In 2002, the king of pop stood before a crowd in Harlem. >> Tony Tommy Matah. Tommy Matah is the president of the record division.
He is a mean. He's a racist. And he's very, very, very devilish.
>> In 2016, a pop star begged the judge for her freedom. >> Free cash. Free cash.
Free cash. Now, >> in 1993, one of music's most powerful voices was silenced behind closed doors. And in 1994, a superstar chose career suicide over corporate slavery.
>> What is it going to mean for the record industry? >> No idea. >> Different artists, different battles, same corporation.
There's a building in New York City. From the outside, it looks like any other corporate tower. Glass, steel, concrete.
But inside these walls, decisions are made that shape what the entire world listens to. Sony Music Entertainment, the second largest music company on Earth. Parent Company to Columbia Records, the oldest label in America.
RCA Records, where Elvis became a legend. Epic Records, where Michael Jackson made history, and many other smaller labels and companies. Combined, they control the careers of thousands of artists, generate billions in revenue, and define the soundtrack of our lives.
But power like that, it don't come without a price. And that price, it always seems to come at the expense of the artist. It starts the same way every time.
A young artist with a gift, a contract that promises the world success beyond imagination. And then along the way, something changes. The artist gets bigger becomes a a household name.
They want creative control over their own music. They don't just question the numbers. They they dare to say no.
And that's when Sony shows his true face. What I'm about to show you is not conspiracy theory or speculation or anything like that. It's documented court records, testimonies, evidence that's been buried under settlements and NDAs for decades.
In this video, we expose how one corporation weaponized the dreams of artists, writers, and producers. How contracts literally became cages and how they turned desire for success into a trap. How Sony Music Entertainment built an empire on the backs of the very people who made them billions.
From Michael Jackson's final stand to Kesha's courtroom drama, Sony has been at the center of artist legal battles for decades. This is a story Sony doesn't want you to know. Story of their victims.
All right, let's start with the King of Pop himself. Now, everybody knows Michael Jackson, but what y'all might not know is how Sony basically sabotaged the greatest entertainer of all time. You see, MJ and Sony had a beautiful relationship at first.
Michael releases hits under Epic Records, which was bought by Sony in 1988. I mean, we're talking some of the greatest and highest selling records of all time. >> Sony was eating good off Mike.
But then something changed and that something was called Sony ATV Music Publishing. So, let me break it down. So, in 1985, MJ bought the Beatles catalog for $47 million, which gave him ownership of the publishing company called ATV Music.
It was a smart business move. And then in 1995, he merged it with Sony's publishing to create Sony ATV. This allowed Mike to own half of one of the most valuable music cataloges in the world.
He didn't just have ownership in the Beatles songs. He had a piece of multiple major artists' music. >> People don't really understand is that what people say, "Yo, Michael owned the Beatles catalog.
" No, Michael owned Sony ATV. Half of it. I heard.
>> So when Tommy was trying to sign me, when I was 18, Michael was trying to sign me cuz that's He owned half of Sony ATV. Everything was cool. That's when Sony switched up.
The main issue started in the early 2000s. By 2001, Mike dropped Invincible, but he was waiting for his contract with Sony to expire so he could manage everything himself. He wanted out and he tried to work things out with the president of Sony, Tommy Matah.
But in retaliation, the label started pulling back on pushing the album. >> So, I'm leaving Sony a free agent. I own half of Sony's publishing in and I'm leaving them.
They're very angry at me because of it. But I just did good business. You know, the way they get revenge is to try and destroy my album.
But good art never dies. And Tommy Matah is a devil. Man, this is Michael Jackson.
We're talking about the man who made Thriller. And Sony barely pushed the album. Michael also realized that the lawyer he was working with was also working with Sony.
And the label was pressuring him to buy parts of his royalties. But Mike knew what was up. They wanted his catalog.
They wanted him to default on the loan so they could swoop in and take half of Sony ATV. So what did Mike do? Oh, he was ready to blow up.
In 2002, he pulled up the Al Sharpton's headquarters in Harlem and let it all out. He called Tommy Matah, the head of Sony a racist and a devil in public in front of everybody multiple times. But he didn't stop there.
This man got on a double-decker bus with a bunch of fans and circle Sony's headquarters. He held up a poster with Matollah's face with devil horns on it. You see, Sony spent 30 million making Invincible, but only 25 million promoting it.
And just for comparison, they spent about 50 million promoting Selene Dion's album that same year. No hate to Selene Dion, but she ain't Michael Jackson. The result, Invincible only sold 6 million copies.
And for Michael Jackson, that's that's a flop. >> It would have been so much bigger back then if if him and Tommy weren't beefing. So if Michael would have had his fair shake because, you know, they went on not to promote.
Like Michael had a vision. Like I was part of it. I I remember him saying, "We're going to come out with this verse and we're going to shoot a short film with Threat and we're going to shoot a short.
" Yeah. You know, with Unbreakable and I'm going to have Biggie cuz I had the Biggie verse and I'm going to have Biggie in the video in a in a hologram type form. He had all his vision.
So when I look at that, I'm like, yo, he didn't get a chance to promote because whatever business wasn't right at the time. >> That's why. >> And so after Michael tragically passed away, guess what Sony did?
They ended up buying Michael's estate's share of the catalog. So, in the end, they got exactly what they wanted. Picture this.
You're 18 years old. You're talented. Some people would argue otherwise, but follow me here.
You got dreams. >> And one of the biggest producers in the game, Dr Luke, wants to sign you. You think you hit the lottery, right?
Wrong. See, Kesha signed with Dr Luke's label, Kimosabi Records, which was under Sony Music. And for a minute, everything was pretty cool.
Tik Tok came out in 2009 and went crazy. We're talking number one in 14 countries. Diamond certified.
Kesha was that girl in the electroop era of the early 2010s. But behind the scenes, it was a nightmare. In 2014, Kesha signed a lawsuit that shook the entire industry.
She accused Dr Luke of drugging her, assaulting her, and emotionally abusing her for years. Allegedly, she was told, "You're not that pretty. You're not that talented.
you're just lucky to have me. So Kesha did what anybody would do. She tried to get out of the situation.
She went to court to be released from her contract so she could make music on her own. You know what Sony said? We can't terminate the contract.
It's it's not our deal. It's Dr Luke's deal. And that's crazy because even if that is true, everything was under Sony's umbrella.
It's like this. See, Sony had a joint venture with Dr Luke. They had the power to let Kesher go.
They had the power to say, "Hey, we don't want to be associated with this. " They could have moved her to another label even under their umbrella. They had options.
They just turned a blind eye. They kept her locked in a contract with the man she said abused her. And because of this, Kesha couldn't release music for 5 years.
From 2012 to 2017, 5 years of her prime was just gone. And it wasn't just about releasing music. She couldn't record without his approval.
She couldn't really tour. She couldn't even really move on with her life. You know, other big artists actually gathered around Kesha and started speaking out.
fans protested outside of Sony's headquarters and the whole world was watching this and you know Sony put out their little statement. They put out a statement saying they were doing everything they can to support the artist in these circumstances but it's legally unable to blah blah blah blah blah. And as a legal note, none of this was proven in court, but you know how that sometimes goes.
The point is Sony had a choice between potentially protecting an artist who says she was abused or protecting their business relationship. They chose the money. Speaking of choosing money over artists, let's talk about Mariah Carey and Tommy Matah.
Yeah, the same Tommy Matah that Michael Jackson called the devil. Now, this story is wild because it actually starts off like a fairy tale. Mariah was 18 when she met Tommy.
He was 39 and the head of Sony Music. You know, the the average Hollywood relationship. Unfortunately, she was a struggling artist with a demo tape and he was one of the most powerful men in the industry.
You can probably see where this is going. They ended up getting married in 1993. Had a whole Cinderella wedding worth a half a million dollars.
But behind closed doors, Mariah said it was more like being in prison. >> I didn't feel like I was worthy of existing. >> The police took you, Mariah Carey, >> in the backseat of the police car.
It's a vivid memory. I have never spoken about it. I did feel like I was held captive in that relationship.
And I'm not saying that lightly because Mariah literally called their $30 million mansion singing after the maximum security prison in New York. Apparently Tommy had the house on lockdown. Security cameras in every room, armed guards everywhere.
>> You may have heard the rumors about Tommy Matah's so-called hold of Mariah. >> He controlled everybody around me. Everybody was afraid of him.
There was so much security and armed security. This is not okay. You're Mariah Carey.
I thought you could do whatever you want. The man controlled everything. What she wore, who she worked with, how her music sounded.
Mariah said, and I quote, "From the moment Tommy signed me, he tried to wash the urban off of me. They straightened her hair, put her in conservative outfits, and meanwhile, Mariah grew up listening to R&B and hip-hop. You know, she wanted to work with rappers and R&B artists.
" >> Tommy, he wanted a mainstream pop princess. there's a herero. >> When she pushed for more creative control, he would remind her of who made her famous, saying lines like, you know, you're nothing without me.
You'll never work in this town again. Even Michael came out and talked about Mariah's relationship with Tommy. The breaking point came when Tommy allegedly held a butter knife to her face in front of dinner guests just because she wanted to leave him.
But here's what really gets me, because even after they divorced in '98, she was still signed to Sony. She still had to work with the same company that her ex-husband ran. And yeah, Tommy is more so the villain here, but I'm pretty sure there was a record executive or somebody as Tony that knew what was going on.
But then again, they were married, so what can you do? Now, George Michael's story hits a little different because he actually tried to fight Sony in court and they destroyed him for it. George was riding high in the early '90s.
Faith had sold 25 million copies. He was one of the biggest pop stars in the world. I know you're asking me to stay.
>> But when he put out Listen Without Prejudice Volume 1, he decided to do something different. >> He said, "I don't want to do videos. I don't want to do interviews.
I want the music to speak for itself. " You know what Sony did? They basically said, "Fuck your album.
" Then George claimed Sony deliberately tanked his album because he wouldn't play the pop star game. So in 1992, he did something crazy. He sued Sony for what he called professional slavery.
His argument was basically, "The contracts are You sign me for eight albums over 15 years. You control everything I do, and if I don't like it, I can't leave. Even though I both created and paid for my work, I will never own it or have any rights over it.
I have no control or say in the way that my work is exploited. I have no guarantee that my work will be released at all. If Sony reject my work, it will never see the light of day.
I am convinced that the English legal system will not uphold what is effectively professional slavery. >> That's not a business partnership. That's slavery.
The case went on for 2 years. And in '94, the judge ruled against George. Not only did he lose, but he had to pay Sony's legal fees.
We're talking about $4. 5 million. But here's the thing.
George said, "I'm never recording for Sony again. " He meant it. This man set out for years rather than give Sony another album.
Now, think about that. George Michael was so traumatized by Sony that he chose to destroy his own career rather than work with them again. That's how bad it was.
Now, Kelly Clarkson's situation shows you that Sony's didn't stop in the '90s or the 2000s. This went down in 2007. Kelly was America's sweetheart, first American Idol winner.
Her album, Breakaway, sold 12 million copies. She was on top of the world, but Kelly wanted to evolve. For her third album, My December, she wanted to write her own songs, show her artistry, you know, grow as an artist like most of us do.
Clive Davis, head of Sony BMG at the time, he wasn't having it. This man offered Kelly $10 million to remove five songs from the album and replace them with songs that he chose. And when she said no, you know what he told her?
Now, this is allegedly, of course. allegedly. >> He said she was a shitty songwriter who should be grateful for the gifts he bestowed upon her and that she should just shut up and sing.
Shut up and sing in 2007 to Kelly Clarkson. When Kelly stood her ground, Sony did what they did best. They basically sabotaged her album.
Limited promotion, no support, and then they leaked stories to the press trying to make it seem like she was difficult to work with. And everybody blamed Kelly for being difficult instead of blaming Sony for trying to control her art. And then some people say Clive Davis treated Whitney Houston the same way.
Or maybe maybe that's a story for a different video. Now all the stories I've told you so far, those were about recording contracts. But Sony's control goes deeper than what you record.
They want to own what you write to. And this is what Shakira's Sony battle was about. >> It was very difficult.
I was very young. And being a woman also in this business is not easy. Thank God I had an amazing family surrounding me, supporting my dreams, encouraging me, my mother, my dad.
You know, when I was 13, I released my first album with Sony Music, which back then was CBS. >> See, when an artist writes a song, there's two copyrights. The recording, that's what you hear, also known as the master, and the composition, the words and the melody.
Publishing companies control that second part. And Sony ATV, they're one of the biggest. Now, oddly enough, it doesn't seem like Shakira wants control, even though she's written some of the biggest international hits in history.
We're talking Hips Don't Lie whenever, wherever, >> wherever. >> Massive hits that she wrote. And even though Shakira sold her music to a whole another company, Sony still made sure it was part of the deal.
Even Michael Jackson knew this. And his understanding of publishing is the main reason he bought the Beatles catalog in the first place. He understood that only publishing was the real power.
The problem with Sony is they have a history of abusing that power. They want to own the artist's voice and thoughts and not give the artist a fair shake. Shakira is not necessarily a victim, but for someone who writes all their own music, she's definitely getting taken advantage of.
Now, Sony's not the only company to do this, but they seem to be the most outspoken about. It's a pattern. Young artist signs to Sony, Sony makes them a star.
artist wants creative control or tries to leave, Sony destroys them. Allegedly. >> Allegedly.
Allegedly. That's ignorant. >> And it's not just the artists in this video.
Like back in 2018, a whole group of artists filed a class action lawsuit against Sony. Rick Nelson's estate sued because Sony was stealing streaming royalties by taking 68% off the top. Even recently, I came across this video by an independent artist named Chandler Juliet.
She goes into detail about why she walked away from a deal with Sony. They promised her $10,000 for a sync deal. Basically, that's where they buy your songs and they place them with artists or TV shows or movies.
But after months of beating around the bush and holding her back from releasing the music, they tried to lowball her and say, "Well, we can only pay $2,500 for everything, and we'll give you a little bit of backing royalties if it does anything. >> I'm not selling my soul. " And I'm sure as not selling my soul for $2,500.
Even though her story is on a smaller scale than the major label artist, it's the same principle. They wanted to own her voice and own her thoughts for pennies on a dollar. Basically, these aren't just business disputes.
These are people's lives. Michael Jackson died fighting Sony. Kesha lost 5 years of her career.
Mariah was held prisoner and George Michael's career ended. Kelly was told to shut up and sing. And Sony, I mean, at this point, they're really too big to fail because they're a huge corporation that owns multiple entities in multiple different industries.
Still signing artists, still making billions, and still putting out statements saying they support the artists whenever a new scandal breaks. I guess the bright side is now artists are finally starting to speak up. You got major artists re-recording their music.
You got singer songwriters talking about how labels are trying to change their creative direction. And I like to think I'm doing my part as a music producer and commentator just kind of talking about the issues and bringing to light what's going on in some of the dark sides of the industry. Now, signing a bad record deal not only affects an artist's creative control, it can also affect the money.
Watch this video on the screen next to see how some artists end up fumbling the bag and find themselves in a lot of debt to their record labels. I'll catch you over there. Till next time, peace.
