Could a musician be an enterprise?

We could describe an enterprise as an organization or institutional unity, driven by a project aimed

at an strategy in policy and action plans, where the objective is to produce and supplies of tangible
assets or services, destinated to an ensemble of customers or users and an entrepreneur as any
person or physic individual who pursued in the longer term, an economic objective. The rising
musicians who will thrive in today’s economy will often do so owing to a combination of their
musical and entrepreneurial skills. However, it is important to make the distinction between the
“private patrimony” and “professional patrimony”, which means, understanding by patrimony
(ensemble of properties), that the assets as a musician are not the same as the assets of a private
patrimony, so, it is necessary as an entrepreneur musician in an enterprise, the balance and care
of this combination.

Some attributes are important to be an “enterprise musician”: Innovation, productivity, enterprise,

independence. Any artist may dispose of an own enterprise to develop activities related to music,
but to subsist in this way the artist becomes from a person with a “labor” charge, with all that
means (contract, salary and stability) to be an “enterprise”, who is in charge of providing services
to third parties.

There are some systems to work as an enterprise. Enterprise “physic person”, the entrepreneur is
the person for itself, it means that he is his own enterprise. It has as advantage that we must not
share the benefits, we are our own bosses, we are able to have more flexibility (holidays, products
that we want to sell), quite simple accountability. On the other hand, it has as disadvantage,
confusion between the private and professional patrimony, we can be more fragile (diseases), less
possibilities of bank borrowing.

To start an activity as a “physic person” we need a registration at as “Business Branch”, such a BCE
(Banque Carrefour des Enterprises) which are responsible to verify if the person as the
competencies (certifications needed). Once the verifications are done an enterprise number is
issued, normally it is published in their web site. And the cost of registering as an enterprise in the
Business Branch is more or less around 80 euros.

The enterprise “moral person/society”, a moral person is a juridical entity distinct from the person
or persons who created it, this person holds the rights and is subject to its own obligations, it has
not physical reality but exist in law. An enterprise “moral person” could be a society, (S.R.L, S.A,
S.C). This system has as advantage, distinguishes a patrimony related to the activity of the
enterprise (less risk in a situation of bankruptcy), if we started an enterprise as a society, we are
less fragile, we can differ to our associates.

Why is the law of interest for the musician?

A musician who plays in a concert, might do it as a worker in an employment relationship or as an

autonomy, no one is unaware of the importance of this demarcation, to determine a number of
labor rights and obligations to Social Security.

The origin of the concept of “human rights” goes back to the recognition of natural law by the
Romans of antiquity, based on rational ideas, derived from the nature of things. The definition of
“right” can be interpreted in two ways. In an objective sense (general), it means a set of rules that
govern life in society and apply to everyone; these rules are restrictive. And in a subjective way
(individual), groups of prerogatives that an individual has within a society (children, disabled have
fewer rights). The legislation, (legis = lois), that means, ensemble of norms or rules.

The musician has the consideration of autonomous worker or as an entrepreneur for himself if he
conducts the directional functions, development of the spectacle, hire the staff or if he deal with
similar organizational tasks, but, if he is not the promoter or organizer of the event, without
perform those directional functions, we could be talking about a working relationship of the
“Worker Status”.

In Belgium, the exercises of a professional activity, is strictly supervised by rules that are imposed
on all. The subject is structured around two classical structures. Independent activities, which is
autonomous; Employment, which is with a work contract or, over a status. These rules find their
origin in the XXI century, where the industrialization of the economy generated a structure of
working relations, founded on the relations of the authority between workers and employers.

The living and working condition of artist, do not allow them to fit easily into the traditional legal
framework, developed for the common workers of industries and commerce. Several European
countries have already legislated to remedy this situation, and Belgium has particularly
distinguished itself since 2003 by acquiring an “entrepreneur status” quasi-salaried accessible to
all artists, which allows autonomous artists to benefit from social protection as an effective
employee.

In legal terms, an artistic activity can be carried out in different ways. These different modalities
may be exercised successively or simultaneously.

The contract

It is an agreement between at least two people who manage legal effects and they are committed
to create and respect the rights and obligations agreed, they are subject to the law of the country
to resolve any dispute that emerge around the terms of the agreement. There are five elements
that are required for any contract. First the contract must have a legal purpose and cannot be use
for illegal purpose. Second, there must be a mutual agreement between the parties. Third,
“consideration” is the key, in order, for the contract to be valid. It is when both parties agree to
provide something of value in exchange for a benefit, it has be something of actual value. Forth,
the parties must be legally competent, minors and mentally impaired cannot validly contract. And
lastly, all parties must come to an agreement based on their own will.

Types of contract: A unilateral contract has to do with a promise exchange for a specific
performance, a bilateral contract, (most contract are bilateral), is a promise in exchange for a
promise; 97% of cases, the rights and obligations are for both. Express contract usually specifies
orally or writing the exact terms of the contract. Conditional contracts are based upon a
completion of a condition. Joint and several contracts have multiple parties involve. Implied
contracts, where courts find that a contract exists based on the situation. Unconscionable
contracts, put one party at a greater advantage than another one and are considered unjust.
Adhesion contracts, are considered to give one party more bargaining power than another and
therefore result in a “take it or leave it” situation. Option contracts, allow you to enter in another
contract with another party at a later time. Fixed prices contracts, involve a buyer and a seller that
agree to pay a fixed price for a project.

Natural and juridical Person

A person is juridically classified in two groups: natural person and juridical person. The first group
refers to a human being who is an individual being capable of assuming obligations and capable of
holding rights. The second group refers to those entities endowed with juridical personality who
are usually know as a collective person, social person, or legal entity. However there are those
who are not able to be a “juridical person”, for example, under de age of 18 years old, people with
mental debility, people imprisoned, people who have their administrative properties managed by
third parties and prodigal people (someone who spends all his money when he receives it).

Status of an employee

When an employer hires someone, it's up to them to assign their new hire with an employment
status, a person’s employment status defines the rights and responsibilities that an employee has
at work and therefore determines what is required from the employer. Employees will have
different rights depending on their employment status.

Employee: An employee is a person who works under the conditions of a contract of employment,
the contract will include (but is not limited to) terms of payment, annual leave and working hours.

Worker: A worker is a person who undertakes work personally as part of a contract or indeed not.
Generally, they have the right to carry out the work themselves but are limited when sub-
contracting the work to someone else.

Self-employed: The situations encountered by this hypothesis are those where the artist has
already elaborated and matured its artistic project and enjoys a certain success guaranteeing it a
clientele, with sufficient and regular income to live, to finance the professional expenses related to
his activity, as well as social contribution from social insurance for the self-employed. An
individual however, can be both, an employee and self-employed at the same time. Someone who
is self-employed is their own boss.