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, 2022
A recent three-day web meeting of the International Labour Organization (ILO) was especially interesting. It not only confirmed many of the assumptions we had about the impact of COVID internationally, but it revealed alarming similarities between countries that could not be more different socially or economically. Further, there was affirmation of the necessity for change […]
Read MoreDecember 1, 2021
The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) ended October 23, 2021. CRB was a continuation of the Canada Emergency Recovery Benefit (CERB), first implemented April 2020, only weeks after the COVID-19 Pandemic was declared. A lifesaver for millions, the benefit saw an estimated 8.5 million Canadians accessing the $2000 per month within the first four months. Between September 2020 […]
Read MoreNovember 1, 2021
It’s not a secret that streaming companies and record labels profit colossally, some would say blasphemously, from the consumption of music, while artists are left savouring mere pennies. It follows as no surprise that the aforementioned entities are loathe to divulge information on how the artists’ share is calculated. In the United Kingdom, an influential […]
Read MoreOctober 1, 2021
More and more, artists are tiring of the notion that platforms such as Spotify pay a ridiculous 3/100 of a cent per stream. And, because of the way payout is weighted, the majority of the money goes to only the most heavily streamed artists. This is part of the “value gap.” Online content sharing platforms […]
Read MoreSeptember 1, 2021
by Alan Willaert, AFM Vice President from Canada The Bad Despite the fact that we are all completely fed up with the pandemic, we continue to be hampered by the new realities COVID has served up. Venues are still limited, in terms of occupancy, and now access is often restricted to those who have received […]
Read MoreAugust 1, 2021
The AFM in Canada has members from many different backgrounds, resulting in similar diversity in their politics. The polarization of right and left in the United States over the past few years has influenced Canada, both in how politicians present their platforms and in the manner in which information is filtered prior to public ingestion. […]
Read MoreJuly 1, 2021
As an author or songwriter, one has to love the concept of copyright. After centuries of debate, most effectively through the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), there are now both domestic laws and international treaties that protect your rights as a creator (with variances called National Treatment from country to country). As the creator and […]
Read MoreJune 1, 2021
For musicians, the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel—having live music resurface—will be excruciatingly slow. We already knew that. It’s common knowledge that having a large percentage of the public vaccinated and achieving herd immunity is key to venues reopening. Canada is not exempt from having its share of anti-vaxers, anti-maskers, and conspiracy theorists. Vaccine […]
Read MoreMay 1, 2021
Canada has a long history of union victories that have defined our society, prosperity, and social programmes. Within the labour movement’s success lay pertinent lessons. The established labour scene of the early 1900s was dominated by many small craft unions—each organized according to the identity of a specific skill, and therefore very exclusive. Meanwhile, unskilled […]
Read MoreApril 1, 2021
en français The longer the pandemic goes on, the more exposed the weaknesses in the social structure become. Those with precarious work (e.g. gigging musicians) have struggled for mere survival. When the “Great Reset” happens, certainly there are a plethora of improvements to be made. One of the major objectives of the Canadian Labour Congress […]
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