Living Wage for Musicians Act of 2025

This bill would create an Artist Compensation Royalty Fund, run by a nonprofit chosen by the Register of Copyrights with the approval of the Librarian of Congress. Music streaming services would have to charge subscribers an added fee equal to 50 percent of their subscription fee, between $4 and $10, and pass that money plus 10 percent of their non-subscription revenue, such as advertising, to the fund each quarter. The fund would pay 90 percent of its money to registered featured artists based on their share of streams, counting up to 1,000,000 streams per recording per month. The other 10 percent would go to a union-run distribution fund for session musicians and backup vocalists. The fund administrator could require records, audit streaming services, and set penalties for violations.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Rashida Tlaib Democrat sponsor
• 7 cosponsors