 GMT -5 @drag27 said:

The only significant contribution Rihanna made on Loud was being an exec prouducer.

She was listed as a writer in at least half of the songs on Rated R though. idk this girl could be either lying or telling the truth, I guess we'll never know for sure about anyone.

That is true. The wait between GGGB and Rated R was longer than the majority of her albums and the Rated R seemed more personal imo. I think since it was a longer wait, she had more time to be involved with the writing process.

[Fat Ass Kelly Price]

There's a difference between taking publishing and taking songwriting credit.

[Adonis the DemiGod!]

The article is poorly written. So what if someone takes publishing on something they don't write. That's the cost of doing business. However, I believe Kanye writes the bulk of his material.

[Hefty Hanna]

Apr 4, 2011 9:07:03 GMT -5 @swella said:

These are the same claims constantly being made about Beyonce which just seem to be people just trying to create drama.

...wat?

The Beyoncé claims are completely justified most of the time.

[badrobot]

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

[Fat Ass Kelly Price]

Apr 4, 2011 11:36:26 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

Exactly. More people need to know this, so that there will be less confusion. Songwriting does not only imply the composition of lyrics.

[neverduplicated]

Apr 4, 2011 11:36:26 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

Very true, and I think not enough credit is given for the writing of melodies, background vocals, and overall song structure. I do think it's annoying and unjustified, however, when a singer basically gets handed a song and then slightly changes some lyrics or makes very minimal changes to the melody and then gets a songwriting credit. Isn't that what Beyonce got beef over?

[#LisaRinna]

Apr 4, 2011 11:36:26 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

Thank you.

[Fat Ass Kelly Price]

Apr 4, 2011 11:40:03 GMT -5 neverduplicated said:

Apr 4, 2011 11:36:26 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

Very true, and I think not enough credit is given for the writing of melodies, background vocals, and overall song structure. I do think it's annoying and unjustified, however, when a singer basically gets handed a song and then slightly changes some lyrics or makes very minimal changes to the melody and then gets a songwriting credit. Isn't that what Beyonce got beef over?

idk. Apparently Beyonce does a lot with the vocal arrangements, background vocals, melodies, etc.

[chopped89]

Kanye's raps are shit so there is no way someone wrote them for him.
I mean, if the article is talking about writing as in writing verses then no way in hell Kanye has a ghostwriter! But if they're talking about instruments and the beat, then maybe it is true.
BTW...Kanye is considered one of the worst rappers to write a rhyme.

[wunderkind]

Wouldn't "changing melodies" be more of a producer role, not a song writer role? I think that's really dumb if people change a melody from the original song and try to be listed as a song writer. They can be listed as the last of the producers, but not song writer.

[Lockheart]

Apr 4, 2011 11:36:26 GMT -5 badrobot said:

Many artists work out deals with their writers to share credit.

Keep in mind "writing" can be defined as melody, structure, rhythm, etc., and not just words. An artist could follow the written words of a song pretty closely but change up the melody or add a line or two and legitimately claim a writing credit.

I think that's where the problem lies. I don't think songwriters who wrote the song from scratch really takes it easy when an artist tweaks their song to fit their liking and get writing credit for it, but that happens alot though. I don't even see how changing a melody can give someone song writing credits, but that's just me.

[Fat Ass Kelly Price]

"A songwriting copyright is awarded to those who jointly contributed to the song's structure, chord progressions, and lyrics."

I think that statement alone justifies how someone can receive songwriting credit for altering the melody. I honestly don't see why someone wouldn't receive songwriting credit for changing the structure of a song in any way.

[musik...]

This article is not news except for the Kanye accusations, which I think are not true. Artists like Rihanna, Beyonce, and Justin Bieber may not "deserve" songwriting credits to some, but honestly how frequently are they revered for their songwriting skills. None have won or have ever received nominations for ASCAP songwriting awards and if they receive royalties for songs they have not written, their performance of the song as superstars will likely compensate the real songwriters more than enough. "Single Ladies" sung by any other artist would more than likely not have sold nearly as well and I'm sure the The-Dream and Tricky Stewart were more than okay for the songwriting credits Beyonce received because, longterm, it translates to more money for them as well. All is fair in love, war, and the music industry.

[PDC1987]

Well this is just shocking.

[dbhmr]

Yeah, I agree that more goes into the writing than the lyrics itself. However...

Apr 4, 2011 10:50:52 GMT -5 Adonis the DemiGod! said:

So what if someone takes publishing on something they don't write. That's the cost of doing business.

This statement is ridiculous. Writers get little credit as it is and they have a right to want to stand by their work as their own and not have to share it just because the singer is the one with the name and money.

[HEADOFTHEPACK]

Bollocks to that - Rihanna has a handful of minor songwriting credits across her entire discography. Why bother making it up if it's just for those few?

[Lockheart]

Apr 4, 2011 12:24:18 GMT -5 musik... said:

This article is not news except for the Kanye accusations, which I think are not true. Artists like Rihanna, Beyonce, and Justin Bieber may not "deserve" songwriting credits to some, but honestly how frequently are they revered for their songwriting skills. None have won or have ever received nominations for ASCAP songwriting awards and if they receive royalties for songs they have not written, their performance of the song as superstars will likely compensate the real songwriters more than enough. "Single Ladies" sung by any other artist would more than likely not have sold nearly as well and I'm sure the The-Dream and Tricky Stewart were more than okay for the songwriting credits Beyonce received because, longterm, it translates to more money for them as well. All is fair in love, war, and the music industry.

But, Bey has won songwriting awards ??? No matter how big these singers make a song into, give credit where credit is due. It's simple as that. Without the right artist, the song wouldn't become a big hit. Without the songwriter to come up with a song, there wouldn't be a song in the first place.

[Epic Fail]

^ agreed. I think both writers and performers to some extent deserve credit. It's not typically the song that makes a hit. It's the right artist with the right material.

[badrobot]

For those of you who think that changing melodies wouldn't count, what do you say about instrumental songs without lyrics? Did no one write them? Have you seen sheet music before?