Now is the right time to become an American Federation of Musicians member. From ragtime to rap, from the early phonograph to today's digital recordings, the AFM has been there for its members. And now there are more benefits available to AFM members than ever before, including a multi-million dollar pension fund, excellent contract protection, instrument and travelers insurance, work referral programs and access to licensed booking agents to keep you working.
As an AFM member, you are part of a membership of more than 80,000 musicians. Experience has proven that collective activity on behalf of individuals with similar interests is the most effective way to achieve a goal. The AFM can negotiate agreements and administer contracts, procure valuable benefits and achieve legislative goals. A single musician has no such power.
The AFM has a proud history of managing change rather than being victimized by it. We find strength in adversity, and when the going gets tough, we get creative - all on your behalf.
Like the industry, the AFM is also changing and evolving, and its policies and programs will move in new directions dictated by its members. As a member, you will determine these directions through your interest and involvement. Your membership card will be your key to participation in governing your union, keeping it responsive to your needs and enabling it to serve you better. To become a member now, visit www.afm.org/join.
January 1, 2021
At this writing, Congress is now operating in a lame duck session. Also as of this writing, Hawaii is the final state to certify its presidential election results, making President-Elect Joe Biden the clear winner with 306 electoral votes to Donald Trump’s 232 electoral votes. This cleared the path for certified electors to meet in […]
Read MoreDecember 1, 2020
Since the 2008 US presidential election, the word “Hope” has loomed large in Americans’ political psyche. Each election since then has seen the electorate’s political arc bend toward an almost disparate political direction, hoping for a resolution to a number of crushing national crises. In 2008, it was the hope that a man named Obama […]
Read MoreNovember 1, 2020
The loss of Ginsburg has indeed resonated among those of us in the music industry who constantly look for Americans of great stature to help validate our existence.
Read MoreOctober 1, 2020
The 2020 federal elections hold the promise of a new normal for Americans caught in the vicious trifecta of an economic downturn, a debilitating public health pandemic, and an employment meltdown that has taken hold of not only our personal lives but, as musicians, has turned our industry completely on its head without the immediate […]
Read MoreAugust 31, 2020
On July 17, 2020, the American Federation of Musicians lost a true champion of our industry, of civil and human rights, and of arts and culture in general. The Honorable John Robert Lewis, first elected to the Congress of the United States in 1986, serving 17 terms as a representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District, […]
Read MoreJune 29, 2020
Throughout our 123-year history, from the dark days of Jim Crow when the subsidiary/segregated locals were established, to present times, the American Federation of Musicians eventually made great progress with the integration of musicians of color and underrepresented populations into our union. This was accomplished by demanding that all musicians be afforded the opportunity to […]
Read MoreJune 12, 2020
In this update from Alfonso Pollard, see where the AFM stands with progress on federal issues such as the CARES and HEROES Acts, the AM-FM Act and more.
Read MoreMay 7, 2020
The AFM’s coordinated federal response to COVID-19 has included engagement with the AFL-CIO, supported use of PPE in the workplace and more.
Read MoreMarch 30, 2020
From March 2-4, AFM International President Ray Hair met with Representative Judy Chu (D-CA) in the Speaker’s Office suite inside the Capitol Building in early March to discuss the Bipartisan Artist Tax Parity Act
Read MoreFebruary 12, 2020
The bill, promoted by the AFM and the Music First Coalition, of which President Hair sits on the executive board, helps the AFM keep it’s promise to fight for a performance right in terrestrial radio.
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