Political Quotes

“I rise to speak in support of the bipartisan American Music Fairness Act, which I introduced with Senator Blackburn today. Artists pour their heart and soul into the music we enjoy. Unfortunately, our current copyright laws do not adequately reflect the value of what they have produced. Currently, the United States is the only democratic country in the world in which artists are not compensated for the use of their music on AM/FM radio. By requiring broadcast radio corporations to pay performance royalties to creators for AM/FM radio plays, the American Music Fairness Act would close an antiquated loophole in our copyright law which has prevented artists from receiving compensation for the use of their music for far too long. This royalty stream would be particularly meaningful for the thousands of working-class artists who are a critical part of our country's vibrant music industry, and it would also be particularly meaningful for artists who are not readily able to tour and perform, as has unfortunately been the case for artists during the COVID pandemic. Additionally and importantly, when American-made music is played overseas, other countries collect royalties for American artists and producers but never pay those royalties to our artists because we do not reciprocate. This inequity costs the American economy and artists more than $200 million each year.…”