Description:
COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, tracing the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. For more than thirty years, innovative hip-hop performers and producers have been re-using portions of previously recorded music in new, otherwise original compositions. When lawyers and record companies got involve,d what was once referred to as a "borrowed melody" became a "copyright infringement." As artists find ever mor einventive ways to insert old influences into new material, this documentary asks a critical question, on behalf of an entire creative community: Can you own a sound?
Special Features:
- Trailer
- Extended interviews with: Chuck D, De La Soul, clyde Stubblefield
- Music Player Featuring 15+ Songs By: EL-P, RJD2
- Fair Use Explained: 4 Shorts By The Center For Social Media