Singer joins 'imaginary' radio picket

Welsh-language musicians have pulled over 30,000 tracks from the airwaves in response to an 80 per cent cut in their royalties, the Star reported last week.

Mr Rhys, the most commercially successful Welsh-language recording artist, confirmed he had instructed the BBC not to use his songs until the dispute was settled, telling MTV he would not cross the "imaginary picket line in the airwaves."

The singer added: "If you want to kill off a language, suffocating its media from the oxygen of music goes a long way."

The Performing Rights Society defended its part in negotiations, claiming the Welsh-language artists were paid more per play than artists attracting more listeners on some English regional radio stations.