Several music-based organizations are hoping to create financial incentives that would help grow the music industry in New York state.

New York is Music, a coalition of over 60 music organizations, is planning an initiative entitled the Empire State Music Production Tax Credit bill, which would create a 20 percent income tax credit for music recorders and producers in New York. The credit will be similar to the state’s film industry tax cut, according to an Oct. 9 Billboard.com article.

The bill, which according to The New York Times will allow for $60 million in tax cuts, is aimed at bringing the music industry back to the entirety of New York state, not just New York City. According to the Billboard.com article, studio numbers in New York state are down significantly from 10–15 years ago.

“All the studios in New York are seeing an export of services,” said David Rezak, director of the Bandier Program at Syracuse University. “This tax credit will help studios all around, even ones here in Syracuse.”

Both big and small recording studios are expected to reap huge benefits from the tax cut. The Empire bill could largely offset the costs of music production, which aids struggling studios across the state, Rezak said.

“When you know you’re going to spend $6,000 on an album, and you know New York state is going to give you a tax credit to do that, I definitely think that’s going to help,” he said.

The initiative is not meant to fix all the current problems of the music industry, but to give the industry in New York a chance to redeem itself in regards to studio presence, Rezak said.

“At the crux of this, we don’t want to lose any more of the iconic studios in Manhattan,” he said.

Ken Consor, an alumnus of SU’s Bandier Program, had similar feelings towards the bill.

“As a statewide initiative, New York is Music will be bringing attention and business to an up-and-coming and previously unappreciated upstate market,” said Consor, an account coordinator at Songtrust, a digital rights management company.

The past decade has seen the departure of music business from New York to states such as Tennessee, Texas and California, Consor said. To combat this shift, he said New York is Music should “not only provide opportunities that create incentives for music startups, but also build a community that encourages retention for current New York music businesses.”

Cosnor added that he is “looking forward to an expansion for the current businesses here in New York and an overall geographical shift of the music businesses back to New York.”

Jon Lessels, studio manager at SubCat Studios, a recording studio in downtown Syracuse, said he is excited to see what New York is Music will do for his business.

“It could only make things better for the studio,” he said. “It could make Syracuse more nationally known on the music scene, even put it on the level of Nashville or LA. That’s definitely what we’re working towards here.”

Lessels said the income tax helps from a financial standpoint, and said if the program brings in enough revenue, it could provide money to give back to the community.

Ultimately, the perceived goal of the initiative is the same across the board. Rezak said he hopes the bill will “keep New York state a thriving center for the creation of art.”

Published on October 15, 2014 at 12:01 am

Contact Brigid: brkenned@syr.edu