george says hi...

so me and four guys from a little band in okc headed to washington, dc last week...and i have to say it was a fabulously great experience. i was a little apprehensive for a couple of reasons.

one, traveling with them is often very annoying. two, e was in charge of setting this outing up so i didn't know what to expect about anything. and well i'm a planner so i was a little stressed not knowing all the details.

keep in mind all i know is that there is a huge internet radio/royalty something going on and the band is coming to participate in a meeting or panel or demonstration...i have no idea. i know that we are going to dc and there will be meeting with our state senators. so we get there and quickly find out that e is participating in a senate staff briefing in about an hour. basically he was on a panel discussion with other musicians (one being the bass player for the decemberists...pretty cool) to discuss the importance of internet radio to them. senate staffers will be there to listen and ask questions - and the hope is that they will report back to their bosses the importance of the topic - in this case it is co-sponsoring a bill that will change the status of the internet radio royalty issue.

so he speaks, the guys play an outdoor concert with the capitol building in the background...good times.

tuesday we find out we will meeting with staffers from various senators and congressmen offices about the topic. joining us in our meetings is a lobbyist. fascinating. fascinating is the only way i can describe the experience. seeing how the lobbyist works, asking questions about the process, finding out what staffers know and educating them about the topic and learning that maybe if we scream loud enough we could change the direction of things.

it may sound cheesy but i think i have a little bit more faith in our system. i have better understanding of the conflicts that lawmakers must face. i feel compelled to play a bigger role in things. and maybe encourage you to do the same. so on that note...

CALL YOUR SENATORS AND YOUR REPRESENTATIVE NOW TO ASK THEM TO CO-SPONSOR THE INTERNET RADIO EQUALITY ACT, S. 1353 IN THE SENATE AND H.R. 2060 IN THE HOUSE,The future of Internet radio is in immediate danger. Royalty rates for webcasters have been drastically increased by a recent ruling and are due to go into effect on July 15 (retroactive to Jan 1, 2006!). If the increased rates remain unchanged, the majority of webcasters will go bankrupt and silent on this date. Internet radio needs your help! The Internet Radio Equality Act has recently been introduced in both the House and Senate to save the Internet radio industry. Please call your senators and your representative to ask them to co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act.

i don't understand all the ins and outs of this ruling but i do know that it will be detrimental to independent artists (especially those that don't fit the mainstream, commercial radio mold) and how they are able to distribute their music. and i believe this is just a way for the big labels and mega radio conglomerates to keep control of their industry.

anyway, you can learn more about the ruling and how it will affect Internet radio stations, independent artists and the music industry at http://www.savenetradio.org/ or better yet you can find contact information for your lawmakers and give them a call.

i'll post some pictures of our trip soon...until then go call mary fallin and tell her you support faith, family, freedom and independent musicians.