Rage Against the Machine: Why the Music Modernization Act Is but the First Step in Musicians’ Battle to Reclaim the Value of Their Works

Abstract

Digital streaming’s rise as the primary mode of music consumption revolutionized the music industry. This revolution made it increasingly difficult for musical artists to profit from their work. For years, antiquated music copyright law failed to effectively regulate prominent streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. In 2018, Congress enacted the Music Modernization Act (MMA) to bring copyright law into the twenty-first century. Title I of the MMA instituted a new process for distributing royalties to musicians and created the Mechanical Licensing Collective—an independent nonprofit agency—to administer this process. Although the MMA served as a beneficial compromise between songwriters and streaming services, it fails to adequately safeguard the right of musical artists to profit from their music in the digital era. This Note argues that Congress must amend the MMA to ensure songwriters receive equitable compensation for their creative content.