{"id":2519283,"date":"2025-12-09T14:59:04","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T19:59:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gene-simmons-says-musician-royalty-act-is-about-protecting-the-next-elvis-presley\/"},"modified":"2025-12-09T15:04:03","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T20:04:03","slug":"gene-simmons-says-musician-royalty-act-is-about-protecting-the-next-elvis-presley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gene-simmons-says-musician-royalty-act-is-about-protecting-the-next-elvis-presley\/","title":{"rendered":"Gene Simmons says musician royalty act is about protecting the next Elvis Presley"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgene-simmons-says-musician-royalty-act-is-about-protecting-the-next-elvis-presley%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2519283&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Gene Simmons, bassist of the rock band Kiss, testified before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee in support of the American Music Fairness Act, a bill that would require radio stations to pay musicians royalties when their music is played. Simmons emphasized that while radio stations make billions from playing music, artists like Elvis Presley historically received no compensation for radio airplay. The legislation, supported by bipartisan lawmakers, aims to close this loophole by ensuring artists receive fair payment, while maintaining lower fees for smaller broadcasters to protect local radio.Simmons highlighted the importance of supporting future generations of musicians and <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >noted critically important backing<\/a> from artists and conservative groups alike. The bill addresses a unique issue in the U.S., where unlike streaming services, AM and FM radio currently do not pay performers. Simmons also linked his advocacy to a longstanding fight for fair compensation championed by legends like Frank Sinatra.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Gene Simmons says musician royalty act is about protecting the next Elvis Presley<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2427257\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>EXCLUSIVE &mdash;<\/strong> Kiss bassist Gene Simmons descended on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to testify before a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/senate-judiciary-committee\/\">Senate Judiciary<\/a> subcommittee in support of a bill that requires the&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/radio\/\">radio industry<\/a>&nbsp;to pay artists when their&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/music\/\">music<\/a>&nbsp;is played.<\/p>\n<p>Ahead of the hearing, the rock superstar told the <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>in an interview that this bill is about protecting the next <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/elvis-presley\/\">Elvis Presley<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3909322\/teamsters-boss-sean-obrien-bipartisan-union-legislation-pro-act-falls-wayside\/\">Teamsters president turns to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/teamsters-boss-pushes-bipartisan-union-legislation\/\" title=\"Teamsters boss pushes bipartisan union ...\">bipartisan union legislation<\/a> as PRO Act falls to wayside<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3911442\/john-thune-obamacare-subsidies-democratic-bill\/\">Thune eyes possibility of &#8216;serious&#8217; Obamacare talks once Democratic bill fails<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/senate\/3911211\/senate-democrats-push-reprimand-nick-fuentes-tucker-carlson\/\">Senate Democrats push to reprimand Nick Fuentes and Tucker Carlson<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;America invented the music of planet Earth: rock &lsquo;n&rsquo; roll, blues, jazz, hip hop, country and western,&rdquo; Simmons said in the interview. &ldquo;The king of rock &lsquo;n&rsquo; roll was born in America, Elvis Presley, and all of his millions of times you heard Elvis&rsquo;s music when he was singing on radio, AM and FM, everybody got paid, the radio stations made almost $14 billion.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Do you know how much Elvis Presley was paid for all of those millions of times?&rdquo; Simmons asked. &ldquo;Nothing.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>The American Music Fairness Act was introduced by Reps. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and<br \/>Jerry Nadler (D-NY) and Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Alex Padilla (D-CA), who support that artists be fairly compensated. The rates for small broadcasters compared to those of commercial broadcasters are lower, in an effort to protect local stations while also providing artists with royalties for their music.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Gene Simmons to testify on Capitol Hill for the American Music Fairness Act. <\/p>\n<p>MORE: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/n8bHjREVj7\">https:\/\/t.co\/n8bHjREVj7<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Captured by <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lauren_greennn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@lauren_greennn<\/a> <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/Y0C8JJoWyk\">pic.twitter.com\/Y0C8JJoWyk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/dcexaminer\/status\/1998455784624017587?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 9, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;It ain&rsquo;t just about the past, you&rsquo;ve also got our children who are going to become the next Elvis and the next Sinatra because talent doesn&rsquo;t stop at the end of a generation,&rdquo; Simmons added.<\/p>\n<p>Simmons is testifying alongside SoundExchange President and CEO Michael Huppe and Inner Banks Media President and CEO Henry Hinton in the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property hearing for the bill.<\/p>\n<p>The bill aims to close the loophole and&nbsp;require radio corporations that made $13.6 billion in advertising revenue last year to begin paying recording artists for using their music.<\/p>\n<p>Simmons has been busy in Washington leading up to the hearing. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/kslx.com\/kiss-receives-kennedy-center-honors-in-washington-dc\/\">He was recognized Sunday at the Kennedy Center Honors<\/a> by President Donald Trump, who said he was closely involved with picking the honorees. Trump was also the first president to host the awards.<\/p>\n<p>Simmons told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> that after spending time with him this week, he knows the president will sign the bill if Congress passes it.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kiss bassist Gene Simmons speaks to the Washington Examiner&rsquo;s Lauren Green ahead of his Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property testimony on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Washington. (Graeme Jennings\/ Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The hearing comes after many artists sent a letter to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/overtly-politicized-inside-manchins-filibuster-war-against-the-democrats\/\" title=\"\u2018Overtly Politicized\u2019: Inside Manchin\u2019s Filibuster War Against The Democrats\">congressional leaders urging<\/a> them to take up the legislation earlier this year. Alongside these artists, more than a dozen conservative groups have also begun a push in support of the legislation by sending a separate letter to congressional leadership. <\/p>\n<p>A markup was held earlier this year at a&nbsp;House Energy and Commerce Committee&nbsp;hearing for a bill that would make it mandatory to install AM radio in every new vehicle manufactured in the United States. Artists are demanding that performers not be left behind when&nbsp;considering&nbsp;legislation&nbsp;that benefits the radio industry.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/stars-urge-congress-to-pass-the-american-music-fairness-act\/\" title=\"Stars urge Congress to pass the ...\">corporate radio industry made <\/a>.6 billion last year and played 240 million songs on AM radio without paying the performers. These radio platforms are the only ones that do not pay the performers. In contrast, streaming services such as Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, and SiriusXM all pay songwriters and performers, leaving the U.S. as the only democracy in which AM and FM radio do not pay performers.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3911157\/colin-allred-texas-senate-campaign-ramifications\/\">COLIN ALLRED&rsquo;S SENATE DECISION SENDS SHOCKWAVES THROUGOUT MARQUEE TEXAS RACE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kiss&rsquo;s Gene Simmons ahead of his testimony on musicians being paid their fair share on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, on Capitol Hill. (Graeme Jennings\/Washington Examiner)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This issue goes long beyond recent years. It was championed by Frank Sinatra in the 1980s, as he sought to enlist many other major stars in his fight.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Our goals can only be achieved with the strong support of recording artists like yourself,&rdquo; Sinatra&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/942558083\/Frank-Sinatra-1988-letter-to-Bruce-Springsteen\">wrote to Bruce Springsteen&nbsp;<\/a>on Dec. 12, 1988. &ldquo;As you can imagine, such an undertaking will <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/4-women-killed-in-malibu-crash-believed-to-be-pepperdine-students\/\" title=\"4 Pepperdine students killed in Malibu crash.\">require substantial financial resources<\/a> to enable us to gather support, prepare legislation, and lobby for passage of such legislation &mdash; first in California, then in Washington.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gene Simmons of Kiss performs during the final night of the &ldquo;Kiss Farewell Tour&rdquo; on Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini\/Invision\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gene Simmons: Music royalty bill protects future stars<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3691,"featured_media":2519284,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-collage-dz2ahfnne-1765306348540-e1765307254180.jpg?1765289272&amp;w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[38486,68508,42223,68509,68510],"class_list":["post-2519283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-elvis-presley","tag-gene-simmons","tag-music-industry","tag-musician-royalty","tag-protecting-artists"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/image-collage-dz2ahfnne-1765306348540-e1765307254180.jpg?1765289272&amp;w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3691"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2519283"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519283\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2519287,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2519283\/revisions\/2519287"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2519284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2519283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2519283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2519283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}