Engineer in recording studio

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Major Radio Companies Profit Off Music Creators Without Paying Them. But We Can Reverse This Tide.

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iHeartMedia's recent Jingle Ball Concert raises an important question about remunerating music creators — and draws attention to important legislation like the American Music Fairness Act
Montana Miller
Advocacy
Dec 20, 2021 - 7:21 am

iHeartMedia just offered New York a musical banquet. On Dec. 10, the radio giant's Jingle Ball Concert rolled through town, where Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa, the Jonas Brothers, Doja Cat, Lil Nas X, Saweetie, and other A-listers primed the audience for the holidays in style.

There was just one problem — iHeartMedia doesn't remunerate music creators for their work on their 855 radio stations across the U.S.

Sure, the Jonas Brothers presumably were paid for performing their hit "Sucker" on stage at Jingle Ball. But when the same song plays on iHeart's Top 40 station in your region, no royalty is going to the artists or the team of studio professionals integral to making "Sucker" a hit.

And unlike for the three Jonas brothers, there's no Jingle Ball tour for Randy Merrill (mastering engineer), Andrew DeRoberts (guitar), and Serban Ghenea (mixer), to name a few of the creatives on “Sucker” who lose out on income from corporate radio. And the same can be said for the creators who collaborate with Ed Sheeran, Lil Nas X, Tate McCrae, and others in the Jingle Ball lineup.

Big corporations are continuing to profit off the backs of music creators, and that’s why artists and producers are bringing a fight for justice on Capitol Hill to earn fair compensation for their work. And working with creators and the music industry, the musicFIRST Coalition is shedding light on this century old inequity. On the eve of Jingle Ball in NYC, musicFIRST Chair Joe Crowley released a statement.

"Like Scrooge, iHeart hoards its profits while middle-class music creators cannot pay their bills," he wrote. "Wealthy broadcasters such as iHeartRadio make no secret of their financial dominance. They crow on earnings calls about soaring advertising revenue and stock buybacks. Yet, they offer nothing to our music creators."

The American Music Fairness Act would end the loophole that allows broadcasters, like iHeartMedia, to get away with playing music and not compensating the performers and producers who created it. The bipartisan bill establishes a domestic performance right for sound recordings played on AM/FM radio stations.

Under AMFA, artists, performers, producers, and other music makers involved in the creation of a sound recording would be entitled to fair market rate for their music played on radio stations across the U.S., just like they currently receive on other music platforms like streaming services, satellite radio, and internet radio.

Companies like iHeartMedia continue to profit off music creators' labor, but this paradigm doesn't have to happen forever. Let's use events like the Jingle Ball Concert to remind ourselves of why it's important to support legislation that elevates all music people — not just a moneyed few.

What Songwriters Need To Know About The Next Royalty Rate Decision

Sam Moore holding a microphone

Sam Moore

Photo: C Brandon

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How The Recording Academy Advocates For Legislation That Could Help Generations Of Black Artists

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The American Music Fairness Act and HITS Act have the potential to benefit generations of Black artists — furthering work done by the Recording Academy's Advocacy team and others
Advocacy
Feb 25, 2022 - 11:01 am

Every year during Black History Month, the Recording Academy shines an extra bright light on the contributions and successes of Black artists, past and present. However, the work of Black artists should be championed year-round, and their contributions to popular culture honored through systemic change. As Black History Month comes to a close, the Recording Academy's Advocacy team looks ahead to pending legislation that would benefit Black artists in the long term. 

Among such proposed legislation is the American Music Fairness Act (AMFA), which would close the century-long loophole that has enabled AM/FM radio to play music without paying a royalty for sound recordings. While radio has grown to become a multibillion-dollar business, not a single cent has gone to the legion of artists behind the mic, in the booth, or on guitar —many of whom are Black music makers— involved in the creation of the sound recording.

These artists — from the trailblazing jazz acts of the '20s and '30s, to '50s pioneers of rock and roll, to the countless Motown treasures — have defined American music and culture. Yet they do not receive compensation for their contributions. This injustice has hindered the success and longevity of generations of Black artists, musicians and studio professionals, as well as their heirs.

Radio royalty payments would be of particular necessity to Black artists, who have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Americans for the Arts, 69 percent of BIPOC artists became unemployed as a result of the pandemic, losing 61 percent of their income. Comparatively, white artists had a 60 percent rate of unemployment and 56 percent loss of income.

The issue of rectifying nonexistent royalty payments has had broad support. Many leading Black artists have come to Washington, D.C., over the years to fight to end this injustice, including the late, great Mary Wilson of the Supremes. Last summer, Dionne Warwick and Sam Moore went to Capitol Hill to introduce the American Music Fairness Act, and major producer Boo Mitchell testified on the issue earlier in February in front of the House Judiciary Committee.

"This week is the 50th anniversary of Reverend Al Green's legendary Let's Stay Together album, which was produced and recorded and mixed here at Royal Studios by my father, the late Willie Mitchell," Mitchell said at the hearing, noting that the album's title track was a No. 1 hit and added to the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress. "My father, who passed away in 2010 tragically, never received a penny from radio for his work. And shamefully, neither have the other great Memphis musicians and vocalists who created this work."

Mitchell continued, "Time is running out to fix this injustice for the artists of my dad's generation … These artists aren't looking for free promotion to sell records or to go on tour. They simply want to be compensated for their work."

Following the House Judiciary Committee hearing, children of deceased Black legacy recording artists wrote a letter in support of the American Music Fairness Act. This letter outlined the importance of closing the loophole that allows terrestrial radio to get away with not paying artists for their work, as well as the incorrect nature of the National Association of Broadcasters' (NAB) arguments against the passage of the AMFA.

"For us, to hear the NAB claim that passage of a bill that finally would compensate hundreds if not thousands of black artists would somehow put small minority owned radio stations that couldn't afford $500 a year out of business, thereby devastating low income communities where Black and Latino reside is intolerable," the letter stated.

The letter also argued in favor of the bill’s protections for small, local and community radio stations that earn less than $1.5 million annually. In the letter, the heirs even offered to cover a station’s "$10, $100 or $500 only annual fees" paid through the 501(c)(3) The Soul Arts And Music Foundation, founded by Sam Moore and his wife, Joyce.

If the American Music Fairness Act becomes law, these royalty payments would provide overdue funds to artists across the country and serve as one large step toward ending systemic inequities for artists of color. Ending these disparities is at the core of the Recording Academy's Advocacy efforts.

Similarly, the Help Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act is another effort that will provide much-needed, immediate relief to independent artists while benefiting them in the long term.

The HITS Act would allow artists, musicians, producers, and studio technicians to deduct the entirety of their recording expenses, up to $150,000, on their taxes for the year incurred. The HITS act passed the House in 2021 as part of the Build Back Better Act and is currently being considered in the Senate.

"We have an opportunity where every other business has all these tax laws and things that have been passed," Kevin Liles, co-founder and CEO of 300 Entertainment, CEO of Elektra Music Group, and Recording Academy member, noted of the importance of the HITS Act during a panel discussion about Black-owned small businesses.

Liles continued, "If you think about the small artist, the small producer, the recording studio — if we give them a kind of a cap, $150,000 basis, they could write off 100 percent of the cost as an expense. That little thing alone could keep the light on. It could have somebody else get another piece of equipment."

The HITS Act is another proactive step Congress can take to help the music community recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. And since the onset of COVID-19, the Recording Academy has mobilized its members to advocate for better protections and provisions for Black artists and Black-owned small businesses in the music ecosystem.

During the Academy's Summer of Advocacy in 2020, thousands of Recording Academy members successfully pushed Congress to provide targeted relief to minority-owned businesses by providing dedicated funding for underserved businesses so that they had direct access to the support and capital they deserved. The HITS Act would be another step towards recovery for Black artists and businesses, and reflects the Academy's advocacy efforts to provide economic relief and equity that encourage creative success in years to come.

Creators & Champions For Creators: These 2022 GRAMMYs Award Show Nominees Are Also Advocates For The Music Industry

GRAMMYs
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House Judiciary Committee Hearing On American Music Fairness Act Makes Headlines & Garners Support

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The recent House Judiciary Committee hearing on the American Music Fairness Act (AMFA) made headlines across the nation and continued to garner support for the legislation
Montana Miller
Advocacy
Feb 15, 2022 - 7:41 am

A recent House Judiciary Committee hearing on the American Music Fairness Act received supportive press across the nation and continued to collect endorsements for the legislation. What's more, it also marked a rare showing of bipartisanship on Capitol Hill.

On Twitter, one such vote of confidence came from the desk of House Judiciary Democrats:

And on the other side of the aisle, Representative Darrel Issa (R-CA) — from the account of the House Judiciary GOP — also weighed in forcefully in support for the legislation.

The hearing also made headlines last week, with articles highlighting the important points articulated by legislators and witnesses alike.

For instance, Roll Call noted that the bipartisan AMFA is pro-artists — not anti-broadcaster. To quote the article: "The legislation from the bipartisan duo of Reps. Ted Deutch and Darrell Issa, dubbed the "American Music Fairness Act," was unveiled this summer. It would set up a tiered fee system that charges smaller and nonprofit radio stations less than the large conglomerates like iHeartMedia, which owns more than 800 stations across the nation."

Therein, Rep. Tom McClintock (R-CA) pushed back on broadcasters' claims that things should stay as is because that's what was decided 100 years ago: "To me, that is not serving the purpose of government, which is to protect the property rights of its citizens," he said. "Just because we've been doing it for 100 years doesn't necessarily make it right."

And as Politico reported, federal leadership agrees — it's time to put an end to this unfair system.

"After years of inaction on the issue, Nadler's decision to hold a hearing on AMFA suggests the committee chair is serious about moving the bill to a markup," it reads. "In planned remarks shared with MT ahead of today's hearing, the House Judiciary chair will say the current royalties system 'deprives U.S. artists of up to $200 million annually" in fees from foreign radio broadcasters alone.'

"'Terrestrial radio is allowed to use, and to profit off of, the creation — the intellectual property — of the artists, for absolutely free,' Nadler will say this morning. 'I am aware of no other instance in which this is allowed, and it is time for this unfairness to end.'"

As The Hill mentioned, promotions don't pay the bills — compensation does. Because, as Estefan said, "These hardworking, middle-class Americans cannot pay the rent for the exposure offered to them by broadcast companies."

And as the Washington Times summarized, AMFA is about the small artists who dedicate their lives to music and still struggle to get by.

Support for the hearing — and the AMFA — also spread across social media from the panel's witnesses, legislators, artists and more.

With these positive pronouncements in mind, let's surge forward with accurate knowledge of the AMFA — with the wind at our backs to make a positive change for all music creators.

Memphis Chapter Gov. Boo Mitchell Testifies As Recording Academy Supporter At House Judiciary Music Hearing

U.S. Capitol

U.S. Capitol

 

Photo: SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

 
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Congress Is Back In Action In September: 3 Things Music Makers Should Watch For On Capitol Hill

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August is the traditional summer recess month for Congress where they're out of session, but they're back in September for a flurry of legislative action. To that end, here are some key topics to watch out for
Morgan Enos
Advocacy
Sep 1, 2021 - 12:25 pm

For music fans and advocates interested in the legislative side of music policy, it's typically crickets on Capitol Hill every August. This is understandable: August is the traditional summer recess for Congress, when they are out of session.

However, this always tees up a flurry of legislative action for their return in September. This year is no different. And the Recording Academy has been prepping to make sure music makers and music policy are part of the action when lawmakers return to D.C. this month.

Here's a quick rundown of three key initiatives to keep an eye out for as legislative activity fires up again on Capitol Hill:

Momentum For The HITS Act

Congressional Democrats are working on drafting and advancing President Biden's ambitious "American Jobs and Family Plan" that will touch on all facets of the American economy and society. With a lot in the potential mix, the Recording Academy is working to ensure that the HITS (Help Independent Tracks Succeed) Act is firmly on Congress's radar.

For context: The HITS Act is designed to help independent artists get back into the studio to create new music through more favorable tax treatment of sound recordings, similar to the existing tax treatment of movie, television, and live theatrical productions. Unlike their peers in these other creative professions, individual recording artists and record producers are limited in how they can deduct their production costs, putting music creators at a real disadvantage and stifling opportunities to create new music. The bipartisan and bicameral bill has been well-received by lawmakers and is ready to move…if the legislative process allows it.

Read More: Help Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act Reintroduced in the House and Senate

Increasing Funding For The National Endowment For The Arts

Each year, Congress races to pass a funding package before the end of the government's Fiscal Year on September 30. Included in this month's deliberations is an increase in funding for music and the arts via a record level of $201 million for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Earlier this year, the Recording Academy submitted testimony in support of funding the NEA at $201 million, and since then both the House of Representatives and the Senate have taken pivotal steps to fund the agency at this historic level, but work remains to get it to the president's desk.

If Congress can't muster the votes before the September 30 deadline, they will likely pass a stopgap measure to keep the government afloat temporarily, and try again later in the fall.

Read More: National Endowment For The Arts Announces Guidelines For Grant Awards Under American Rescue Plan

The American Music Fairness Act & Advancing Artists' Rights

Earlier this summer Representatives Ted Deutch (D-FL) and Darrell Issa (R-CA) introduced the American Music Fairness Act, a new bill to ensure that artists, performers, producers, and music creators are fairly compensated when their songs are played on terrestrial radio stations. The bill continues to build momentum in D.C., and Congress's return to Capitol Hill marks the perfect time to further gain support for this landmark legislation that would end the century old loophole that has hindered artists' rights.

Because of this antiquated loophole in copyright law, terrestrial (AM/FM) radio stations do not pay artists for the music they play on the radio in the United States. The American Music Fairness Act rights this wrong and ensures all of the artists and studio professionals behind the sound recording can earn fair compensation when their music is played on major, commercial FM radio stations—like , iHeart Radio and other conglomerates that earn billions of dollars in revenue each year. The new legislation also includes carve outs to truly protect local and noncommercial radio stations, while also protecting royalties for songwriters.

Read More: Why The American Music Fairness Act Will Give Music Creators What They Deserve

Want to get involved and tell Congress to support music makers? Visit the Recording Academy's Action Center to contact Congress and to become a Music Advocate.

Jimmy Jam & Co 775775104

(L-R) Jimmy Jam, Rep. Ted Deutch, Sofia Carson, Rep. Michael McCaul, and Terry Lewis

Photo: Paul Morigi / Getty Images

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How The 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards Brought Joy, Healing & Reverence For Music People

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Featuring key congresspeople and leading lights in the music community, the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards was in equal parts celebratory and impactful toward the fight for creators' rights for all music people.
Morgan Enos
Advocacy
Apr 28, 2022 - 12:21 pm

Just before a performance where Jimmy Jam played an enormous keytar and Sen. Amy Klobuchar playfully shook a maraca, Jam laid down his stone-cold genuine feelings about his chosen artform. "Music is the divine art," he told the crowd at the packed GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, April 27, as they munched on dinner and dessert and enjoyed an open bar. And he meant it.

"Imagine a life without music," the five-time GRAMMY-winning producer continued. "It would be like breathing without oxygen. It would be like thirst without water. It would be life without the aural sustenance in our souls." Fellow five-time GRAMMY winner Terry Lewis, his decades-long partner who together form the legendary duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who were this year's artist honorees at the GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards, concurred: "This is the thing that God gave us to pull us together."

This balance between tireless work and divine play — a bunch of musicians jamming out a few blocks away from the hub of U.S. democracy — epitomized the vision of the GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards, Washington, D.C.'s premier annual celebration of music and advocacy. On the surface, it seemed to simply be musicians having a ball with lawmakers, connecting the spheres of music and politics. But there was nothing at all frivolous or superficial about the intent, as encapsulated in Ledisi's passionate question in her performance: "What can be higher than this?"

Much like MusiCares, the Advocacy division of the Recording Academy is predicated on helping music people in need — in this case, creators and artists who aren't fairly compensated for their labor. This happens to songwriters and music creators, who are regularly financially neglected, too often.

At this year's GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this week, this urgent issue was front and center. 

Watch: Inside GRAMMYs On The Hill 2022

Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. is one of music's most vocal advocates for fair compensation for creators. A GRAMMY-nominated songwriter and producer by trade, he knows the inner workings of the music business.

"You have to remember, I'm a songwriter," Mason jr. said in an interview on the red carpet at the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards. In his experience, he's been paid for his songwriting work. But the landscape is increasingly tilting toward exploitation of his peers. "To get paid $7,000 or $10,000 is not acceptable," he continued. "So that's something I'm very passionate about — in my experience, but also knowing what it takes to be successful."

Other songwriters at the event also echoed this sentiment: Whitney Phillips, Lupita Infante, Emily Warren, Nnenna Freelon, Gramps Morgan, Autumn Rowe, and Emily Bear, the latter three of whom have won GRAMMYs. Although they spoke individually, they came together for a collective higher purpose: a path toward fair treatment and fair compensation for music people, especially after a detrimental pandemic, that can no longer wait. (Gospel singer Yolanda Adams, rappers Bun B and Cordae, gospel group Take 6, and singer/actress Sofia Carson also performed at and/or attended the event.)

"They asked for me to come out here and speak and advocate, and it was a no-brainer for me," Phillips said. "I think what's most frustrating about the songwriter experience is that nobody has known what to do, what to say, who to talk to — what's going to be the most effective way to get this message across that we need to be fairly compensated."

DJs Amira and Kayla performing at GRAMMYs On The Hill

DJs Amira and Kayla performing at the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards. Photo: Paul Morigi / Getty Images

Infante, the granddaughter of Mexican ranchera legend Pedro Infante, agrees — and this reality compelled her to become a brand-new Advocacy participant. "I think my music genre is a little bit incoming; I do Mexican music, and there's a big community out there," she says. "I think it's important to have that music protected."

Warren, who co-wrote Dua Lipa's GRAMMY-nominated hit "Don't Start Now," initially tried to highlight advocacy for music people via online posts, but she hit a wall. "I think people don't understand what the [pay] rate is for [music] streaming — why it is that way, what the history of that is, and why it's so hard to change," she says. "I think just making it simple and educating people so they know what to ask for and what they deserve [is important]."

Jazz luminary Nnenna Freelon, who was most recently nominated for a GRAMMY for Best Jazz Vocal Album at the 2022 GRAMMYs, boils it down to eternal family lessons. "What did grandma say? 'Actions speak louder than words,'" she says. "Often, people don't think of the material value of the creation as anything that should be compensated," she added, speaking of the often-invisible role of the songwriter.

Reggae master Gramps Morgan articulates the problem less in terms of dollar signs than of sheer visibility. "If you're not acknowledged, it makes you feel bad," he says. And when he does discuss financial compensation, it's more in terms of the overall system than of applying Band-Aids: "The last time these laws were changed was in the '40s. Now it's time to, as the music has changed and moved forward."

Sofia Carson performing at GRAMMYs On The Hill 2022

Sofia Carson performing at the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards. Photo: Paul Morigi / Getty Images

As singer/songwriter, DJ and activist Rowe puts it, "I got involved with Advocacy, because how can I not? If not, I'm just sitting at home complaining about why things are the way they are." She connects this to our era of no-skin-in-the-game online activism: "You can post all day, you can tweet all day, but you've got to really get out there and get with the people that can actually change your life."

Bear, a pianist straddling the spheres of classical and jazz, says she feels like she regularly gets "the short end of the stick" when it comes to compensation. "I've seen and felt firsthand in the streaming industry era how we can't make a living right now." What of her talented friends? "They have to go back and move in with their parents," Bear laments, "because all of a sudden, touring was gone."

How did these sentiments bear out at the actual GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards ceremony? Through passionate performances and gripping speeches. The 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards celebrated artist honorees Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis for their decades of creating iconic songs from artists like Janet Jackson, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, and Boyz II Men, as well as Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla.) and Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) for their leadership in supporting the rights of music creators. Despite political party lines, a fierce devotion to music binded them all as friends and colleagues last night.

Rep. Deutch, who spoke first, is the lead Democratic sponsor for the American Music Fairness Act, which, if passed, would pay royalties to artists and producers when their music is played on the radio. (If you didn't know this is a problem, read about it — you'll never listen to the radio the same way again.)

Harvey Mason jr. speaking at GRAMMYs On The Hill 2022

Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. speaking at the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards. Photo: Leigh Vogel / Getty Images for The Recording Academy

"Our nation must nourish the songwriters struggling to make a living and support the producer and artist working in studios with the next potential hit," Deutch said in his riveting acceptance speech. And we do this, he declared, by making sure technology operates equitably to properly compensate creators. Proving his passion is on the line, he proclaimed his decades-long love for Bruce Springsteen, Faith Hill, and the greats of Motown, among other artists.

McCaul has co-sponsored key legislation like the Help Independent Tracks Succeed Act (HITS Act), which updates the federal tax code to bring in line music production with other industries and create parity. He noted that his big-band-loving parents were confused by his love of AC/DC and the Who — and he now feels the same about his kids' obsession with hip-hop. But it's all music, Rep. McCaul said in his acceptance speech — and it adds up to an intergenerational mode of expression.

The night also featured speeches from Todd Dupler, Acting Chief Advocacy & Public Policy Officer at the Recording Academy, as well as Recording Academy Board Of Trustees Chair Tammy Hurt, GRAMMY-winning singer/songwriter Jon Secada, and others.

But what ultimately bridged the music and congressional universes at the GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards? The music, of course: an opening performance of the national anthem with mind-bending harmonies by Take 6 and spectacular performances by Ledisi and Co-Chair of the Recording Academy's National Advocacy Committee and four-time GRAMMY winner Yolanda Adams. And to boot, the house band for the night was composed of Recording Academy members from various Chapters across the country.

By the time everyone in the house got on their feet and the stage erupted into a dance party while Adams performed "Open My Heart," the message of the 2022 GRAMMYs On The Hill Awards was abundantly clear: material change beats big talk any day. It's exactly what GRAMMYs on the Hill has advocated and accomplished: Over the past 20 years, the annual event has led to several major legislative wins for the music industry, most notably the Music Modernization Act in 2018.

And as long as that change is charged with a genuine love of music and music people, nothing can stop that righteous tide.

An Inside Look At The Recording Academy's Congressional Briefings During GRAMMY Week