Rep. Linda Sánchez and Los Tigres del Norte Advocate Fair Pay for Airplay
February 24, 2009

Washington, DC - Members of Los Tigres del Norte, one of Latin music’s leading creative voices, met with Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-CA) today to thank her for her work on the Performance Rights Act.

Sánchez is an original co-sponsor of the Performance Rights Act (H.R. 848), bipartisan legislation re-introduced this year to end a provision of U.S. copyright law that allows AM and FM radio stations to earn $16 billion a year in advertising revenue without compensating the artists and musicians whose music they air. Currently, U.S. terrestrial radio stations only compensate songwriters whose works are broadcast.

“Every artist and musician -- from the star of the show to the working class performer -- deserves to be paid for their hard work,” said Rep. Linda Sánchez. “I am pleased that high profile artists like Los Tigres del Norte are lending their voices to advocate for closing the loophole and creating fair pay for fair airplay. The United States is one of the few industrialized countries that does not compensate artists and performers for airplay, and this should be changed.”

The Grammy-winning Los Tigres del Norte were in Washington D.C., along with many other musicians to support a fair performance right on radio. Los Tigres del Norte are celebrated for their music that tell the stories of the immigrant experience in the U.S. and for supporting non-profit charitable organizations in an effort to further the appreciation and understanding of Latino music, culture and history.