Misfits’ Doyle: “There should be a $10,000 fine” for stealing music

Doyle, Misfits, Piracy, Music Piracy

In a new interview, iconic musician Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein laments piracy and complains about being ‘forced’ to participate in fan meet and greets.

Paid meet and greet opportunities have become commonplace in the music business as over the last decade. In many cases, artists have begun offering meet and greets as a way to supplement income lost from the continuing decline of physical music sales. Misfits guitarist and renowned solo artist Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein offers fans a photo and handshake opportunity for $50, and in a new interview he explains how the package came to exist, as well as why he hates it.

In a new interview with The Liquid Conversations podcast, which you can listen to below, Doyle discussed how the music industry has changed during his nearly 40-year career. Amongst other highlights, Doyle noted how his relationship with fan interactions has changed, as well as the impact of streaming on his career.

“The thing that sucks the most about it is that everybody steals music,” he responded to a question about changes in the industry. “You spend thousands and thousands of dollars to make a record, and all of these scumbags are just stealing it. And then they want more, and then you’re a dick because you’re doing a meet-and-greet for fifty fucking bucks to make up for it, which you don’t want to do. [Do] you think I want to meet all these fucking people? I don’t. When I’m done, I just want to take a shower and go to bed.”

Speaking specifically to those who complain about the high cost of meeting him, Doyle responded, “They can kiss my ass. You want to steal shit? If I was making motorcycles and they came and took one, would that be a crime? Why can’t we punish people for stealing songs? There should be a $10,000 fine for that.”

Doyle’s frustrations seem to stem from his distaste for services like Spotify, which he feels undervalues and underpays the artists they rely on for the music to offer consumers. “You make nothing,” he said of his relationship with the streaming giant, “it’s $9 a month [for a subscription], and you can listen to a song 10,000 times if you want.”

He continued, “I can’t do the math, but how much do you think the bands get? It’s like a hundredth, maybe a thousandth of a penny you get. My girlfriend [Arch Enemy singer Alissa White-Gluz] went to [Spotify’s] office, said that shit was insane. I would’ve went fucking mental, I would’ve started breaking everything.”

Doyle goes on to say he believes Metallica’s Lars Ulrich “was right” to sue Napster at the dawn of the Millennium. “Everybody thought he [Lars] was a dick. He didn’t do it for him. He’s got the fucking money. He did it for fucking jerkoffs like me.”

James Shotwell