It was Friday the 2nd when I got news that devastated me to the core. I was in the car with my dad, heading to my cousins at my grandma's. I accidentally clicked on a news article in my Google News feed that read, "His Song Was Going Massively Viral. Hours Later, Universal Music and TikTok Went to War". I didn't really care about it until the 4G LTE my Samsung S9 ran on loaded the picture attached: it was Cody Glen Fry. I instantly felt my gut sink as I read the Rolling Stone article. To summarize the article, Decca Records (which is under UMG) told Cody that his song "Things You Said" (which hits so hard, especially for those going through a break up) was blowing up on Douyin, the China version of TikTok. Cody was excited and was making a plan for this unplanned moment. A few hours later, he saw an open letter from Decca/UMG "claiming they hadn't renewed their licensing agreement with the social platform and that all of the company's music would be removed the following day." This was a crushing blow for Cody, who blew up on TikTok before because of his songs "I Hear A Symphony" and "Eleanor Rigby". Symphony helped him land a deal with Decca and Eleanor Rigby was nominated for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals at the 2022 Grammys. In the article, he explains how he is supporting UMG (although is frustrated with the lack of communication), thinks TikTok should pay more, and how he feels like he's "a person standing between two colliding planets, and there's nothing I can do." He is happy with his success and is, as his friend Ben Rector would put it, "living [his] best life". He uses the analogy of an ant at a picnic of these big corporations (UMG and TikTok) and big artists (ex. Taylor Swift and Drake) because he is a small artist. Cody isn't anti-UMG nor anti-TikTok (they contributed to his growth), but he's pro-artist and disappointed that they claim to be pro-artist, but aren't talking to artists. He ends with, "I have faith in my fans, faith in the internet. I'm sure people will still figure out a way to find the song. It's blown up massively. I'm sure that the internet will find a way to listen to the song if they want to. It just feels like a big own-goal."

    So what's my stance on this conflict? Seeing that Blink-182, Green Day, and Cody Fry, my favorite artist and bands respectively are under UMG, I stand with them and I too am pro-artist. The reason TikTok is so popular is because of the music and cringe it puts out. Having it removed and not telling any of them is unfair. Swifties and Team Drizzy are covering songs of their respective artists, while smaller artists aren't getting that same support. I feel for those under UMG and I will be sure to voice it in May during Cody's concert, and I hope you do the same.