Music Ally has been covering the American Music Fairness Act [AMFA] since it was introduced as proposed legislation in the US House of Representatives in 2021, and then the Senate in 2022.
Now the sponsors of the latter, senators Alex Padilla and Marsha Blackburn, have written an op-ed piece for Variety reiterating the bill’s intentions to finally introduce performance royalties for terrestrial radio in the US.
Among their arguments is that the lack of these royalties hurts American artists not just at home, but internationally.
“The majority of foreign nations — those who already pay their own artists for radio airplay — currently withhold royalties from American music creators, simply because the United States does not reciprocate by paying their performers,” they wrote, suggesting that these royalties are around $200m a year.
“This unfortunate status quo is not just outdated, it’s un-American.”