(Hypebot) — Today would have been Aretha Franklin’s birthday and NITO (National Independent Talent Organization) is using the occasion to launch “Pay Her Respect,” a national day of action in support of the American Music Fairness Act (AMFA) which will guaruntee payment for the use of songs on AM/FM radio.
Join NITO’s Pay Her Respect fair pay for radio play campaign
That Aretha Franklin never saw a dime for radio play of her iconic performance of “Respect” is often used as the most egregious example of the inequities of US law which pays songwriters but nor performers for airplay.
The United States is the only democratic country in the world in which artists are not compensated this way for the use of their music on broadcast radio. This practical, bipartisan legislation would bring corporate radio broadcasters in line with music streaming platforms, which already pay a performance royalty.
Contact Congress To Demand Fair Pay For Radio Play
Musicians and fans are encouraged to send letters to the U.S. Congress today and share a graphic on social media declaring their support for the American Music Fairness Act. For more information and to send to your representatives, please visit: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/pay-her-respect-pass-american-music-fairness-act.
“When I think about the importance of this act, I think of all the hard-working musicians who have struggled to make a living and how this bill could get them to a place of stability,” says Nathaniel Marro, Executive Director of National Independent Talent Organization. “The middle class should be an attainable goal for all musicians and songwriters, not some distant reality. Passing this bill would get us one step closer. ”
Re-introduced in the U.S. Senate earlier this year by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) with companion legislation then brought forward in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-48) and Congressman Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), the American Music Fairness Act would finally close an antiquated loophole that has allowed corporate broadcasters to forgo compensating artists for the use of their music for decades.
Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, a Berklee College Of Music professor and founder of the Skyline Artists Agency
