David Byrne’s history of avoiding unions dates back to the 1980s

David Byrne, the renowned singer and guitarist for the rock group Talking Heads, is locked in a contentious labor battle with the Broadway Musicians Union as he seeks to produce an unprecedented musical production without live music.

Byrne’s stance has surprised some connoisseurs of his music in the notoriously pro-union New York City. He is known as a defender of investment in the artsespecially in New York City, where he lives.

But according to news articles first resurfaced by HuffPost, Byrne has a history of trying to avoid employing union members, who typically get more generous salaries and benefits than their non-union counterparts.

During a 1986 press tour for “True Stories,” a musical comedy film Byrne directed and co-wrote, Byrne spoke openly about the state of Texas as a right-to-work state, where unions are weaker, and played a role in his decision to film there. In right-to-work states, unions must represent all workers in a given shop, but the law prohibits them from demanding payment from workers for the services they provide. The system often undermines the ability of unions to organize by encouraging workers to take advantage, depriving unions of the financial resources they need to take on employers.

When asked by The Wichita Eagle-Beacon why he chose to shoot in Virgil, Texas, Byrne was candid about his preference for a state with weaker unions.

The Kansas-based newspaper, now called The Wichita Eagle, wrote that Byrne had attributed the idea to “interested investors,” who cited the state of Texas as a right-to-work state, as well as the availability of an experienced production team. . and a studio in Dallas.

“All of that seemed like a good reason to at least go down and check it out,” he said. told the Eagle-Beacon. “So I took a trip and just said, ‘This is it!’”

Byrne was equally direct in a interview with the Miami Herald in November 1986.

“I was first drawn there for financial reasons because it’s a right-to-work state, and they have experienced teams and a studio near Dallas,” he said.

In the Herald interview, he added that after selecting the state for financial reasons, he developed a genuine fondness for it, regardless. “I really liked the place and the people,” she said.

In a statement to HuffPost, Byrne described the decision to shoot in Texas as a “creative” choice.

“I wanted actors who had been in movies, artists who had never acted, singers who could act, inner-city creatives who were new to the movie business, Mexican-American musicians, Shriners and other non-actors. That was part of the concept: mix ‘downtown’ with ‘uptown,’ amateur with professional, and emerging talent with seasoned artists,” Byrne said. “They told me there were only a few places where I could mix all these people, and Texas was one of them. He wanted to mix union and non-union staff and cast this film. It was a creative decision rather than a budget one.”

Byrne is currently trying to use recorded music for a production, “Here Lies Love,” about Imelda Marcos, the former first lady of the Philippines, that he would like to stage at an officially designated Broadway theater.

He American Federation of Musicians Local 802, which represents the members of the orchestras in New York City’s official Broadway theaters, has a collective bargaining agreement with the Broadway League, a group that represents the owners of theaters that host designated shows. officially as “Broadway”, which requires them to use live music performed by Local 802 Members for their shows. If a Broadway production company wants to use less than the union-agreed number of musicians for that theater, it must apply for a “special situation” waiver. That application is then evaluated by a panel that includes neutral third parties, along with industry and union representatives. Both the union and the producer can appeal that decision before a labor arbitrator whose decision would be final.

The union’s agreement with the Broadway Theatre, a larger venue where Byrne wants to present his show, calls for the use of 19 union musicians. The union has granted exemptions to producers for a smaller number of musicians in the past, but is particularly upset by the effort to prevent the use of musicians. The union is now making its objections public after what it says have been failed efforts to reach a quiet deal with Byrne in private.

In 2022, the actors in the limited-run Broadway show “The Little Prince” sang songs to recorded music on the grounds that the show was more of a circus-like acrobatic show.

But Local 802 maintains that a genuine musical production without live music is unprecedented in the Local’s history, which dates back to 1921.

Tino Gagliardi, a longtime Broadway trumpeter who is now president of Local 802, describes himself as a fan of Byrne’s music and is proud that Byrne was a member of the American Federation of Musicians. (Star musicians who are currently members of the union include Bruce Springsteen and Taylor Swift.)

“I am very disappointed by this,” Gagliardi said. “I’d like to believe he’s not union busting, but it’s hard for me to conclude that he’s anything but union busting right now.”

“He’s trying to get around the requirements that have been put in place to maintain an artistic standard on Broadway,” he added.

Byrne has claimed, through Adrian Bryan-Brown, the production’s spokesman, that Byrne wants an exemption for “Here Lies Love” because the show’s musical numbers involve karaoke.

“Since ‘Here Lies Love’ was first conceived 17 years ago, every production has been done to pre-recorded tracks; this is part of the karaoke genre inherent to the musical and the production concept.” Bryan-Brown told the New York Times.

Byrne used union musicians for his recent hit song “American Utopia.” The show recovered their initial investment of $4 million in 2019 within 10 weeks of its first run.

However, the union suspects Byrne is once again prioritizing profit for himself and his investors over jobs for union workers and quality of experience for customers.

Music producers “have reached the limit of how much they can charge for tickets,” Gagliardi said. “Then the only way they can improve their financial position is by reducing labor costs, with musicians, stagehands or actors.”