WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce is slated to hold a markup Wednesday on the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act (H.R.979), legislation that will provide an enormous windfall for big radio corporations by mandating the inclusion of AM radio in every new vehicle manufactured within the United States.
As Congress debates the future of radio, the musicFIRST Coalition is asking lawmakers not to forget music artists. The Coalition will have a billboard truck running on Capitol Hill Wednesday to remind Members of Congress that big radio corporations, which make $13.6 billion each year selling ads, still refuse to pay the artists whose songs play 240 million times each year on AM radio stations.
If Congress insists on passing legislation to save AM radio, they should also pass the American Music Fairness Act (H.R.791) so that radio corporations start paying artists fairly for using their music. Earlier this year, musicFIRST partnered with Grammy Award-winning R&B group Boyz II Men to deliver a letter signed by more than 300 major music artists asking Congress to do just that.
A musicFIRST spokesperson issued the following statement:
“In the United States, everyone deserves to have their hard work rewarded with fair pay. Yet, that’s not the case today for the artists whose creativity brings joy to millions. Corporate radio companies still refuse to pay them for the work they do, and it is past time for Congress to step in and fix this.”
“The American Music Fairness Act will ensure that artists are paid fairly for the work they do. It will unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties that are currently held overseas, and it will protect small and independent broadcasters while forcing radio corporations to pay their fair share for using the music they play.”
“Right now, the United States is the only democracy in the world that refuses to pay artists when their songs play on the radio. That is wrong. Even Russia and China pay artists when their songs are on the air. As lawmakers advance legislation to save AM radio, we ask that they remember the artists who make radio possible in the first place and pass the American Music Fairness Act.”
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