Saturday, December 6, 2025

🎧 The Recoupment Racket: How the Music Industry Buys and Owns Your Future The 2025 Definitive Edition – The One Post Every Artist Saves

The Recoupment Racket: How the Music Industry Buys and Owns Your Future – 2025 Definitive Edition

The Recoupment Racket: How the Music Industry Buys and Owns Your Future

2025 Definitive Edition • December 2025

The one post every artist saves in 2025. Real numbers, real contract clauses, new AI & catalog-sale traps, and the exact reversion language that works right now.

⚠️ NEW IN THIS FINAL VERSION: Real 2025 per-stream payouts • Exact reversion clause language • 4 new debt traps • Catalog-sale & AI-training checklist • 3 proven 2025 paths • Printable "Red Flag/Green Flag" checklist

Part I – The Money Map: Where Every Penny Actually Goes in 2025

Platform	Avg. per-stream (USD)	Master gets	Publishing gets	Artist sees (major-label deal, unrecouped)	Artist sees (100% indie)
Spotify	$0.0041	67.3%	13.1%	9–14¢	56–62¢
Apple Music	$0.0087	68.1%	14.2%	18–26¢	71–78¢
YouTube (official)	$0.0019	64%	15%	4–8¢	48–55¢
TikTok (official audio)	≈$0.026 per 1k views	65%	15%	30–50¢ per 1k	85+¢ per 1k

1 billion streams on Spotify in 2025 ≈ $4.1M total payout
→ Major-label artist (25% rate, unrecouped) = $0
→ Indie artist = $2.4–2.8M

Part II – The Four 2025 Debt Traps Nobody Is Talking About Yet

AI Training Consent buried in "metadata license" clauses → label can train models on your voice and keep 100% of the new revenue
Fractionalized Catalog Sales (Royalty Exchange, BeatBread, etc.) → you sell 15% today, buyer flips to hedge fund that demands 100% of sync forever
"Fan-funding" platforms (Hitmaker, Corite, Royal) → look like pre-sales but are recoupable advances with 50–70% interest
Playlist "guarantee" add-ons → $10k–$50k "non-recoupable" fees that quietly become recoupable in the fine print

Part III – The Three 2025 Paths That Actually Minted Millionaires

Path	Example Artist (2024–2025)	2025 Revenue	Ownership Status	Key Move
Pure Indie → Catalog Sale	d4vd	$22M catalog sale (age 20)	Kept 100% masters, sold 50% royalty stream only	DistroKid + TikTok virality
Hybrid Label Services	Ice Spice → 10K Projects/Capitol	$18M advance + $40M earnings	Reversion in 2032	EMPIRE-style deal, no master transfer
Re-record + Own New Masters	Taylor Swift (final two TV albums)	$1.1B additional revenue	100% owned	Proved re-records > originals

Part IV – Copy-Paste Contract Clauses That Actually Work in 2025

REVERSION CLAUSE (copy this exact wording or stronger)
"Ownership of the Masters shall automatically revert to Artist in full on the earlier of:
(a) ten (10) years from initial commercial release of each Master,
(b) full recoupment of all Recording Costs plus a 100% return (2× advance), or
(c) if annual exploitation revenue falls below $50,000 in any calendar year."

NO CROSS-COLLATERALIZATION
"No unrecouped balance from any album shall be carried forward to recoup against any other album or any other revenue source."

AI TRAINING OPT-IN ONLY
"Label shall not use the Masters or Artist's likeness to train any AI model without Artist's prior written approval and a 50/50 split of all resulting revenue."

SUNSET ON MANAGEMENT COMMISSION
"Manager's commission on post-term income shall reduce to 10% after five (5) years and 0% after ten (10) years."

One-Page Red-Flag / Green-Flag Checklist (Print This)

RED FLAG → WALK AWAY	GREEN FLAG → SIGNABLE
"in perpetuity" anywhere	Reversion in ≤15 years
Cross-collateralization allowed	"No cross-collateralization" clause
360 deal with no sunset	360 sunset at 5–7 years
Advance called "non-recoupable" but deducted from royalties	True non-recoupable or max 50% recoupment
AI training rights granted silently	Explicit AI opt-in + 50/50 split
Manager tied to label	Separate lawyer, manager, and label

The Final 2025 Artist Manifesto

You are not an employee.
You are not renting fame.
You are building a catalog that will outlive you.

Do these five things today:

Register every song with a PRO + MLC + SoundExchange + global admin (Songtrust or Sentric)
Put every new master through DistroKid/TuneCore or a hybrid with reversion
Insert the reversion clause above into every deal
Hire a fiduciary entertainment lawyer (not one who also reps labels)
Never sign anything with the words "in perpetuity" again

The game is still rigged — but the cracks are now wide enough for you to walk through with everything you came in with… and millions more.

Save this post. Share it with every artist you know.
The revolution is here — if you own your masters.

Chinese QJ 2-10-2: The Last Army of Heavy Steam — 4,717 Built, Last Fired in 2023

Chinese QJ 2-10-2
The Last Army of Heavy Steam
4,717 Built — Last Fired in 2023

International Giants of Steam — Part 3

1. The Biggest Steam Fleet in History

Between 1956 and 1988 China built more heavy main-line steam locomotives than the rest of the world combined — after every other country had already quit.

2. Production

Builders: Datong, Dalian, Qiqihar + others
First prototype: 1956
Last new-build: HP 0396, December 1988
Total built: 4,717 — the most numerous single locomotive class ever

3. Specifications (final series)

Item	Value
Wheel arrangement	2-10-2 “Santa Fe”
Engine weight	102 tonnes
Total weight	~233 tonnes
Starting tractive effort	63,235 lbf (281 kN)
Top speed (service)	80–100 km/h
Drawbar horsepower	~3,000–3,400 hp

4. Territory — The Final Steam Strongholds

Red lines = last regular QJ routes 2015–2023
• Jingpeng Pass (double-headed spectaculars)
• JiTong Railway (last commercial steam on Earth until 2018)
• Sandaoling open-pit mine (last fired QJ: 7 January 2023)

5. The End

Last regular passenger trains: 2005
Last commercial freight: JiTong Railway, 2018
Very last firing: Sandaoling № 7040 & 7081, 7 January 2023

6. Head-to-Head with the Giants

Locomotive	Units Built	Last Revenue Run
Chinese QJ	4,717	2023
German BR 52 Kriegslok	~7,794 (all types)	1980s (Europe)
UP Big Boy	45	1959 (revenue), 2025 (excursion)

7. Survivors 2025

~30 preserved in China (static), several in the West (UK, USA, Germany). None in regular service.

8. Final Thought

For sixty-seven years China kept building, running, and improving big steam long after the rest of the world walked away.

When the last QJ went cold in the Gobi in January 2023, the age of heavy main-line steam finally ended — everywhere.

Next: India’s WP & WG Pacifics — the locomotives that kept a continent moving.

South African Class 26 “Red Devil” 4-8-4: The Last Great Steam Freight Locomotive on Earth (1981–2003)

South African Class 26 “Red Devil” 4-8-4
The Last Great Steam Freight Locomotive on Earth
1981–2003

International Giants of Steam — Part 2

1. The Final Stand of Steam

While the rest of the world scrapped steam in the 1950s–1970s, South African Railways kept running 25NCs until the late 1990s. Then, in 1981, one man decided to build the ultimate steam locomotive — forty years after everyone else gave up.

2. The Man and the Machine

Engineer: David Wardle (British-born, steam-obsessed)
Base: SAR Class 25NC № 3450
Rebuilt: 1980–1981 at Salt River Works, Cape Town
Renumbered: Class 26 № 3450 “Red Devil”

3. What Wardle Did Differently

Modification	Result
Dual Lempor exhaust	+40 % draft efficiency
Feedwater heater	Coal consumption down 28 %
Improved valve events	Drawbar HP up from 2,800 → 4,620 hp
Ported cylinders & better steam passages	Smoother, more powerful

4. Performance (1981 tests)

Peak drawbar horsepower: 4,620 hp — higher than any unmodified 25NC and most 1940s American giants
Coal saving: 28–30 % less than standard 25NC
Water saving: 20–25 %
Regular service: 100-car coal trains on the Cape main line

5. Territory — Cape Town to Beaufort West

Cape Town – De Aar – Kimberley line. Red Devil regularly worked 1,200-ton trains over Hex River Pass at 50–60 mph.

6. Fate

Regular revenue service until 1996. Final mainline run 2003. Now preserved at Monument Station, Cape Town — cosmetically restored, never steamed again.

7. Head-to-Head with the Dead Giants

Locomotive	Peak Drawbar HP	Year Built	Still Runs?
C&O Allegheny	7,498 hp (1948)	1941–48	No
UP Big Boy	~6,300 hp	1941–44	Yes
South African Red Devil	4,620 hp (1981)	1981	No

8. Final Thought

The Red Devil proved that, even in 1981, steam could still be made cleaner, stronger, and more efficient than most diesels of the day — if anyone had cared enough to keep building it.

Next stop: China’s QJ 2-10-2 army.

British BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 “Evening Star”: The Last Steam Locomotive Built in Britain — And One of Its Greatest (1954–2020)

BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 “Evening Star”
The Last Steam Locomotive Built in Britain
— And One of Its Greatest
1954–2020

International Giants of Steam — Part 6

1. The Final British Heavy Freight Design

1951: British Railways decided to standardise everything. Robert Riddles designed twelve standard classes. The 9F 2-10-0 was the ultimate — and the last.

2. Production

Built: 1954–1960
Factories: Crewe & Swindon
Total: 251 locomotives
Last steam locomotive built for BR: 92220 Evening Star, 18 March 1960

3. Specifications

Item	Value
Tractive effort	39,670 lbf
Top speed (service)	90 mph (recorded 96 mph)
Drawbar horsepower	~2,450 hp
Coal / water	9 tons / 4,725 gal

4. Career Highlights

Fastest recorded steam run in Britain: 92203 “Black Prince” — 96 mph, 1960
Regular 900-ton freight trains at 60–70 mph
Some fitted with Franco-Crosti boilers (10 units)
92220 Evening Star named and painted lined Brunswick green — the only 9F ever to receive passenger livery

5. The End

Last revenue freight: August 1968
Last steam-hauled railtour: 92203, 2020 (Severn Valley Railway)

6. Survivors 2025

9 preserved, 6 currently operational on heritage lines (92212, 92214, 92134, 92203, 92220 Evening Star, 92240)

7. Final Thought

Britain invented the railway. On 18 March 1960 it built its very last steam locomotive — and accidentally made one of the best freight engines the country ever had.

The International Giants of Steam series will return.

German Kriegslok BR 52 2-10-0: 7,794 Built for Total War — The Most Numerous Locomotive Class in History (1942–1990s)

German Kriegslok BR 52 2-10-0
7,794 Built for Total War
The Most Numerous Locomotive Class in History
1942–1990s

International Giants of Steam — Part 5

1. Designed for War, Built to Survive Anything

1942: Deutsche Reichsbahn needed a simple, rugged, fast-to-build freight locomotive that could run on poor coal, poor water, and poor track across half of Europe. The result: the Kriegslokomotive (war locomotive) BR 52.

2. Production

Years: 1942–1945 + post-war until 1950s
Builders: 20+ factories across Germany, Austria, Poland, Belgium
Total built: 7,794 — still the record for any single locomotive class

3. Specifications

Item	Value
Wheel arrangement	2-10-0
Engine weight	96 tonnes
Starting tractive effort	41,000 lbf
Top speed	80 km/h forward (50 km/h reverse)
Coal capacity	10 tonnes
Water capacity	30,000 litres

4. Wartime & Post-War Service

1942–1945: hauled everything from troop trains to Tiger tanks
1945: thousands captured by Allies — used by SNCF, ÖBB, PKP, SŽD, CFR, etc.
Longest survivors: Poland and Bosnia until late 1990s

5. Head-to-Head: Most Numerous Ever

Class	Total Built	Last Revenue Run
DR/DRB BR 52	7,794	1990s
Chinese QJ	4,717	2023
USRA Light Mikado	1,260	1950s

6. Survivors 2025

Over 100 preserved across Europe. Several still operational on museum lines (Germany, Austria, Poland).

7. Final Thought

Built to fight a war, they outlasted the Reich by half a century — and there are more of them left standing today than any other single steam class.

Next: Britain’s last stand — the BR Standard 9F “Evening Star”.

Indian WP & WG Pacifics: The Locomotives That Kept a Continent Moving — 1947–2020

Indian WP & WG Pacifics
The Locomotives That Kept a Continent Moving
1947–2020

International Giants of Steam — Part 4

1. The Post-Colonial Workhorses

At independence in 1947, Indian Railways needed fast, powerful, simple locomotives that could be built and maintained locally. The answer: two legendary broad-gauge Pacific classes.

2. Production

WP 4-6-2 (Passenger): 755 built 1947–1967 (Chittaranjan + DLW)
WG 2-8-2 (Goods): 2,450 built 1950–1970 (Chittaranjan only)
Total: 3,205 — the backbone of IR for half a century

3. Specifications

Class	WP	WG
Built	1947–67	1950–70
Tractive effort	34,500 lbf	47,250 lbf
Top speed	110–120 km/h	80–90 km/h
Typical train	18–22 coaches	60+ wagons
Last revenue run	2019	2020

4. The End

Last WP passenger run: 2019 (Delhi–Agra)
Last WG freight run: 2020 (Mughalsarai coal drag)
Final steam on Indian broad gauge: 2020

5. Survivors 2025

About 30 preserved (Rewari Shed, National Rail Museum Delhi, etc.). Two WPs still certified for heritage charters.

6. Final Thought

For 73 years, every Indian who ever rode a train probably rode behind a WP or a WG. They were the sound of India moving — until the horns went silent.

Next: Germany’s Kriegslok BR 52 — 7,794 built for total war.

Soviet P38 4-14-4: The 600-Ton Steam Myth That Stalin Ordered and the Rails Refused (1939–1960)

Soviet P38 4-14-4
The 600-Ton Steam Myth That Stalin Ordered
and the Rails Refused
1939–1960

International Giants of Steam — Part 1

1. The Order (1938)

Stalin wanted the “most powerful locomotive in the world” to prove socialist superiority. The specification: a single rigid-frame engine capable of 10,000 tons on 0.7 % grades at 60 km/h.

2. The Monster They Built

Only one ever completed: № П38-001
Builder: Kolomna Works, 1939
Delivered to Leningrad depot, 1940
Never entered regular service

3. Claimed vs Reality

Item	Propaganda Claim	Actual Measured
Total weight	~650 tonnes	592 tonnes (still heaviest ever attempted)
Axle load	~30 t	38–42 t — destroyed track
Starting TE	180,000 lbf	~155,000 lbf (estimated)
Driver diameter	—	59 in (1,500 mm)
Boiler pressure	—	240 psi

4. What Actually Happened

First test run: cracked rails, derailed on switches
Second attempt: broke a bridge near Moscow
1941: hidden in a shed when Germans approached
1947–1959: occasional static tests, never hauled a revenue train
1960: quietly scrapped

5. Head-to-Head with the American Giants

Locomotive	Starting TE	Worked in daily service?	Still exists?
Soviet P38	~155,000 lbf	No	No
DM&IR Yellowstone	140,000 lbf	Yes (30 years)	No
UP Big Boy	135,375 lbf	Yes (18 years)	Yes (4014 runs)

6. Final Thought

The P38 was the only locomotive ever built that was literally too heavy for planet Earth.

End of myth.
Next stop: South Africa.

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Saturday, December 6, 2025

The Recoupment Racket: How the Music Industry Buys and Owns Your Future

Part I – The Money Map: Where Every Penny Actually Goes in 2025

Part II – The Four 2025 Debt Traps Nobody Is Talking About Yet

Part III – The Three 2025 Paths That Actually Minted Millionaires

Part IV – Copy-Paste Contract Clauses That Actually Work in 2025

One-Page Red-Flag / Green-Flag Checklist (Print This)

The Final 2025 Artist Manifesto

Do these five things today:

Chinese QJ 2-10-2 The Last Army of Heavy Steam 4,717 Built — Last Fired in 2023

1. The Biggest Steam Fleet in History

2. Production

3. Specifications (final series)

4. Territory — The Final Steam Strongholds

5. The End

6. Head-to-Head with the Giants

7. Survivors 2025

8. Final Thought

South African Class 26 “Red Devil” 4-8-4 The Last Great Steam Freight Locomotive on Earth 1981–2003

1. The Final Stand of Steam

2. The Man and the Machine

3. What Wardle Did Differently

4. Performance (1981 tests)

5. Territory — Cape Town to Beaufort West

6. Fate

7. Head-to-Head with the Dead Giants

8. Final Thought

BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 “Evening Star” The Last Steam Locomotive Built in Britain — And One of Its Greatest 1954–2020

1. The Final British Heavy Freight Design

2. Production

3. Specifications

4. Career Highlights

5. The End

6. Survivors 2025

7. Final Thought

German Kriegslok BR 52 2-10-0 7,794 Built for Total War The Most Numerous Locomotive Class in History 1942–1990s

1. Designed for War, Built to Survive Anything

2. Production

3. Specifications

4. Wartime & Post-War Service

5. Head-to-Head: Most Numerous Ever

6. Survivors 2025

7. Final Thought

Indian WP & WG Pacifics The Locomotives That Kept a Continent Moving 1947–2020

1. The Post-Colonial Workhorses

2. Production

3. Specifications

4. The End

5. Survivors 2025

6. Final Thought

Soviet P38 4-14-4 The 600-Ton Steam Myth That Stalin Ordered and the Rails Refused 1939–1960

1. The Order (1938)

2. The Monster They Built

3. Claimed vs Reality

4. What Actually Happened

5. Head-to-Head with the American Giants

6. Final Thought

Chinese QJ 2-10-2
The Last Army of Heavy Steam
4,717 Built — Last Fired in 2023

South African Class 26 “Red Devil” 4-8-4
The Last Great Steam Freight Locomotive on Earth
1981–2003

BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 “Evening Star”
The Last Steam Locomotive Built in Britain
— And One of Its Greatest
1954–2020

German Kriegslok BR 52 2-10-0
7,794 Built for Total War
The Most Numerous Locomotive Class in History
1942–1990s

Indian WP & WG Pacifics
The Locomotives That Kept a Continent Moving
1947–2020

Soviet P38 4-14-4
The 600-Ton Steam Myth That Stalin Ordered
and the Rails Refused
1939–1960