Future of Music Coalition

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Future of Music Coalition (FMC) is a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit organization supporting a musical ecosystem where artists flourish and are compensated fairly and transparently for their work.

FMC works with musicians, composers and industry stakeholders to identify solutions to shared challenges. We promote strategies, policies, technologies and educational initiatives that always put artists first while recognizing the role music fans play in shaping the future. FMC works to ensure that diversity, equality and creativity drives artist engagement with the global music community, and that these values are reflected in laws, licenses, and policies that govern any industry that uses music as raw material for its business.

FMC on Twitter

RT @RachelSkaggs: Was just writing about this today—more than just playing cookie cutter playlists, consolidation makes songwriters less li…

3 days 12 hours ago
Think about the music journalists who were laid off to enable a "pivot to video". Think as well about the musician… https://t.co/mVFZn1jS2H

3 days 20 hours ago
FM radio's march to consolidation has led to cookie-cutter playlists across the nation, and few opportunities for l… https://t.co/ednNPKYnXD

3 days 20 hours ago
RT @JRosenworcel: When you filter out fraud, bots and fake filings, 99.7% of unique comments at the @FCC favored #NetNeutrality. But the @F…

5 days 18 hours ago
Entities that benefit from weak regulatory enforcement can always argue that the evidence is weak, and so regulator… https://t.co/5bdFGDOehV

6 days 34 min ago
@Econ_Marshall Did he really say 90% of success is showing up? Would love to see the evidentiary basis for that claim. #FTCHearings

6 days 38 min ago
Empiricism isn't apolitical. The data we have access to reflects existing power relations. People who can't afford… https://t.co/8sbnkaIINH

6 days 50 min ago
The impulse toward empiricism is valid--to the extent we've been able to as a small nonprofit, we've endeavored to… https://t.co/V29UYtobti

6 days 53 min ago
Nonetheless, we can say that anecdotally, observing the consolidation among the many industries where musicians see… https://t.co/rAIvGaaodu

6 days 59 min ago
First, we have to acknowledge that labor markets are often structured very differently for musicians and composers… https://t.co/vJvxpoe3KJ

6 days 1 hour ago

FutureBlog

What’s going on with healthcare, and what does it mean for musicians?

It’s often challenging for musicians to try and keep track of all the policy issues that can potentially impact their lives and livelihoods. In the unprecedented day-to-day chaos and unpredictability of our current unconventional political environment, it can be even harder.

So here’s a quick update on one of the most important issues facing musicians, some questions answered, and some thoughts about what may lie ahead.

by Kevin Erickson, National Organizing Director

On Friday, March 10, 2017, news broke that a band called Soviet Soviet had been barred from entering the US and forced to fly back home, cancelling a US tour that included Austin’s SXSW festival. In the wake of recent controversy about language in SXSW’s performance agreement, the news created a flurry of outrage and panic, and quite a bit of misunderstanding. Here’s our attempt to answer all your questions:

by Kevin Erickson, National Organizing Director

One week before thousands of music/film/technology fans descend on Austin for the annual SXSW festival, controversy has erupted over provisions in the performance agreement required of all artists. On Thursday afternoon, musician Felix Walworth of the band Told Slant tweeted a screenshot of contractual language and the caption, “After looking through this contract sent to me by sxsw I have decided to cancel Told Slant’s performance at the festival.”

Walworth’s tweet quickly went viral, and since then, media outlets picked up the story, and an array of musicians (including some good friends of FMC) escalated the pressure with an open letter demanding that this language be dropped.

We’re still trying to make sense of this story, but here’s some questions and answers.

One of Donald Trump’s central campaign promises was to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), popularly known as Obamacare. Trump memorably pledged to scrap the law “on day one” and replace it with “something terrific,” though details were scarce. Since Trump’s election, many newly insured musicians have found themselves wondering what to do in the face of this uncertainty.

There’s no consensus in Congress about what system might replace Obamacare. Health care advocates like us are watching closely to see what changes might be most likely, and which provisions are likely to stay intact.

by Kevin Erickson, National Organizing Director

When President-Elect Donald Trump takes office in January, he will be charged with leading a deeply divided nation. And on many issues important to musicians, we still have very limited information about his views and positions.

Future of Music Coalition is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and as such, we cannot endorse parties or candidates. We are proud of our long history of working with members of both major parties to achieve sound policies which benefit musicians and serve the public interest. That bipartisan approach has served us well over the years.

We can, however, take clear stances on issues, and the historical moment demands that we assess the implications of this changing political landscape for musicians. While many of the issues we work on don’t break down on along clear partisan lines, Trump’s election and the resulting shift in the balance of power could result in hard-fought and historic victories for musicians being rolled back. Musicians and their allies must be prepared to organize and fight to defend these victories.

Current Features

FMC on Twitter

FutureBlog

What’s going on with healthcare, and what does it mean for musicians?

More immigration confusion as Italian band is denied entry to US

What's The Deal with SXSW's Artist Contract?

Obamacare is in Trouble, but Musicians Should Sign Up Anyway

Trump Elected: What Will It Mean for Musicians?

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