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Participate In Today's National Voter Registration Day With #MusicVotes

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Verify your voter registration status, register to vote, or request an absentee ballot on the Recording Academy's new #MusicVotes page
Advocacy
Sep 22, 2020 - 10:00 am

The Recording Academy has a long tradition of encouraging music creators to exercise their civic duties. Throughout the Summer of Advocacy, Academy members created an impact by meeting with lawmakers, sending thousands of letters to Capitol Hill, and even testifying before Congressional committees. As music professionals, we know the power of one voice. But in this election year, we must make sure every voice is heard at the ballot box. 

 
That’s why the Recording Academy is partnering with HeadCount to make it simple, easy and fast for music creators to register to vote. Participate in today's National Voter Registration Day (Tuesday, Sept. 22) by verifying your voter registration status, registering to vote, or requesting an absentee ballot, all of which can be accomplished on the Recording Academy's new #MusicVotes page.

The #MusicVotes page has all the information you need to know to ensure your vote is received in the 2020 federal election—including important state by state deadlines and resources to vote from home. Be sure to share the #MusicVotes campaign with other music professionals and make sure we're all #VoteReady in time for Nov. 3.

Every day your music makes a difference. On Nov. 3, make sure your vote does too. 

Take Action Today: Learn About The Key Issues Facing Creators And How You Can Help

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News

Look Back At The Recording Academy's Summer Of Advocacy

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With letter writing campaigns, a voter registration drive, participation in Congressional hearings and the flagship activation, District Advocate day, music makers made history in summer 2020
Nate Hertweck
Advocacy
Aug 26, 2020 - 4:57 pm

Now more than ever, advocating for creators' rights is an essential part of preserving and improving the music industry. In a year wrought with devastating shutdowns, cancellations and closures due to the pandemic, music makers rely all the more on trickling income streams, essential stimulus legislation, and fair pay for their work.

Springing into action, the Recording Academy launched the Summer of Advocacy to amplify the voices of the music community leading up to its flagship activation, the seventh annual District Advocate day. With months of action and activity in the near rearview and a wildly successful culminating event, it's worth marking the Summer of Advocacy as a huge success and taking a moment to pause and look back before resuming our efforts, stronger than ever. After all, by recognizing the success of their storytelling and collaboration during hundreds of meetings with lawmakers, music creators can celebrate progress with the confidence to keep pressing.

And the summer has been filled with much more than meetings, including the launch of numerous letter writing campaigns, a voter registration drive, and participation in Congressional hearings. Let's take a close look at the deep impact of 2020's Summer of Advocacy…

Contacting Congress Campaigns

Wielding the proverbial power of the pen all summer long, the Academy has asked our members to advocate for numerous issues that would benefit music creators. In all, members sent nearly 6,500 letters in support of six separate calls to action including urging the passage of the Save Our Stages Act, ensuring equitable treatment of COVID-19 relief, and advocating for support of the HITS Act, a new bipartisan solution that would allow an individual to fully expense the cost of new studio recordings on their taxes up to $150,000. Hearing from those affected most by these policies is the best way to inform those who ultimately vote for their passage.

Voter Registration

Speaking of voting, the Academy encouraged its members to take part in the political process by registering to vote. With so many important issues at stake, the music community and its supporters must ensure their voices are heard. If you have yet to register for November’s election, please visit Vote.org.

Congressional Hearings

On the ground and on the stand, Academy members spoke loud and clear this summer. On July 28, four-time GRAMMY winning singer/songwriter and Recording Academy Trustee Yolanda Adams shared her first-hand experience and perspective on the topic of fair use, as the Senate Committee on the Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Intellectual Property held another Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) hearing.

Earlier in the summer, Recording Academy Chair & Interim CEO Harvey Mason jr. testified before the same subcommittee regarding the scope of music rights in sound recordings, the dire need for the U.S. to catch up with other free countries by passing the AM-FM Act, and the importance of supporting music creators in the next phase of COVID-19 relief stimulus funding.

District Advocate

The Summer of Advocacy reached a pinnacle on August 12, as the Recording Academy mobilized nearly 2,000 members across the country to meet with over 250 Congressional offices, making District Advocate day the . Since advocates were unable to attend in person, they were invited to participate in virtual meetings, and did they ever. Participants included GRAMMY winners Adams, Brandy Clark, José Feliciano, John Legend, Ziggy Marley and PJ Morton and GRAMMY nominees Victoria Monét and Offset.

The Summer of Advocacy mobilized members in 49 States, DC, and Puerto Rico. None of this would have been possible without each and every single member who gave their time and passion to the cause. As the quest to build a better system continues into fall 2020 and beyond, the Recording Academy thanks all those who made the first-ever Summer of Advocacy a nationwide success. Remember, advocacy works.

Take Action Today: Learn About The Key Issues Facing Creators And How You Can Help

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District Advocate Day 2020

 

Courtesy Photo: GRAMMY Advocacy

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District Advocate Day Unites Music Makers & Lawmakers Toward Pandemic Relief

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Nearly 2,000 Recording Academy members – including GRAMMY winners and nominees – took part in over 250 meetings today in the year's largest grassroots music advocacy movement
Advocacy
Aug 12, 2020 - 9:39 am

Worlds collided today, as across the country the Recording Academy's seventh annual District Advocate day brought together the professionals who make the music we love and the members of Congress who make the laws affecting their livelihoods. Academy members engaged in a series of virtual meetings with their elected officials to discuss pressing issues impacting the music community, such as providing pandemic-related relief and assistance to the creative community, pushing for equitable treatment and social justice reforms, and ensuring that the rights of all creators are always protected.

District Advocate Day participants included GRAMMY winners Yolanda Adams, Brandy Clark, José Feliciano, John Legend and Ziggy Marley and GRAMMY nominees Victoria Monét and Offset, plus nearly 2,000 other music professionals.

The event marked the crescendo of the Academy's "Summer of Advocacy," an ongoing effort to help provide pandemic relief for music creators, to support survival of music businesses and to promote positive social change through legislation.

And it’s working. Earlier this year, Academy members helped secure important provisions in the CARES Act that provided critical support for the music community dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Today's conversations between Academy members and their Senators and Congressional Representatives took the next big step to ensure the music community is heard at a critical time for legislative support.

"District Advocate Day has always been an important initiative for music advocacy and it's especially true now," said Harvey Mason jr., Chair and Interim President/CEO of the Recording Academy. "Creators are among the hardest hit and first out of work, yet music is what brings the world together in hard times — and for many, it brings hope. Today, we raise our voices to remind legislators of the vital role music plays during this pandemic and, equally as imperative, the creators behind it who are struggling and desperately needing a helping hand from this country's leaders."

With District Advocate day, the Academy continues to amplify the voices of creators and small businesses, while also endorsing and developing additional legislation to deliver aid to creators. For instance, developed and endorsed by the Recording Academy alongside Rep. Linda T. Sánchez (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ron Estes (R-Kansas), the Help Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act would allow individuals to fully expense the cost of new studio recordings on their taxes, up to $150,000, within the same year of production. Academy members encouraged their representatives to co-sponsor the HITS Act during today's meetings.

Members also advocated for passage of the Reviving the Economy Sustainably Towards a Recovery in Twenty-twenty (RESTART) Act, a loan program that would provide funding to cover six months of payroll, benefits, and fixed operating expenses for businesses that have taken a substantial revenue hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. For independent workers with mixed-income types, a category which includes many music creators across the country, the Mixed Earner Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Act proposed a solution to ensure unemployment relief and assist freelance workers unable to receive just unemployment aid. 

Members discussed these key issues and more today in year's largest grassroots music advocacy movement. District Advocate, along with the Recording Academy's annual GRAMMYs on the Hill in April, which is on hiatus this year due to COVID-19, are the Recording Academy's premiere advocacy events, and are credited by bipartisan legislators with helping to pass the Music Modernization Act into law — the largest update to music legislation in the past 40 years. 

For more information about District Advocate Day and Recording Academy advocacy initiatives, visit www.grammy.com/districtadvocate.

Take Action Today: Learn About The Key Issues Facing Creators And How You Can Help

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District Advocate day is Aug. 12

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Countdown To District Advocate Day: What You Need To Know

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One week ahead of the largest virtual music grassroots activation of the year on Aug. 12, here's everything you need to make a difference for music makers
Nate Hertweck
Advocacy
Aug 7, 2020 - 9:31 am

Next week, nearly 2,000 registered Recording Academy members will participate in its seventh annual District Advocate day on Aug. 12. The momentous event marks the culmination of a seven-week "Summer of Advocacy" initiative, all aimed to help provide pandemic relief for music creators, support survival of music businesses and promote positive social change through legislation.

Academy members will meet with their local lawmakers to urge them to consider the challenges creators face in today's economy in light of how music has helped us through the hard times. If music makers and music businesses are going to be able to continue to bring music into the world and into our lives, they need support.

From supporting the newly introduced HITS Act to fixing unemployment benefits to passing the RESTART Act, here are a few key issues on the table for discussion at next week's historic District Advocate day.

Survival Tools For Music Makers

Indie artists need a break, and in times of need, a small tax break could make a big difference. By supporting the Help Independent Tracks Succeed (HITS) Act (H.R. 7886), lawmakers can harmonize the tax treatment of music production with other already existing provisions to get artists back in the studio.

Many music makers are self-employed and rely on a variety of income streams for their livelihoods. The CARES Act provided unemployment to self-employed workers like music creators, but an unintended consequence in the new program prevented "mixed earners" with both traditional and freelance income from getting their fair share. Congress can correct this and fix unemployment for gig workers by passing the Mixed Earner Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Act.

Additionally, now is the time for Congress to extend enhanced unemployment benefits provided by the FPUC program. The program adds $600 to the weekly unemployment benefit, which has been a lifeline in these unprecedented times. With so much of the music industry still on pause in the pandemic, extending these benefits is the right thing to do.

Support Music & Minority-Owned Businesses

As COVID relief enters the next phase, the recording studios, live venues and minority-owned businesses that have been hit particularly hard need to be considered top priorities.

Inexcusably, minority-owned businesses were overlooked by the Paycheck Protection Program and other Small Business Administration programs. Black music is a cornerstone of the music industry, and Congress must ensure that minority-owned businesses, including studios, venues and labels, can get the support they need. Dedicated funding for Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) will help fix this inequity. Find out more and voice your support for these programs here.

For small and medium-sized businesses struggling to survive through the pandemic, passing the RESTART Act (H.R. 7481/S. 3814) is a must. The bill is essential and will provide a boost to music venues and other music businesses that remain closed with no reopening date in sight.

District Advocate provides a unique opportunity for Academy members to connect with lawmakers about urgent issues and policies affecting music creators and make a difference during such a difficult time. Want to add your voice to the chorus? Take action today, and get for the largest virtual music grassroots activation of the year on Aug. 12, District Advocate day.

Take Action Today: Learn About The Key Issues Facing Creators And How You Can Help

GRAMMYs

Summer Of Advocacy: 5 Reasons To Register As A District Advocate Today

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Summer Of Advocacy: 5 Reasons To Register As A District Advocate Today

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Here's how to use your experience in music to make an important difference in how creators are compensated and protected… But hurry, registration closes July 24!
Nate Hertweck
Advocacy
Jul 15, 2020 - 4:22 pm

Are you a Recording Academy member looking for new ways to engage with your community, put your experience in music to work and support the best interests of all creators? Registering as a District Advocate is the best way to make a huge difference this summer.

Recording Academy Members: Register Now To Become A District Advocate

So why should you register to be a District Advocate? On Aug. 12, the Recording Academy will host its seventh annual District Advocate, the largest grassroots music advocacy movement of the year. Registering by the July 24 deadline provides you this unique opportunity to connect with your lawmaker to discuss the urgent issues and policies affecting music creators.

In addition to sharing your perspective, stories and talents with local lawmakers, as a District Advocate, you'll have the chance to call on your Members of Congress to tackle these five key areas:

1. COVID-19 Relief For All Creators Now

In a year wrought with financial uncertainty, it's time for lawmakers to ensure that COVID-19 aid is distributed equitably and reaches all workers and businesses in need. As a District Advocate, your voice can help ensure that underserved Black communities can fully participate in critical relief programs. The convergence of the crippling economic impact of the pandemic and the fight to end systemic racism call for all advocates to acknowledge the need for fair distribution of relief – this is your chance.

2. Extend COVID-19 relief programs

While many music makers have turned to initial relief programs to weather the pandemic, it is clear that Congress must now extend these programs beyond the current expiration date and expand their resources to assist the creative professionals who need it most. As a District Advocate, you'll have the opportunity to tell your representatives first-hand how the pandemic continues to affect the music community and why this relief is so crucial.

3. Small Business & Unemployment Status

"Music is the original gig economy," as Recording Academy Chairman and Interim CEO Harvey Mason jr. put it. District Advocates will underscore the importance of fixing small business and unemployment programs to better reflect the needs of freelance music creators, many of whom operate as small businesses and/or have found themselves unemployed in the wake of the pandemic.

4. Emergency Arts Funding

As so many income streams across the music industry continue to run dry, Congress needs to hear from the music community just how important it is they expand emergency arts funding. Vital organizations and individuals are at risk of not being able to recover from the severe economic impact caused by COVID-19, and this is your chance to let them know why emergency arts funding is a must.

5. Tax Relief & Fair Royalties

Finally, as a District Advocate representing the music community, you’ll champion ways to increase revenues for music makers through targeted tax relief and fairer royalties for music makers.

Best of all, you won't have to wait until Aug. 12 to get started. This year, the Recording Academy will be holding the "Summer of Advocacy," an ongoing initiative aimed to help provide pandemic relief for music creators and music businesses and to promote positive social change through legislation. After registering, you can start your advocacy immediately by taking action here.

Right now, more than ever, we need to come together as the music community in order to create change and push creator-friendly policies forward. Register today and no later than July 24 to play your part in 2020's largest grassroots music advocacy movement. Your fellow music makers for generations to come will thank you!

Recording Academy Members: Register Today To Become A District Advocate