Some of the music industry's most prominent songwriters and musicians perform at Capitol Hill to protest against Pandora's proposed Internet Radio Fairness Act.
- Dec 4, 2012
AceShowbiz - The fight against potentially smaller song payments continues for some of music's most prominent ambassadors. As reported by Rolling Stone, five top songwriters and musicians performed at Capitol Hill last week as a protest against music-streaming site Pandora's proposed Internet Radio Fairness Act (IRFA). The bill could reportedly slash musicians' royalty payments for up to 85 percent .
Before the bill's hearing on Wednesday, November 28, songwriters and rock musicians Linda Perry, Kara DioGuardi, Desmond Child, BC Jean, and Lee Miller voiced out what they had to say about the Pandora-backed proposal. The artists claimed that their songs were streamed via Pandora 33 million times during the first quarter of 2012, for which they received $600. "That is insane," exclaimed DioGuardi. "You can't make songwriters pay so that your business model works," she added. "You have to rework the model."
Perry, who performed the song "Beautiful", which she penned for Christina Aguilera, also made it clear how she felt about the IRFA. "Pandora wants to make money - more money - off the thing we created," she stated.
Meanwhile, Miller expressed his concern over his livelihood after his performance of his hit for Trace Adkins' "You're Gonna Miss This". "I don't think it was a protest," said the songwriter. "I think it was a 'Hey, this is our side, and this is who we are.' "
Pandora's executives, who claim that the company has an "astonishingly high royalty burden," are strongly pushing U.S. Congress to pass the said bill. They say it will level the playing field when it comes to royalty rates paid to musicians. The IRFA suggests that online radio services pay studios and artists fees that are comparable to radio and satellite radio providers.
DioGuardi has written hits for Britney Spears and Kelly Clarkson, while Desmond Child was co-writer of Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer". BC Jean was co-writer of Beyonce Knowles' "If I Were a Boy" and Miller is a well-known country hitmaker.
