Stevie says Mac members get paid the same

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by lilyfee

I think what Stevie meant was that everyone in the band, regardless of gender, receives equal pay for equal work, not that everyone in the band is paid the same regardless of their individual roles. That is what the Times Up movement is about -- not that men and women are just paid equally, but that they are paid equally for equal work.

Therefore, Lindsey may make more money for producing albums, Stevie, Lindsey and Christine may make more money for writing songs, etc.

Weren't Stevie and Christine tied for third position on the 2015 Forbes list for Highest Paid Female Singers due to Fleetwood Mac's tour that year? I don't know where those numbers come from, but it would imply that no one received more money just for showing up on tour.

I am not being a devil's advocate but I am curious about your statement. What is equal pay vs equal work in Fleetwood Mac. For example, Lindsey plays guitar all night and sings the same amount of songs as Stevie. Why should he get paid less for touring? Mick founded the band and gave both Stevie and Lindsey their big break. He plays the hardest, banging on drums all night. Why should he get paid less than Stevie when touring.
What is considered equal work? To make it even clearer... Stevie would never go there to say her singing is not equal to the other band members. The band would never tell her that she does not play an instrument so she gets paid less. THAT would be and equal work example.
Time's up Stevie

[Jondalar]

Originally Posted by Macfan4life

I am not being a devil's advocate but I am curious about your statement. What is equal pay vs equal work in Fleetwood Mac. For example, Lindsey plays guitar all night and sings the same amount of songs as Stevie. Why should he get paid less for touring? Mick founded the band and gave both Stevie and Lindsey their big break. He plays the hardest, banging on drums all night. Why should he get paid less than Stevie when touring.
What is considered equal work? To make it even clearer... Stevie would never go there to say her singing is not equal to the other band members. The band would never tell her that she does not play an instrument so she gets paid less. THAT would be and equal work example.
Time's up Stevie

Stevie was talking about touring. Lindsey made the most from Fleetwood Mac because he was a main producer plus writer. Christine and Stevie got songwriters royalties so they made a lot more than Mick or John. When it comes to touring they all make the same.

[Macfan4life]

Originally Posted by Jondalar

Stevie was talking about touring. Lindsey made the most from Fleetwood Mac because he was a main producer plus writer. Christine and Stevie got songwriters royalties so they made a lot more than Mick or John. When it comes to touring they all make the same.

No one was talking about royalties. There is NO proof what so ever they are paid the same for touring. When the Mac started to splinter do you really believe Stevie was paid the same as Rick and Billy? She knew and her management knew Stevie was a huge draw and she was paid more to tour with the Mac. Look at her interviews where she says her management told her to leave Fleetwood Mac after Lindsey left and don't record with them anymore. She felt obligated to stay in the band because she knew if she left the arenas would be empty. Its just a sad fact unfortunately. After Christine left there was another vacuum. You are kidding yourself if you really believe Stevie split everything equally during the Unleashed and Say You Will tours. Her solo tours yield almost the same numbers.
Back in the old days yes they were probably paid equally for touring but not after all the break ups. This is not unique to the Mac. Most bands that splinter and need to keep or bring back other key members have sweetheart touring deals. Even worse look at Lindsey and Christine's solo tour. It is so sad but reality to see 2/3 of songwriters of the Mac perform and could not fill a small theater while Stevie was selling out arenas. No way her management allows things to be split equally between the 5. However all band members are profiting from this equation so they are not complaining. I don't agree with it but I am not dumb to know what reality is.

[HomerMcvie]

^^^^This.

As much as I hate it, it has to be true. OGB doesn't deserve it, but I'm sure she gets it. She's the one who puts the asses in the seats.

Of course there's no accounting for taste.

[bombaysaffires]

yes, and putting asses in seats or selling records/cds/downloads whatever *IS* the "work" in a big commercial band. Not all these tasks like who pushes the record button or who strums the guitar or whatever that people are going on about. The big picture is that the job is selling product. The product being sold is either a tour or an album or a book or a movie or whatever. Your job is to come up with the content (the songs in the case of an album, or the show if a tour) and then sell the hell out of it. You don't have to like this definition, but that is what show business is. (I hear you, Lindsey..'but what about the art, the art'.......though even he totally knows this is what 'the business' is all about ).

So 'equal pay for equal work' in this context would mean if any one of them could sell the same amount of seats/albums as the next, they'd all get paid the same. They don't. Doesn't mean they don't put in just as much effort and do just as many, or even more, daily tasks.....it comes down to who sells product. And she does, more than anyone else in the band. That said, Lindsey is in a very solid position to argue for more money because while she is more the public face of the band, and generates more publicity and sells more seats with her higher name recognition, he is the lynchpin of producing the content that they are trying to sell. Mac albums without him didn't do as well as Mac albums with him. He and his management can argue that he is the architect of the sound that made them so successful and why the songs recorded 40 years ago are still selling well and are respected. He's gotten better at marketing himself in this role and telling everyone how everyone else's songs wouldn't be what they are without him. That leverages him more money because he can show his efforts directly sell more product.

Chris could as well. I really hope she's getting her fair share. She seems like she doesn't like fighting and discord but I hope her managers go in and fight because she wrote more hits and her presence on the last tours increased ticket sales.

[Jondalar]

Originally Posted by Macfan4life

No one was talking about royalties. There is NO proof what so ever they are paid the same for touring. When the Mac started to splinter do you really believe Stevie was paid the same as Rick and Billy? She knew and her management knew Stevie was a huge draw and she was paid more to tour with the Mac. Look at her interviews where she says her management told her to leave Fleetwood Mac after Lindsey left and don't record with them anymore. She felt obligated to stay in the band because she knew if she left the arenas would be empty. Its just a sad fact unfortunately. After Christine left there was another vacuum. You are kidding yourself if you really believe Stevie split everything equally during the Unleashed and Say You Will tours. Her solo tours yield almost the same numbers.
Back in the old days yes they were probably paid equally for touring but not after all the break ups. This is not unique to the Mac. Most bands that splinter and need to keep or bring back other key members have sweetheart touring deals. Even worse look at Lindsey and Christine's solo tour. It is so sad but reality to see 2/3 of songwriters of the Mac perform and could not fill a small theater while Stevie was selling out arenas. No way her management allows things to be split equally between the 5. However all band members are profiting from this equation so they are not complaining. I don't agree with it but I am not dumb to know what reality is.

I don’t really trust Stevie but in this case, I think you are being way too cynical. Who cares about Billy Burnett? He is not Mac anymore. Mick is a money grubbing bitch. Stevie knows that mick and John don’t get royalties. I do believe they are paid the same,

[SteveMacD]

Originally Posted by Macfan4life

There is NO proof what so ever they are paid the same for touring.

There’s also no proof they’re not.

When the Mac started to splinter do you really believe Stevie was paid the same as Rick and Billy?

Is there any proof there was a discrepancy? I recall reading that Stevie and Christine demanded Billy and Rick be made full members of the band. It wouldn’t surprise me if they were paid somewhere between full members and backing musicians, but nobody on here has proof either way.

She knew and her management knew Stevie was a huge draw and she was paid more to tour with the Mac.

Proof?

Look at her interviews where she says her management told her to leave Fleetwood Mac after Lindsey left and don't record with them anymore. She felt obligated to stay in the band because she knew if she left the arenas would be empty.

St. Stevie made a huge sacrifice.

Even worse look at Lindsey and Christine's solo tour. It is so sad but reality to see 2/3 of songwriters of the Mac perform and could not fill a small theater while Stevie was selling out arenas.

With The Pretenders…

Robert Pollard of Guided by Voices is a friend of mine, and the difference in album sales, money offered for shows, and ticket sales is ridiculously more if he bills it as Guided by Voices compared to Robert Pollard, regardless of who else is in the band. He did an album credited to Guided by Voices a few years ago where he played everything just to drive home the point that HE’S Guided by Voices. It doesn’t matter what he does or who is backing him up, it’s how he brands it that makes the biggest difference in terms of sales.

The same is true for LBCM. “Stevie Nicks” is a long established brand, “Lindsey Buckingham Christine McVie” is a new brand. Had Mick and John been on board for the tour and the project been branded “Fleetwood Mac,” it would have been a lot bigger, especially if they did a co-headlining tour with, for example, Heart.