Decenter | Alternative Ideas & Culture

The trope of the broke, struggling artist is damaging. It's true that work in creative industries can be precarious and underpaid - but a society that mystifies art and puts it in a different category from all other labor also undervalues and underpays artists for their work.

This situation is made worse by legal structures that don’t suit creative industries.

With AI replacing some paid creative work, it's more important than ever for artists to control their own business and financial future.

The founder of Metalabel and Kickstarter, Yancey Strickler, and the state of Colorado responded by creating the first legal entity for artists, the A-Corp.

What's different with A-Corps? Artists keep majority voting power and IP, even when investors come on board. There are also easier ways to collaborate and share value with other creatives and partners.

And the kicker is that creative work can be recorded as an asset on the books. This makes the company more valuable and makes it easier to borrow money or get other types of funding.

It was created in Colorado but creatives anywhere in the US can register an A-Corp.

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