Ok, here we go…I don’t want anyone to misunderstand me or take things the wrong way, so that’s why I’m doing a blog on it, instead of tweet after tweet after tweet. Feel free to leave comments when you’re done reading.
The situation as it happened sucked. I am not at liberty to talk about details of it, because it’s not my business to. But, since so many people have feelings about my tweets yesterday, I will explain as much as I can.
First off, it goes waaaaay beyond one song being stolen and leaked. What happened is a felony, and when the person is caught, they will be in BIG trouble. My comment about people being “accessories to a crime” may have seemed a bit harsh, but in a pure legal sense that is what it is. If you knowingly download a song/video that was not directly being given away BY CHOICE by the artist or label, then that is illegal. I know “everyone” does it these days, but like I’m sure many of your parents or grandparents have said, “If everyone jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?”
I was mainly taking out my frustration on the person who initially stole the file(s), and the DJ who leaked the song everywhere. That is where my real anger lies (oh, and I’m pissed at Perez Hilton too, but that’s another story). 
I truly appreciate all KC fans, and those who have come to be fans of mine in some small way. I would never want anyone to feel threatened by me (except Perez and the guy who stole the files).
I was really just trying to explain that if people keep taking the songs (from any artist) and posting them without permission, and fans keep downloading them (again, without permission), it hurts the artist in the long run. Yes, artists make money on touring, but they don’t make as much as you would think. Managers, promoters, the record label, production costs, crew, travel, etc., etc. take a toll on the bottom line. Therefore, song royalties and record sales still matter very much to artists.
People purchasing the music once it’s made available for sale is still EXTREMELY important in the music industry. For instance, if I write a song with an artist, and it goes on an album, and that album is released, but more people download it from a file sharing site or bit torrent, than buy it…that hurts me as a songwriter a lot.
Yes, I know I get paid for touring with KC, but let’s say that I wrote that song with Rihanna…I don’t tour with Rihanna, so I don’t get any money from her tours. That means if I lose money from my song with her from illegal downloading, then I just lose it. How is that fair to my wife and kids? Just sayin… Same thing with KC…what if SHE wrote a song for Rihanna? She, obviously doesn’t tour with Rihanna
Also, if a few hundred thousand people download a KC album for free, then her label will say, “Well, next time, we can’t put that much money into your album, because we lost too much last time.” If that happens again and again, pretty soon artists won’t be able to put out music that we love.
I understand KC, Kings Of Leon, Lady GaGa, etc. are going to be around for a while, because they’ve already sold multi-platinum, but think of this scenario with your favorite new band or indie band. If they or their label can’t make enough money to cover the costs of recording and touring on their first or second record, they won’t be around to release more records. What if that would’ve happened to KC after Thankful…we would’ve never been able to hear Breakaway, My December, All I Ever Wanted, etc…that would suck!
The police aren’t going to come after you for listening to Cleopatra online, but my point was that if we stop supporting people who leak this kind of stuff, then they will stop stealing stuff, and artists can release songs when the songs are really ready to be released.
I am only mad at the main people who stole and initially leaked the song (oh, and still Perez too), so please don’t think I’m mad at any fans. These are all MY thoughts, so don’t connect them with KC and/or the rest of the band either (although I’m sure they’d agree with at least most of it).
I truly appreciate all of you, and love the fact that you’ve welcomed me into the KC camp with open arms.
thanks,
Ric “DJ Form” Robbins
well said!
I seriously understand what you said… I would cry days do nights if kc will not record some records…
Well written, Ric.
well…. good thoughts… hope people will know behind your work as an artist, singer, producer or else…
not much easier as we thoughts right?….
I get it, stealing is bad, illegal, and hurts more people than most people realize. Whether it’s downloading music and movies illegally offline or stealing something from the nearby Target, it’s stealing. And most people wouldnt straight up steal from a store. However because downloadiing a song illegally is so easy it makes people feel less guilty.
Personally, I hate buying music online. I alway buy a physical copy of the record. That way I still have my tunes if my computer crashes. Plus there are always pretty pictures in album inserts haha…
As for that disgusting excuse for a human being Perez Hilton. His own readers know he’s full of shit. 80% percent of the comments on his posts are bashing HIM. I dont understand why Lady Gaga is such good friends with him. Disappointing…
Thanks for giving us the point of view from the songwriter. I had no clue what was going on.
Well said Ric. It is hard with technology now and the whole “everyone does it” mind set. I’m a graphics artist and have been through a similar situation, it is not easy when your work, finished or unfinished, is out there and just taken. I hope everything works out for you, KC and the rest of the crew. Keep your heads up you guys are all amazing. And if you need help taking Perez down I’ll volunteer to help ya anytime lol.
I know it’s frustrating to have your work get all over the internet before it’s finished but internet these days sucks (about leaks)..oh..and Perez too. as much as we fans try to prevent leaks…we can’t control what other people do and post. Unfortunately…there is people like that sad dj that has no respect for other people’s work and privacy.
hope you feel better soon and this situation turns out good somehow <3
xoxo
I’m glad you put out this blog so at least some people can actually see how a small portion of the music business operates. Perhaps it will set alarm bells off in their heads before illegally downloading music in the future.
As for Perez, I can’t believe I’ve just wasted a few seconds of my life typing his name. PARASITE
I’m working towards a music business degree.. and people always ask me, “What are you going to do with THAT!?!” I tell them that, ideally, I’d love to be a well-paid songwriter. Hah! Sometimes I feel like “well-paid” and “songwriter” don’t even belong together in the same sentence, but you know… that would be the dream. However, I’m not opposed to other pick-me-up jobs along the way. I really respect the entire gang that backs KC because you all seem genuinely in love with music (just like me).. and will do anything to continue working in music, while hopefully still making a decent living (well, I hope you all do, anyway)!
I would also like to add that I made some new friends last night.. and we decided to bust out some tunes. Their jaws dropped at my song count on iTunes! Then one of them chimed in, “I can’t get Limewire to work here.” We live in a dorm building that literally blocks illegal downloading of music. When I explained that I paid for ALL of my music, they were stunned. It’s like this though… I just have a HUGE respect for not only the artists that perform the music I listen to, but the people behind them too. I guess I’m looking out for you guys.. because I hope that people will look out for me when my time to work, professionally, comes.
Your completely right ric! First of all. If I somehow got a song of Kellys or anyoe else for that matter I would NOT share it with ANYONE. Cause of the obvious consequenses you stated ^ . however. I admit I did listen to the song. But that’s only because I can’t help myself. And I’d pay for it anyday. Just like with My December and All I Ever Wanted. I downloaded the leaked albums but only because I knew I was going to buy the albums the day they came out. And I did.. I bought 3 albums of each and buy the singles aswell just for my collection.. But that’s just me… I’m always gonna buy Kellys stuff cause I know what goes on there… I work in radio.. Okay I really don’t know my point but just saying I always buy all of y’alls stuff even tho I have it
I read the last couple comments and must say: It is kind of funny how some people keep lying into Rics and Kellys face. They say ‘You’re right, well said’ and behind their back they post download links everywhere on the web with the comment ‘I don’t care, it is KCs own fault’.
Stop with the ass kissing, people. Think about Rics words and grow up.
Thank you =D
Nicely said and I want to wholeheartedly agree with the paragraph that said if sales go down a label won’t put as much money into the next cd etc. That’s always my argument when someone asks why on earth I still buy music. I make a point of buying CDs, especially those by artists I love and want to hear music from for a long time. Heck I have multiple copies of all KC’s CDs
That said, I have to hold my hands up and say I listened to Cleopatra. I guess when it comes to new KC tracks having a new one leaked, however illegally, is like dangling chocolate in front of me – really amazing chocolate (sorry, segwaying with the thoughts of chocolate LOL)… although I buy the official versions when they come out too 
Same as Melissa, I got the leaked versions of KC’s last 2 CDs, but at the time I had them pre-ordered on Amazon AND I went to the store on release day to buy them (so it’d impact on the Irish charts). I think I have at least 4 copies of AIEW… Plus I got Already Gone played on the main station here in Ireland even though it wasn’t on their playlist 
Anyway, I digress. I would NEVER upload music to the net for others to d’load for free.
Well said Ric I agree with you 100%
to say this is well put would be the understatement of the year! i agree with everything you said, and to have people on your back about it on twitter is just stupid. you work for KC therefore you have a right to stick up for her, more right than we do as fans actually; and you should know how defensive we get haha.
anyway, hope the rest of the tour is all good for you & no more Perez Hilton rubbish arises or anything else for that matter…
thanks for writing this blog ric! i hope people are actually reading it and soaking it all in
Just making sure that when you do find the lowlife little worm that did it I’ll be told, cause I will ” open a can “! Yes as fans of kc we all wanna hear anything and everything that y’all do!!!! But as fans we should wanna hear it when y’all are ready for us to hear it… That’s one thing about everyone in the kc crew y’all all are amazing people inside and out and always let us be a part of not only your touring lives but in your personal lives as well!!!! Y’all give so much to us and I wanna thank you for it… The fact y’all are such awesome people is wat pisses me off even more about the whole situation… No one deserves to have stuff leaked but especially not y’all!!!!! Why hurt people who do everything in their power to give us so much more than music!!!! Y’all are truly Inspirational!!!
Unfortunately technology (especially the internet) these days make it so easy for everyone to get access to almost anything. I do think it’s sad when stuff like this happens and I can only imagine the frustration and dissapointment on Kelly’s half with whoever leaked that song. I don’t understand how people, you trust and work with, can do something like that. Whoever it was, they got really really crap style! No respect for the artist whatsoever. I totally get what you were going on about and I’m glad you did a blog about this. As for smart ass Perez Hilton, what an idiot!
I do think however, real fans will always go out to buy the album instead of illegally downloading it. Good luck with the last leg of your tour, hopefully no more drama!
Safe travels and God bless!
Much Love from South Africa
Good blog and I do agree with you on everything in one way or another and trust me I’ve had endless discussions about this since my degree was in Managing performance and I had a whole term on this stuff and also a huge chunk of my dissertation was about it.
I do agree with the fact that people illegally downloading eventually is going to hurt the industry in the long run and it’ll effect the new artists more than the well established bands but I still think it’s disgusting the amount people are expected to pay for CD’s, I found out while doing my dissertation that the majority of my friends at university illegally downloaded songs, I had 1 friend who frequently bought CD’s, now when talking to them all nearly all of them said they would buy a CD if the price was only cut by a quarter say, which is perfectly logistical for the record label etc to sell it for and still make a huge profit and if more people were willing to buy it for that price then it would be much more profitable.
Also you have to remember money doesn’t just come from touring and CD sales, you have to remember the royalties that artists get from various outlets i.e DJ’s (My dad has to pay a ridiculous license each year just to be able to DJ parties, which personally I think is free promotion for an artist anyway) then every time a song is used for any public event for performances etc that’s more money (And it isn’t a small amount even my CHARITY groups have been told for public shows they could have to pay up to £50 per song! Now times that by how many performance groups etc in the UK and World that may use the song, it’s a hefty chunk of money)
The industry has also been saying since the 80’s and the mass production of cassettes that it would suffer and begin to collapse (Much like even the film industry has been saying the same thing) but when you look at the figures there hasn’t been a huge massive drop.
The main problem in my personal opinion is that rather than reducing cost and encouraging people to purchase music legally they are actually discouraging people by increasing the cost because people are downloading which is a vicious cycle because people will keep downloading no matter what if the cost is hiked.
It’s not really beneficial in anyway to the consumer, which is a selfish way of looking at it I know because it hurts the industry producing it, but at the end of the day they are producing it for a market that in turn is rebelling against them due to this.
I might have rambled a heck of a lot there, but I mean no disrespect dude, I totally see what you mean but I can also see the other side.
There isn’t really any quick fix to the situation and while people don’t always see it as stealing it will continue as it has for near over 30 years now, this was happening way before downloading.
P.S I have to point out too I do legally buy CD’s to support artists, I’m gonna be truthful I just think when it comes to this subject I always like to play devils advocate :-p
Question: What does a “label” do and why does anybody need one these days? Why can’t artists just release songs directly to iTunes for sale? Is it all about promotion? If so, how hard can it be to buy a million fake twitter accounts to follow you and create fake buzz around you the way Perez has done?
This is exactly the reason I became a fan of YOURS!
Everything you said makes so much sense that if people still don’t get it and still give you stick for having experience within your opinion, then that’s because they’re choosing to be ignorant over the entire thing, and those people just aren’t worth the trouble. I honestly don’t think you should have needed to explain your tweets in the first place, but the fact that you did and explained it so well shows just how experienced and such a great guy you are.
The situation seriously stinks and the drama could and will go on forever, but it’s not the first time this has happened and it won’t be the last (Leaking in general, not just in relation to Kelly). I just hope people bookmark this blog and keep it for future reference. Might teach people a lot for the future.
Chin up Ric! Don’t let the stinkers piss you off too bad. We got ya back
(P.S – PH should be a censored word, not worth the time of day, and yeah he should feel threatened by you, i mean… has he seen your muscles?! haha)
Good tasteful blog Ric. Well said and you mastered all the main points. Even with all the technology we have doesn’t give anyone the right to abuse it. As fans we need to respect Kelly, actually all artist and everyone that works closely with them by buying the music when it’s ready to be heard! I hope at some point all the illegal downloading stops but with more knowledge of why it’s bad it could start to decrease. Anyway I love Kelly and her band and admire and respect them for their courage to fight this and loyalty to each other!
You said it all ……………
and I pray they all get what they deserve..:) Love Jen
Don’t know if some people don’t understand that situation cos they’re not able to, or even they do, but they just ignore it.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Ric – it’s super important for those ignorant and stupid people.
Well said, Dear DJ!
=)
Be safe, boy.
No need to explain yourself. You were 100% correct in your tweets. Sometimes the truth hurts and people need to understand that. As for Perez, he’s public enemy number 1 as far as I’m concerned. To me he’s about as likable as Osama Bin Laden.
Hello Ric
Firstly thank you for this blog, I immediately feel less alone.I been really very angered yesterday when I saw that few fans had leave the song filtered on many sites,instead of preventing the broadcasting of this piece, they have continue putting it everywhere! They tell appreciate her but in finale they respect neither its job, nor her!!I really find it pitiable particularly of the first person who in put this song online, I see neither interest, nor separate purpose that to hurt the artist in his job ! I am very big fan of KC and I would really be very sad if one day because of illegal downlowdings, it came not to can any more CD out , I do not know her personally but I really care of her a lot and I found her really hurt in his tweet of Tuesday.
Even if it does not have got nothing to do with all that, I am very angered against Pérez Hilton when I follow fall on his shawl article and his tweet about Kelly.I really got irritated alone in front of my computer
My only wish in this moment was to kick his ass !! 
I do not like this type of malicious gossip and even less from a person who don’t come from the musical industy and whom are say that by the way have no separate talent to spit on the back of everybody !! forgiveness I am malicious!! 
Finally I am going to end by saying that I find your job really really AWESOME
I love what you make with Kelly or in your solo plans ! I am very impatient to hear the songs that you wrote with Kelly, besides I am impatient to hear all the songs on this new new album !! 
and maybe yours one day ! Thank you to answer me as often as possible on twitter (KC_addicted).Can you follow me ?! 
please ! Let me dreaming haha 
I wish you the good end of tour and full of good thing afterwards and see you soon on twitter.
Lots of love
Aurélia
Hey there DJ Form!
You are absolutely right from A to Z.
To be honest, since I’ve heard about Cleopatra, I am extremely eager to listen to the song. But I’d never dare to google or look for it on youtube or anywhere because I know it is illegal…
Don’t worry, we will always support KC & the team!
(and also all the musicians who are working hard to produce good music for a living)
Lots of love from Malaysia!
(come back soon ok! ;D)
Hi!
First thanks to explain your tweet. I totally agree with you. I read it and i have a question: how can we stop that illegal download except to don’t download ourself?
About Perez Hilton, don’t care about what he said. He just wants to be the god of press people. Sooner or later he’ll see that what he makes it’s not very useful.
Otherwise yes it’s very sad from people who don’t care of consequence from their illegal downloading acts. But web don’t give us some means to counteract from that. There are some many means to get around the law. I hope one day people understand the bad work that they do.
In any case i thank you for take your time to explain your opinion about it.
Have a nice day, enjoy KC’s Tour.
Bisous,
Audrey
(twitter: LILLYKP)
With the amount of knowledge that creepers have about computers, file sharing, hacking, stealing, whatever, etc…it’s scary to think about the future of the music industry. CDs are on the same path as cassette tapes and VHS tapes….extinction. I didn’t know much about “the situation” until I read your twitter and blog Ric (just saw Kelly’s tweets). Thanks for explaining your thoughts. The real criminals are the ones who stole the song and then posted links to it on the internet. I would think that many people who simply just listened to it (not downloaded it), didn’t even know that it was “wrong” to do so. It must suck for Kelly to have to put up with this again (weren’t some of her songs leaked a few years ago too?). Sadly, I can’t say this surprises me though, because I feel like every time I turn on my computer, I’m reading about an artist or band having songs/albums leaked. Oh well, keep doing your thing Ric…don’t let crap like this bring you down.
Ric, Thanks for clarifying what you meant. It seems like you noticed how some of us fans could have taken those tweets the wrong way. This was a nice blog to show exactly why you’re angry and who that anger is aimed at, greatly appreciated. Hope you understand why I took one for the team and wrote to you. I gained much respect for you after this. Best of luck on tour.
Kiana.
(KClark5)
Could not agree more! Well said!
Very well said. If someone leaked a song I had put my whole heart into, I would be livid. It’s difficult to know who to trust in the music industry these days. Oh, and Perez Hilton can shove it. He just doesn’t like good, talented, wholesome people with morals and ambition.
Very well said Ric!!!!!!!!
Totally agree with everything, whoever did this is an awful person that doesn’t have a life!!!! That’s really frustrating for us fans, so I can imagine how bad it is for you guys and KC!!!!! ;/
Hope everything turns out ok, and the person gets what he/she deserves!!!!! also Perez and the Dj should be really ashamed! they are idiots!!! ;/
Wish you, Kelly and the rest of the team the best always!!!
Much love, and good luck with everything!!!
xoxo
Copyright Law and Ethics courses should be mandatory in high school.
I’m so thankful that as a music educator I took courses in college that educated me on Copyright Law. People think that there is gray area on copyright, but it is in fact very concrete. I guess the only gray area is whether or not a person is going to get caught.
People need to get a better sense of morality…hmmm, that might offend some, let me rephrase that… People need to get a better sense of what is ethical.
Some people are under the illusion that our identities are hidden on the internet so we can do things we would never think about doing in the “real world”.
Kudos to you, Ric for taking a stand and if anyone was offended it’s probably because they should because they feel guilty for being a part of the problem. They were offended because the truth hurts.
It’s only going to be a matter of time before more stringent laws and enforcement of those laws are put in place about internet transactions. If you don’t own it you have no right to post it, down load it etc no matter how awesome it is – no exceptions.
I do believe that there are quite a few people who were not aware that downloading music was illegal. There are also those who were aware but maybe didn’t fully comprehend the harm it caused. Maybe your blog ‘enlightened’ even just a few of them. Unfortunately, there are just as many who don’t see how their behavior affects the process. It’s easier to believe that it isn’t their fault and think what they’re doing isn’t wrong..especially when there are a large group of people who are doing the same thing. If a man on the street is being hurt or possibly killed and many people on that same street turn a blind eye and don’t help, they share a burden of blame for his death. They will try to rationalize that it isn’t their fault and that others could have helped but didn’t. But, in the end, the man is still hurt or dead and they could have helped prevent it from happening. Granted, illegal downloading isn’t comparable in severity, but unfortunately it is how many people in society have begun to think.
1) why doesn’t someone just shut down sites like limewire. If it’s illegal to download music for free and that’s the whole purpose of such sites, why isn’t someone shutting them down.
2) there are tons of leaked songs from kelly’s pre-shows this tour on YouTube. Are we allowed to listen to them?
Thank you all for all of your comments so far. And to respond to Bre…it’s not necessarily illegal to watch a video on youtube as a stream…the illegal part is for the person who stole and uploaded the song and if anyone downloads the song to there computer to keep. It’s just not very good to support these people by watching the videos on youtube, because the more views they get, the more likely they are to keep stealing music. If no one views their youtube post, then they will become irrelevant, and stop posting illegal stuff. Does that make sense?
well said Ric…
i understand..it’s sucks when people stealing and sharing your songs!! you put lots of time,creativity,hard work to it..
it’s like when you have a brilliant idea at work, then your co-worker steal it and claim it as their idea!!
i hope there’s more we can do to stop it and prevent it to ever happen …AGAIN!!!
RIC! i have this guys email address. etc. you really need to email me or DM me on twitter or something. he has shown me that he has private details of Kelly… really shouldnt be talked about in public.
I 100% agree with everything you said, especially with regards to the leaks…. however:
I’ve legally bought All I Ever Wanted 4 times (2x for in cars, one for home and another for my regular club to play….)
I also bought My December x2 and Breakaway x 3.
I’ve bought most singles and attended 4-5 tour dates.
So I will (guilt) freely illegally download Kelly’s albums as I wish after formatting my hard drive, or if I get a new computer, or whatever, since I’ve already bought them…and it’s easier than finding the CD and ripping it to my HD.
I hear what you’re saying about supply and demand, but at the end of the day, they’re getting no money from it so the lack of demand is going to do pretty much un-noted – it takes two seconds to upload, it’s not an issue.
What I DON’T agree with is people hacking and ’stealing’ music, leaking it etc. That’s just wrong because it’s not been released and is not yet intended to be heard – but a problem with that is, many artists leak their own albums to get extra exposure; we, the consumer, are never sure of the difference.
I’ve listened to Cleopatra, and will buy it if/when it’s released, whoever the artist may be, so I see no problem with me doing that – but I understand that 1000s of people will just download it, and then not buy it when it’s released, and that’s the problem.
But as I said, I do agree with you 100%, just explaining why I, as a fan and a consumer download illegally when I do…
Just a major problem with the internet, and something which is going to be an ever bigger problem to reduce/stop….
However, for the short term, for Kelly – a better PR/Management team wouldn’t go amiss.
Thanx for the responce,
I understand, and agree. Someone should be able to contact youtube and get those removed.
I just had another thought. “channel 131″ – same as youtube? the illegal part is the person who recorded and uploaded it and us watching it is supporting their crime? Just wondering becuase you RT’d a link to “channel 131″ a while back but i assume you would’nt use a sight like that. (i know i never will after reading this blog)
Right on! I agree with everything in here, 100%.
I understand completely.. That’s why “The Pulse Music Board” and “The Kc Express” are not posting the links of the leak songs, We are trying too keep them hidden as possible..
I hope Kelly and company are doing something about the stolen material. I just read on another board that there was a 30 second leak of Naked Eye and the guy is getting 10 bucks for the entire song. A few fans have bought it and now the entire song is out there. It makes me sick that instead of Kelly making money off her song, a thief is making money off of stolen material. Can you please let her know what is going on.
Why is this happening? Still don’t know who are leaking the songs?
[...] parte, DJForm que viaja con Kelly en su tour mundial, ha dedicado unas palabras al respecto en su blog, y pensamos que son dignas de ser leídas, así que nos hemos molestado en traducirlas para que [...]
OK, I will say it in sapanish because I don’t speak english, first of all I Love Kelly! and secondly…
Hay cosas donde tiene razón, pero las canciones que se filtran son canciones que nunca iban a ser lanzadas y los fans tenemos derecho a adquirir toda la música que exista de nuestros artistas favoritos!
Con respecto a la música ilegalmente descargada, creo que está en cada uno … si realmente te importa el artista lo apoyarás y comprarás sus discos… A mi me gusta mucho la música y realmente me gusta poder reproducirla cuando quiera y puedo decirle que compro al menos 2 cds por mes y tengo mucha música original, pero yo escucho más de 2 cds por mes, pero no me da económicamente para escuchar y pagar por todo… entonces que debo hacer… Escuchar música de un solo cd que es el que puedo pagar?… Creo que está bien apoyar a los artistas, pero el tema de la piratería es un hecho y si, afectó bastante, pero los cantantes siguen vendiendo pese a que la piratería está super instalada… creo que hoy por hoy nadie compra un cd porque le costó encontrarlo en torrents… la gente q lo compra es porque apoya la música y el artista, creo que nos tienen que dar las dos opciones y hacer una buena gira para recaudar dinero para producir el próximo álbum…, estoy seguro que los escritores del disco de Kelly tienen más dinero que yo que también trabajo todos los días 9 horas por día… En fin… ah, sí, tengo todos los discos de Kelly Originales, exeptuando Thankful, porque acá no lo venden… Pero siempre que puedo los compro, pero me encantó poder oír tan buenas canciones como Cleopatra…
GO KELLY
Hey there!
My band recently made our own proper song!!!
Have a look, we’ve learnt a lot from your blog!
xxx