Robocopyright

It’s difficult to picture some enemies
Unless we give them an identity
The newest entity we’ve got to fight
Is Article thirteen, I call it Robocopyright

I’ve been doing music on the net for two flipping decades
Even before YouTube, on a Geocities webpage
And every time I see the regulations get changed
It’s harder for creatives to make it
So yes, I’m enraged

Look at my track record, I put a lot of time
Into coming up with tracks, records and dropping rhymes
On the fight to democratize copyright
To shine a spotlight on Anonymous and Occupy (look)

I took a bit of time off to rap about games
But now I’m back and I’m not backing out again
Passing out castigations and patting down your claim
No matter how you obfuscate, your rationale’s insane
Maybe you’ll get the picture when I smack you out the frame
Because I don’t want to see the internet blacking out for shame (huh)

But that’s what’s happening now
Yet again
A threatening mechanism checking
On everything you say

All hail Robocopyright (yeah)
Our great leader (freedom)
I’d rather my router wasn’t changed to a rate meter
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader (freedom)
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader

MEP’s have voted (yep)
And I don’t like their decision (nope)
I’d diagnose it as a nightmare condition
Of a quite rare position
Where we can’t upload (nope)
Any kind of copyrighted clip
Without their permission

Now it’s seems pretty good if you just look at the surface
But peep under the hood, the engine isn’t fit for purpose
And if we still don’t trust AI in Teslas yet
Then pray, why would we let it suppress the net?
And lest we forget SOPA and ACTA

The Digital Economy Act and every tactic
The copyright lobbyists lob at us hobbyists
The obfuscating confidence tricks are pretty obvious
They make it sound like it’s benefiting small creators (great)
To make them all successful ever more for all the ages (great)

But look at labels and the way they’ve always treated artists (not well)
If you can’t see they won’t change, you need new glasses
It isn’t about creative control, nah
It’s about controlling creatives for cold cash
They want money for old rope, it’s old hat
It’s an old trope, anybody could have told that (ah)

We’ve surrounded by constant IP
Imagine real life with Content ID
A conglomerate deciding what your eyes see
When there’s nothing else left they’ll copyright me (freedom)
Why bother with a doctor?
You’ve got a faith healer (freedom)
Acting like a God
But you’re a lay preacher (freedom)
Hey Jesus, save me ‘cause I don’t need a gatekeeper (freedom)
‘Til I’m at the heavenly gates and meeting St. Peter

All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader (freedom)
You’re never gonna drain the swamp if you wade deeper
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader (freedom)
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader

Do you trust the judgement of an algorithm?
To look at everything you touch and make a sound decision?
To value satire or parody and tell the difference?
Or controlled by copyright trolls we know they’re well malicious
It’s already tough enough to make a parody

Some of us have given up because of copyright brutality
Cash grabbing companies take money for morality
Knowing full well they’re falsifying the legality
As if It wasn’t bad enough already with net neutrality
They’ve done it again, it’s the definition of insanity

How can we trust a robot to know what’s permissible
That only sees the content but context’s invisible
It’s risible, derisible, befitting of our ridicule
At least It would if the reality wasn’t so miserable (uh)
Every single picture you submit will be conditional
Article eleven’s even restricting what is clickable
It’s vulnerable to abuse commercial and political

Like unelected politicians slipping us rohypnol
So if you all care about it make people aware about it
Get on the phone get on the web get on the air and shout it

All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader (freedom)
Cutting off the trailers so you can’t see the main feature
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader (freedom)
All hail Robocopyright
Our great leader

It’s difficult to picture some enemies
Unless we give them an identity
The newest entity we’ve got to fight
Is Article thirteen, I call it Robocopyright