Rock & Metal

M. Shadows Sets The Record Strait On A7X Not Having Rights To Their Old Music Anymore

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M. Shadows recently took to X to clarify Avenged Sevenfold’s situation regarding the ownership of their older music.

When a fan asked, “Hey wdym A7X doesn’t have the rights to their old music anymore?” Shadows responded, “No, this came from a casual conversation in Discord and people not understanding it. But to stop this right here… no. That is not the case at all.”

However, the fan pressed further, referencing Shadows’ previous comment about their work before The Stage being “gone forever.” Shadows elaborated, “Owning the masters… they will always be under Warner Brothers Records. 99% of artists don’t own their masters. In the past, artists could possibly purchase from the label. That’s no longer possible with streaming deals.”

Another fan asked about the difference between owning rights and owning masters, as well as how it affects projects like TRAX. Shadows explained, “To the fan… nothing. To the artist… everything. We make a royalty between 20–25% from those albums. The label keeps the rest. They also claim things like TRAX where we pay for production but only make the money back at 25%. Owning masters gives you 100%.”

When someone commented on the difficulty of buying back masters due to streaming deals, asking if it was nearly impossible, Shadows confirmed, “This exactly. And yes, we have tried. It will never happen… so we move forward. No big deal. We signed the contract. That being said, labels used to be able to do stuff for you. These days it’s not the case. Oh well, moving on.”

As for new music, Avenged Sevenfold isn’t rushing into another album just yet. Shadows shared last month that the band is still focused on their 2023 release, wrapping up live shows across different countries. They plan to take some time off to recharge before diving back into the creative process.

I'm Emma. I Love rock music, doing guitar reviews, and making food. I love writing works because it is the best way to provide information to people.

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