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President Donald Trump has long positioned himself as an advocate for American workers.
Ever since he first ran for president in 2016, he’s drawn on his business experience to put America first. He’s expressed support for all citizens who feel overlooked by powerful special interests in Washington, and that includes America’s music artists.
In his first term, President Trump signed the Music Modernization Act, a law that updated copyright protections for the digital era and made it possible for artists to get paid fairly when listeners streamed their songs over the internet. That law has made a real difference in the lives of working music artists who were taken advantage of for far too long.
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For every well-known artist whose name you recognize, there are thousands of working performers — background singers, band members, and studio musicians — who help bring recordings to life. They depend on music performance income/royalties earned via licenses, radio, streaming or other music distribution platforms to support their families. It’s the payment they are rightfully entitled to for the use of the “product” they “manufacture” here in America — music. After all: paying someone to use their property or IP is fundamental to our American values.
Yet those values are challenged daily if you’re a recording artist. Despite the advances President Trump made with the Music Modernization Act, today the wealthiest technology companies in the world take our music without permission or compensation to build their AI products. Giant radio conglomerates broadcast our music for free, making billions in advertising dollars each year, without ever compensating the performers for using their work. It gets worse — because the U.S. doesn’t pay performers for AM/FM radio plays, other countries won’t pay American artists for AM/FM radio plays abroad. An estimated $300 million is being held overseas right now that American artists have earned. Because US law has not caught up with the rest of the world, American workers aren’t being paid.
The good news is that President Trump can quickly address these pressing challenges and level the playing field for all American performers — including session musicians, background vocalists and band members — who have and continue to contribute their incredible talents to our Great American Songs.
One meaningful step: Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) have introduced the American Music Fairness Act, a bill that will require big radio corporations to pay artists fairly when they play their songs on AM/FM radio, unlock the money held overseas, and protect small and independent broadcasters at the same time.
The American Music Fairness Act is a good bill. It will help working artists pay for their groceries, save for retirement and provide for their families. Most musicians are in that category. I’ve met many artists over the years that struggle day to day to feed their families while pursuing their music dreams.
In February, a few weeks after President Trump was sworn in for a second term, I joined more than 300 music artists in asking Congress to send the American Music Fairness Act to the President’s desk.
Some of my good friends and fellow supporters of this effort — including Jason Aldean, Billy Ray Cyrus, Village People, Lee Greenwood, and Trace Adkins — signed the same letter because we believe that Americans deserve to be paid for their work, no matter what line of work they’re in.
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Since then, however, Congress has done little to move this bill. The House Judiciary Committee needs to hold a markup on this bill so that it can move another step closer to the Oval Office. President Trump can side with American workers and tell Congress to act on the American Music Fairness Act.
And while fair compensation for AM/FM airplay is a crucial step forward, it’s only one part of a much larger picture for working musicians. Long-serving performers continue to navigate outdated foreign copyright rules that limit their ability to regain control of their own recordings. Many older artists struggle with basic access to affordable healthcare. And now, with the rise of AI-generated voices and imitation tracks, creators face a new wave of unauthorized uses of their artistry. These issues don’t compete with one another — they reflect the shared reality of people who dedicate their lives to making American culture what it is. Addressing all of them will take time, but updating outdated radio law is a concrete place to begin.
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Every American who works hard deserves to have that work rewarded with fair pay. It’s time to close the radio loophole that has affected music artists for far too long.
Let’s pass the American Music Fairness Act and ensure American artists are treated fairly.
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