Just days after Taylor Swift schooled Apple Music for violating artist's rights, she is in the hot seat for—violating artist's rights.
The Grammy award winner is known for promoting up-and-coming artists. But some are accusing her limiting concert photographers' rights.
Photographer Jason Sheldon wrote an open letter to Tay regarding her image rights policies.
In the letter, Sheldon started off praising Taylor's triumph over Apple Music.
He wrote, "It's great to have someone with a huge following standing up for the rights of creative people and making a stand against the corporate behemoths who have so much power they can make or break someone's career."
Sheldon underscored that photographers wouldn't have the same response when standing up for themselves the way in which Taylor did.
"There are hundreds of professional concert photographers who don't enjoy that security — they don't have the voice you do, and they don't have the public favor that you have when it comes to demanding fair rights for their work," Sheldon wrote.
He added, "They have a much higher risk of being prevented from working in future, not just at your shows, but any show which is connected by the same promoter, venue, PR, or management company."
Sheldon's cordial demeanor shifted once he shared a document that he had to sign to cover one of Swift's concerts that limits the use of and compensation for his photographs.
He stated, "You say in your letter to Apple that 'Three months is a long time to go unpaid.'"
Then, he harshly continued, "But you seem happy to restrict us to being paid once, and never being able to earn for our work ever again, while granting you the rights to exploit our work for your benefit for all eternity.
"How are you any different to Apple?" Sheldon asked Taylor.
He ended his letter by writing, "Photographers don't ask for your music for free. Please don't ask us to provide you with your marketing material for free. Time to stop being 'Mean'."
Swift has not publicly responded to the letter. But the BBC claimed that her reps have already disputed the legitimacy of Sheldon's complaint.
A spokesperson for Taylor argued, "The standard photography agreement has been misrepresented in that it clearly states that any photographer shooting The 1989 World Tour has the opportunity for further use of said photographs with management's approval."
But Sheldon's contract was in regard to one of her previous tours, not the current 1989 World Tour.
Looks like Taylor has some explaining to do…
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