September 1, 2015Vol 2 | Issue 5

www.soundexchange.com1

Include Your Member of Congress in Your Summertime Fun!

The end of summer is a great time for beaches, BBQs, beer and baseball. It is also the PERFECT

time to contact your Member of Congress. While your representative is at home for their district

work period, it is the ideal opportunity to reach out and tell them you need them to look out for

the rights of music creators in Congress.

Call, write or visit your congressional district office and tell them you need them to say no to the

Local Radio Freedom Act (LRFA), known as H. Con. Res 17 in Congress. LRFA is a resolution

backed by the National Association of Broadcasters, which seeks to perpetuate the incredibly

unfair practice of allowing FM radio to pay nothing to performers for the music they use to

build their $17.5 billion business. Think about what this practice means: Radio broadcasters use

music to make more money than music creators make from their music—and they don’t pay

performers a penny for it.

In This IssueInclude Your Member of Congress in Your Summertime Fun! 1

What a Time for Fair Play Fair Pay! 2

Another Billion Dollar Milestone 3

David Byrne Visits Washington, D.C. 4

NPR Leaves Anti-Artist MIC Coalition 5

Straight from the Artists 5

Events 6

2 www.soundexchange.com | September 1, 2015

Music lovers everywhere should instead ask their representatives in Congress to support the Fair Play

Fair Pay Act, because if you care about the future of music you should want all artists paid fairly when

their music is used.

To contact your member of Congress to support Fair Play Fair Pay, please visit this website.

And, to find out the contact information for your Member of Congress to tell them “no” on LRFA, please

visit: http://www.house.gov/htbin/findrep.

What a Time for Fair Play Fair Pay!

It’s been a great couple of months for the Fair Play Fair Pay Act (H.R. 1733) since it was introduced in

April. And since its introduction, a number of high profile artists have chimed in on social media with

their support.

Check out our Storify article that captures all of this social media support in one place by clicking on the

image below.

And, as always, join the movement today by sharing your support using#FairPlayFairPay and tagging

@SoundExchange.

3 www.soundexchange.com | September 1, 2015

Another Billion Dollar Milestone

SoundExchange is proud to announce that it has paid more than $3 billion in digital performance

royalties to recording artists and rights owners since its inception in 2003. This remarkable achievement,

along with SoundExchange’s increasing payouts each quarter, signifies the cultural influence of music

creators and the thriving success of digital radio services.

“Three billion dollars in distributions marks a phenomenal milestone not just for SoundExchange, but for

the entire music industry,” said SoundExchange President and CEO Michael Huppe. “In our place at the

center of digital music, we are proud to be the financial backbone that directly pays artists and record

labels—big and small—whose creative work is the driving force behind the music industry. While we

celebrate this great achievement today, SoundExchange will continue to work towards building a more

transparent future for the modern music business and will continue to advocate for every artist and label

to be paid fairly whenever their music is used.”

Digital performance royalties are vital to the overall music revenue ecosystem as consumers continue

to move from purchasing music to experiencing the listen of music through streaming. In 2014 alone,

SoundExchange paid a record-setting $773 million directly to its more than 100,000 recording artist and

record label accounts. Furthermore, SoundExchange’s annual payments have continuously increased

year after year and today we are proud to represent nearly half of all streaming revenue in the U.S.

To celebrate, SoundExchange is asking all artists and labels to recognize this achievement by tweeting

or mentioning @SoundExchange using the hashtag #3BillionPaid. Artists are also asked to share their

videos in an effort to encourage continued support for and growth of digital royalty payments. Share

your thoughts with thousands of SoundExchange followers today.

4 www.soundexchange.com | September 1, 2015

David Byrne Visits Washington, D.C.

Earlier this summer, David Byrne,

SoundExchange’s newest board member

and the former front man of the new

wave band Talking Heads, stopped by the

SoundExchange office to discuss the Fair

Play Fair Pay Act (H.R. 1733)—a bill that

would require all radio platforms to fairly

pay artists for their creative work. Currently,

FM radio stations in the United States play

music without paying the performer or

sound recording copyright owner. This

archaic practice is unacceptable and Byrne

is just one of the many artists, politicians,

and music aficionados banding together

with SoundExchange to move this part of

the music industry out of the dark ages.

Byrne also visited Capitol Hill to speak with

several members of Congress, including

Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), author of the

Fair Play Fair Pay Act, about the vital role

SoundExchange plays in digital music and

to show his support for Nadler’s legislation.

Said Byrne, “SoundExchange is an example

of how an organization can work in the

new digital economy, specifically in music,

and move things forward.”

Since inception, SoundExchange has

advocated relentlessly for legislation that would ensure all creators receive fair pay, on all platforms and

technologies, whenever their music is used. Period. Show your support on Twitter and Facebook using

hashtag #FairPlayFairPay. You can learn more about the Fair Play Fair Pay Act and write your Member

of Congress on behalf of artists here. Your support is critical to making real change happen.

(L-R) David Byrne, Rep. Jerry Nadler and SoundExchange President and CEO Michael Huppe

David Byrne (L) signs a statement to support the Fair Play Fair Pay Act with Rep. Jerry Nadler looking on

5 www.soundexchange.com | September 1, 2015

NPR Leaves Anti-Artist MIC Coalition

And just like that, another one bites the dust. Shortly after Amazon dropped from the anti-artist MIC

Coalition, NPR followed suit.

As you may remember, the MIC Coalition (Music. Innovation. Consumers) launched back in May with 18

members, including players like Pandora, NAB, Google, iHeart Radio, and the Digital Media Association,

as well as some not-so-usual suspects—the National Retail Federation, National Restaurant Association,

and the American Hotel & Lodging Association, all with very capable lobbying operations in Washington, D.C. 

SoundExchange applauds NPR for taking this stand for the future of music and artists everywhere and

we look forward to continuing our long-standing, positive collaboration with NPR.

It’s more important than ever that music creators and music lovers everywhere stand together to fight

for the future of music. Supporting the Fair Play Fair Pay Act is one of the best ways to stand united.

Write your member of Congress and ask them to support the bill to ensure all artists are paid every time

their music is played, on every platform. Period.

Straight from the Artists

All good relationships are based on mutual respect and love. The relationship between recording artists

and SoundExchange is no exception. Many artists have spoken about why they love SoundExchange

and what we do for artists. Check out a few of those artists in their own words below:

We’re proud to represent all of the artists who work with SoundExchange and we know that they are

proud to have us on their side. But for those out there still not convinced, here are three reasons why

SoundExchange is great for the artist.

6 www.soundexchange.com | September 1, 2015

u SoundExchange works on behalf of the artist. We pay 50 percent of the royalties directly to

the artist.

u SoundExchange fights for performance rights across all music platforms. Our advocacy efforts

ensure that you get fairly paid in today’s fast-growing digital radio industry.

u Membership with SoundExchange is FREE. SoundExchange members receive exclusive benefits,

including foreign royalty collections to maximize your digital streaming revenue.

So what are you waiting for? Join SoundExchange today and start collecting your royalties!

Events

16th Annual Americana Music Festival & Conference

September 15-20

Nashville, Tenn.

RAIN Summit Atlanta

September 29

Atlanta, Ga.