Letters From David
May 2001
Dear Fans, Friends and Supporters:
I'm writing this letter in an effort to explain the difficulties I've been having for the past number of years in regard to companies or individuals who have been illegally licensing, selling and profiting from products that they are not entitled to sell. In addition, I've never been compensated, nor has my family, nor many others who deserve to be compensated (record companies, songwriters, photographers, musicians, etc.)
Many of you who have been fans of mine and have bought my records, seen my shows, and purchased merchandise have voiced your unhappiness about not having access to material(s) that you may want for your collections. I understand your frustration, however, I have survived over the past 33 years as a professional, and the only way for me to continue to survive as a performer and entertainer is to be able to have people be accountable for licensing or using my name or likeness.
Please don't misunderstand. It is not my intention to ever deny people access to materials that are legitimate and legal, but also be clear that bootlegging or misrepresenting ownership is stealing. These are profiteers who have, without my consent, for the past three decades profited illegally, and without compensation to me.
With the enormous expansion of the Internet over the past five or six years, it is impossible, without your help and support, for me to continue to police and legally try to prosecute, get accounting from, or discover these individuals' locations. Therefore, I ask you all to put yourselves in my shoes. If someone were selling photos, magnets, t-shirts, or recordings of you and your family, and were making money doing so, without their permission or approval, would you think this was fair?
My request to you is very simple. Understanding what is right from what is wrong, what is legal from what is illegal, and what is fair and what is stealing is to be determined by each one of us as individuals when deciding to participate in the selling and purchasing of any such materials.
I ask you to do the right thing. Do not support these people and their actions. I continually feel blessed to have so many of you care about what I do and support me as you have. There is a lot of new product that I've been working on for an upcoming CD, and there is a lot of cool stuff available on my website. I hope you like the evolution of my website. Without your insight and feedback, it couldn't be now what it has become - a real link from me to you. Your thoughts, messages, and ideas, have been extremely helpful in guiding the team at DavidCassidy.com to make this site work for you and for me.
I thank you for your love and support, and I can't wait to see you, wherever you are in the world, on tour in the near future! I mean soon!
God Bless,
David
