By allowing music to be downloaded for free, artists allow everyone to hear their music, thus making them known faster. Also, it may inspire people to buy more music or attend a concert if they enjoy what they hear. Artists will benefit from a larger audience through concert sales.
Furthermore, allowing music to be downloaded for free allows you to become more popular faster, thus having more fans that are willing to pay for your music. Not everyone downloads music for free because of the bad versions that are put online. So if people have a chance to hear a glimpse of the music, it may inspire them to buy the actual whole cd. Downloading music for free has many pros because it allows for such an open window for people who may not be able to buy the music at this point in their life. As the article stated, as children grow up they will appreciate the music more and will want to buy it to contribute to the artists that make the music.
Manny artists have admitted to siding with the consumers and not wanting legal action taken against illegal downloaders. Artists can see the positive outcomes that come from illegal downloading in the long run rather than the short term. If artists can negotiate with the consumers such as lowering prices for music the consumers will buy into it for the most part, and the illegal downloading will decline. As for now, illegal downloading allows the artists to have their music heard but a much wider audience than ever before.