A diverse bloc of conservative organizations is pressing congressional leaders to back a sweeping change to U.S. copyright law, just hours before rock icon Gene Simmons is slated to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
According to FOX Business, at the center of the debate is the American Music Fairness Act, a bipartisan proposal that would require AM and FM radio stations to pay royalties to recording artists when their music is broadcast — ending a loophole that has existed for decades.
Digital platforms and streaming services already compensate artists, but traditional radio has remained exempt.
Ahead of Tuesday’s hearing, Fox News Digital obtained a letter signed by 18 conservative policy groups urging House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to embrace the measure.
The organizations called the legislation “long overdue,” arguing that it strengthens a core conservative principle: the protection of property rights.
“Intellectual property (IP) rights are so fundamental to our society that our Founders specifically empowered Congress to protect them,” the letter stated.
They pointed to early American history, noting that most colonial governments embedded IP protections in their constitutions, and argued that such rights are essential to innovation and economic growth.
“The Founders understood what economic experience proves: intellectual property drives innovation, creativity, and wealth to the benefit of society,” the groups wrote, adding that President Donald Trump has also emphasized safeguarding IP as a driver of competitiveness.
According to the signatories, AMFA would end what they described as a “legal anomaly” that allows large radio corporations to profit from music without compensating the artists who create it.
“End this exploitation now by enacting AMFA,” they urged.
The coalition included groups such as Frontiers of Freedom, Conservatives for Property Rights, Tea Party Patriots Action, the American Association of Senior Citizens, Tradition, Family, Property Inc., and multiple liberty-oriented think tanks and advocacy organizations.
They argued that radio broadcasters benefit from music-driven advertising revenue while artists — often small business owners juggling multiple jobs — receive nothing in return.
“A loophole in the law enables corporate broadcasters to profit… without compensating the artists,” the letter said, noting that “even China recognizes a performance right for recording artists.”
The groups also contended that the U.S. lags behind “all developed nations” in granting radio performance rights, and called the exemption “a vestige of socialism found in the music ecosystem.”
Support for AMFA extends beyond conservative circles. Artists, unions and industry organizations — including the Recording Academy, SoundExchange, the American Federation of Musicians, and the RIAA — have backed the bill.
Radio broadcasters, however, remain opposed. In 2022, the National Association of Broadcasters warned the legislation would hurt local stations and “ultimately fail artists by leading to less music airplay.”
Gene Simmons, whose band Kiss has relied heavily on radio exposure over decades, echoed concerns about the industry’s future.
“For all the success Kiss has enjoyed, I worry about the challenges facing the next generation of recording artists,” he wrote ahead of his testimony.
Simmons will appear before senators days after being honored at the 48th Kennedy Center Honors, setting the stage for what could be one of the most consequential copyright debates in years.
