Oppose the record label-led performance tax on radio

Performance Tax hurts musicians, too

16 February 2010

In case you missed it last Friday, Whit Adamson, the President of the Tennessee Associations of Broadcasters, made a strong case against the performance tax in Friday’s Nashville Tennessean. We all know what the tax would hurt local stations and the communities they service, but Adamson points out that the tax has ripple effects on others, too:

Yes, the Grammy Awards and other single night ceremonies like the Country Music Awards are terrific showcases for Nashville's music. But let's not forget that all over America, local radio stations do this every single day! …Yet against this backdrop, the big record labels have embarked on a crusade that could cripple the financial viability of many free and local radio stations or even new artists.

Adamson’s point about emerging artists depending on radio airplay to find an audience is important to keep in mind. The record labels pushing the performance tax claim to be supporting artists, but putting radio stations out of businesses doesn’t help anyone.

By the way, you can stand up for your just like Whit Adamson stood up for Tennessee radio stations and the Nashville music scene – and you don’t have to write a newspaper column to do it.

(Hat tip to Radio Business Report.)

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