Julia Christine Botin

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<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1773036982601Layer 4 (1).jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>Photo from Keiko Necesario&#x27;s Instagram </div>Singer-songwriter Keiko Necesario offered an explanation on why music labels &quot;take up a large portion&quot; of their artists&#x27; earnings.In a lengthy Facebook post on Sunday, Necesario said music labels taking a large share of artists&#x27; royalties &quot;has been the standard in the Philippine music industry for decades.&quot;The post was made in response to what Necesario called recent &quot;rumors going around about a certain label.&quot;The singer stressed that the situation between labels and artists &quot;has been a difficult and complicated reality for many musicians for a very long time.&quot;Drawing from her experiences, Necesario explained that labels take a large share of royalties because they fund music production and cover marketing and promotional costs.She also explained the concept of recoupment, where &quot;labels give artists an advance, which is basically advanced royalties.&quot;&quot;While it sounds like a bonus upfront, it’s actually more like a loan against future earnings. This means that the label will first recover the money they invested (recording costs, marketing, advances, etc.) before the artist starts receiving royalties,&quot; she said.<div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKeikoNecesarioFanPage%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0TX5fLEPuY588LfrJ6bFqPEL8REYSaHA6xsbwGs4apjXhiwHYFY6nYHsKEyFLUqfJl&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500" width="500" height="291" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>She also touched on the idea of labels owning the master recordings of songs &quot;because they funded the recording.&quot;&quot;But owning the master does not always mean owning the song itself. The songwriter or composer still holds the copyright to the composition,&quot; she said, citing Taylor Swift, who was able to re-record her past albums because her former label owned the masters.Necesario also highlighted that labels take financial risks on artists.&quot;Those risks shape the agreements they make. At the same time, some artists are often just starting out, without the resources or industry access that labels can provide,&quot; she said.&quot;But it surely is a different story when the artist has a bigger following already before signing. And an even more different story when the labels don’t do what is expected of them considering a big chunk of the artist’s money go to them,&quot; she added.<div>Standards can improve</div>Necesario, however, stressed that she does not find such industry standards &quot;fair.&quot;&quot;It can definitely still improve and it has been something that a lot of us artists still fight for to this day. But then again, of course, every contract is different. Every label operates differently. Every artist’s experience is different,&quot; she said.Necesario ended her post by reiterating that &quot;the music industry is complicated.&quot; &quot;It always has been. And the truth is, most of the time there’s a lot more happening behind the scenes than people realize,&quot; she said.

Singer-songwriter Keiko Necesario offered an explanation on why music labels 'take up a large portion' of their artists' earnings.

Singer-songwriter Keiko Necesario offered an explanation on why music labels 'take up a large portion' of their artists' earnings.

Keiko Necesario speaks out on music labels' cut from artist royalties

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Keiko Necesario speaks out on music labels' cut from artist royalties

ABS-CBN News

Published March 09, 2026 02:17 PM PHT

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