However, Herbert, who is on the board at Audooa music company that ensures creatives are paid fairly for public performances of their music has called for a change in the way the industry operates. “Instead of trying to stop it,” he says, “the answer should be in creating the right education and support for young artists and making the industry a more transparent place. Young artists and their guardians need to be fully informed and aware. of the risks, as well as the rewards, that come with fame, and the industry needs to put adequate structural support around artists, including trained chaperones, counsellors, sociable working hours, meal breaks and regular time off.”

In the UK, school children up to the age of 16 are protected from Child performance authorization lawswhich legislates that children performing in public or on television must apply for a performance license from the local authority to ensure their “health, welfare and kind treatment” within the entertainment industry. However, this stops once 16-year-olds reach school-leaving age, meaning 16- and 17-year-olds are not covered by these welfare rules and could easily fall through the cracks, especially if the surrounding team is working on a different agenda – where profit takes priority over the well-being of the artist. As Ed Magee, president of National Network for Children in Employment and Entertainment says the BBC: “These 16-year-olds who have completed compulsory schooling and 17-year-olds would not be covered by the legislation and instead the responsibility of looking after them would fall to the production company, their agent and their parents. , because after all they are still a child and would need parental consent.

“We’re currently looking at creating a guide for parents about some of the things they need to think about when their child enters the entertainment industry, (including) protection, overseas travel and who looks after their welfare. children”.

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In the US, although there are different laws for child actors in each state, in California they are quite broad – for example, a 16-year-old can only work a maximum of six hours in a school daywith at least one hour of “rest and recreation” per day. But as Jaffe points out, there is no equivalent legislation for teenagers in the music industry. “We should seek to create an environment that is more responsible for minors who cannot make the best choices for themselves,” he says. “But I also think we need to work with these young people and allow them to set their own limits. If they’ve started their career at a young age, they may not feel they’re out of control, but we can help them take control and look after their own well-being more fully.” This should extend to aftercare, he suggests, and to help transition back to “real life” after their immediate burst of fame.

Singer-turned-actor Lily Allen first signed to a UK record label aged 17 and has since documented the traumas of being a young singer in the 2000s in her memoir 2018, My Thoughts Exactly. . However, in the latest episode of her BBC Sounds podcast, Miss Me?, she discussed with her co-host Miquita Oliver the issue of vulnerable young people working in the music world: “Questions are being raised about support for young artists. Who they benefit from is all about profit and profit margins and I don’t think these people necessarily care about the welfare of those involved who do all the work.