[Verse 1] Picture a founder standing alone Built a company from nothing they own Tax court asks would you pay someone else The same compensation for comparable help But there's nobody there to compare Just one person in that founder's chair The standard test starts to break down When there's no other employee around [Chorus] Arm's-length comparator problem Can't find what doesn't exist Would you pay a stranger the same way When that stranger's not on your list No comparable employee Role is unique by design Any answer's hypothetical Drawing an impossible line [Verse 2] Solo entrepreneurs face this maze Courts want market rates for what they pays But the founder's role is one of a kind No benchmark salary you can find Chief executive and janitor too Visionary and accountant who Could fill those shoes at market rate When the comparison is fabricate [Chorus] Arm's-length comparator problem Can't find what doesn't exist Would you pay a stranger the same way When that stranger's not on your list No comparable employee Role is unique by definition Any answer's hypothetical An unanswerable proposition [Bridge] Some courts have seen the light Acknowledged this impossible plight Declined to apply the test mechanically When comparison's just fantasy The standard breaks when roles are rare And no one else could fill that chair [Chorus] Arm's-length comparator problem Can't find what doesn't exist Would you pay a stranger the same way When that stranger's not on your list No comparable employee Role is unique by design Any answer's hypothetical Drawing an impossible line [Outro] When you're the only one who could do the job The comparator test becomes a fraud Solo founders know this truth so well Some stories just can't parallel
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