The cost of creativity

South African artists keep dying poor while their work enriches others. The Copyright Amendment Bill could finally change that - if it ever becomes law

- Zingisa Mase

The artist wellbeing and wellness industrial complex is always a bubble at the verge of bursting. A system that doesn't care about the fate of artists as long as they produce has sucked them dry.

At some point, we must move away from self-help slogans, social contributions for their funerals, and eulogies that lament the exploitation of a system that never gives anyone compensation for their art until the next victim bites the dust.

We have to shift from slogans to material analysis. What does it actually mean to be someone who gets paid to make art? The artist's path is never linear, but it has over the years become increasingly unsustainable. Historically South African artists have always lived against the grain since the apartheid created by oppressive laws, and many of them have borne the brunt of creating without being compensated enough for their work.

Many of them die broke, having been driven to insanity, blacklisted or pushed to the fringes of society for speaking up against slave wages or being paid a pittance with no royalties for their art.

They die wishing the South African government could approve one piece of paper that would change a tide to their financial struggles.

The approval of the Copyright Amendment Bill is a meal ticket for South African artists, it is a long-term recognition for their art and a piece of legislation that translates to security.

The Copyright Amendment Bill is crucial in securing the royalty rights for performers but highly contested by those who benefit from the art and those who create it.

This contentious piece of legislation was passed by the National Assembly on February 29, 2024, and delivered to the President for his approval.