Re: Really?
It's not that simple.
Getting ripped off by the record company would be fine to complain about if was really happening. However, in my experience, that's old news, and to a large extend promulgated by the large performers who actually used it as leverage to get a deservedly larger share of the profits back in the days of vinyl. For a while there. the capital startup, distribution and promoton costs were very high and it took lots of sales before different numbers made sense.
These numbers don't persist now because of performers getting ripped off, they come from the associated residual costs in the system and crappy revenue. (For example, you have to hire lawyers to get folks to pay performance royalties.) There's also the problem of oversupply for the market (more musicians than people wanting to hear music). The majority of people who buy music don't seem to want anything but the SOS. Interestingly, this is in sharp contrast to the diversity of what is available. So the big guys do OK and everyone else starves.
But don't believe me - talk to people in this business and ask them about this. Go to a bar for a touring indie band with some good recordings and ask them about their finances. There's now a phenomenon in Japan rapidly moving the US called pay-to-play. In this route live performers must pay venues to perform and only earn revenue beyond the "investment" payment.
What's this got to do with piracy? It is not responsible for these trends, but as I said above, it makes everything much worse.