Long-time Entertainment, Arts & Sports Law section Board Member, Terence Camp of Budd Larner, P.C. in Short Hills met with Congressman Leonard Lance (7th District) on October 18. Camp, a member of the Recording Academy, was joined by six other members (songwriters, producers and engineers) for the Academy’s “District Advocate Day.” Among attendees was disco legend, Gloria Gaynor, of Green Brook. Gaynor, particularly known for her massive hit, “I Will Survive,” continues to tour internationally.
Camp and his team provided review and advocacy on behalf of pending, federal legislation that supports music creator rights. The Fair Play Fair Pay Act of 2017 (H.R. 1836) would amend federal copyright law to extend sound recording copyright owner rights to include the exclusive right to perform or authorize the performance of a recording publicly by means of any audio transmission – fundamentally to include terrestrial AM/FM broadcast radio stations. The act would result in payment of royalties by such stations where, historically, the right to such royalties arose only out of digital transmissions. Camp reports that the act is “balanced” in capping annual royalty rates and scaling rates for smaller and public broadcasters. The music advocates also addressed The Allocation for Music Producers Act (“AMP”) (H.R. 881). AMP creates mechanisms for producers and engineers to collect their share of music royalties. The group also highlighted three bills – Local Radio Freedom Act (H. Con. Res. 13), Radio Consumer Protection Act (H.R. 3685) and Transparency in Music Licensing and Ownership (H.R. 3350) – that the Academy opposes as contrary to the best interests of music creators.
The Recording Academy is the world’s leading society of music professionals, dedicated to celebrating, honoring and sustaining music’s past, present and future. The Grammy Awards return to New York’s Madison Square Garden for a 60th Anniversary on January 28, 2018. The Grammy Museum Experience opened to the public at Newark’s Prudential Center on October 20, 2018. Gloria Gaynor was among industry legends cutting the ribbon for the Museum Experience on October 19.