The American Music Fairness Act Is Back in the Royalty Conversation
A new artist letter is pushing Congress to pass the American Music Fairness Act while European radio royalties for American performers are at risk. For independent artists, this is a reminder to separate radio performance royalties from the lanes your distributor already collects.
Short answer
On July 15, 2026, musicFIRST said 58 recording artists sent a letter urging congressional leaders to pass the American Music Fairness Act, H.R.861 and S.326. The bill would create a US terrestrial radio performance right for sound recordings, aimed at corporate AM/FM broadcasters, while protecting small, public, college, religious, and noncommercial stations. The artist letter ties the push to a European Commission proceeding that could reduce European radio royalties flowing to US performers if the United States keeps not paying performers for AM/FM radio airplay. Independent artists should check whether they are registered for neighboring-rights income, understand that their distributor does not collect every radio lane, and avoid counting on a US AM/FM royalty until the law changes.
The American Music Fairness Act would create a US terrestrial radio performance royalty for sound recordings. It has not passed. The move for independent artists today is to know which radio royalties already exist, make sure your digital and neighboring-rights registrations are clean, and not assume your distributor is collecting every lane.
Key takeaways
- musicFIRST says 58 recording artists sent a July 15, 2026 letter urging Congress to pass the American Music Fairness Act.
- The bill is H.R.861 in the House and S.326 in the Senate.
- The push is tied to a European proceeding that could reduce European radio royalties flowing to US performers if the US keeps not paying performers for AM/FM radio airplay.
- Nothing changes in your royalty statement unless the law changes, but this is a good prompt to check SoundExchange, neighboring rights, and publishing registrations.
What happened?
musicFIRST said 58 recording artists sent a letter to congressional leaders asking them to pass the American Music Fairness Act. The bill would require corporate AM/FM broadcasters in the United States to pay performers when they profit from sound recordings. The advocacy group says the bill protects small, local, community, public, college, religious, and noncommercial stations.
The timing matters because the artist letter points to Europe. The letter says European radio royalties for American performers are now at risk because the United States still does not recognize a federal terrestrial radio performance right for sound recordings. The exact policy path is still political, but the artist issue is easy to understand: radio is not one royalty bucket.
Why independent artists should care
Your distributor handles master royalties from DSPs. That does not mean it collects every performance, neighboring-rights, publishing, or international radio lane. If you hear “radio royalties” and assume one company is catching all of it, that is where money gets missed.
| Check now | Do not assume | |
|---|---|---|
| US AM/FM | Follow the bill if radio airplay matters to your catalog | That a new federal artist royalty exists already |
| Digital radio | Make sure SoundExchange has your artist and rightsholder claims | That your distributor automatically claims your performer share |
| International | Ask who handles neighboring rights outside your home country | That foreign radio income reaches you without setup |
The practical question is not whether radio should pay. It is whether your current royalty setup catches the lanes that already do.
What to do now
Audit your royalty map
Write down who collects master streaming, digital radio, publishing performance, mechanicals, neighboring rights, and direct licensing. If one row says “probably my distributor,” verify it.
Check SoundExchange separately
SoundExchange says recording artists and sound recording owners must register to receive digital performance royalties for eligible non-interactive uses. That is separate from your Spotify or Apple Music distributor statement.
Do not forecast unpaid law
The American Music Fairness Act is still legislation. Do not build a budget assuming US AM/FM royalties will arrive until Congress actually changes the law.
What is still unclear?
The bill still has to move through Congress, and the European royalty risk depends on the final policy choices in Europe as well as the US response. If you are getting meaningful radio play, the immediate work is administrative: get your registrations clean before a new lane or a changed foreign lane creates another claim problem.
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