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.
March 3, 2014
Kings of Leon’s latest video for their tune “Temple,” features footage in and around Music City shot on a 8mm camera to give it a blurry, nostalgic look. It also features the children of the Followill brothers, all members of Local 257 (Nashville, TN) who make-up the group. The video is a complete family affair […]
Read MoreMarch 2, 2014
Production of the film Midnight Rider based on Gregg Allman’s autobiography, My Cross to Bear, was shut down after a tragic accident in February. The production crew was filming on a CSX track in Georgia when a train came through unexpectedly and killed one crew member and injured several others. Allman is a member of […]
Read MoreMarch 1, 2014
Local 802 (New York City) member Rosanne Cash laughs about how she’s “union made,” as a 35-year member of the AFM and AFTRA. She says she was encouraged to join the AFM by her father, Johnny Cash. “It was an honor to join the union; it means you are a professional. I became part of […]
Read MoreFebruary 24, 2014
The United State Postal Service has revealed their list of postage stamps that have been approved for production in the upcoming years. Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and James Brown are the newest stamps to be part of the Music Icons series. Hendrix and Joplin will be available this year, and Brown in 2015. The list […]
Read MoreFebruary 24, 2014
There’s a new app that allows you to down and upload composer John Cage’s 4’33” with your phone. Perhaps his most well-known composition, 4’33” is a piece performed without deliberate sound, but rather it’s four minutes and 33 seconds of environmental noises. Users of the app are invited to upload a three-minute “performance” of ambient sounds in their […]
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
Stellar Sounds The music for Battlestar Galactica plays a larger, more dramatic role than the tunes featured in many other TV shows, and it has grown since the show—a reimagining of the original 1978 series—began in 2004. “It’s a slow, evolving process,” McCreary says. “I’m allowed to adapt the music as the show evolves. They’ve […]
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
Harpist Yolanda Kondonassis of Local 802 (New York City) fell in love with the harp during a family trip to Chicago when she was nine-years-old. Admiring the Valentine’s Day window display of harps and angels in the Lyon & Healy store on Ogden Avenue, Kondonassis and her mother were captivated by the instrument. Soon after, […]
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
“When you start writing for the writers too much it gets too poetic and over-the-top,” Jackson says. “The regular people out there who made me successful, the fans, they don’t appreciate that kind of thing. They’d just rather have something that makes their day easier.” Although Jackson doesn’t want to get “too preachy” he still […]
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
Lington, 39, moved to the US when he was 21-years-old and spent his first three weeks sleeping on the couch of his friend, drummer and member of Local 47, Mark Schulman. “It was a brand new city and I didn’t really know anybody—it was very tough,” says Lington. “I probably told myself beforehand it would […]
Read MoreFebruary 19, 2014
Cummings’ move back to New Brunswick was the perfect moment to do just that. Saint John was preparing several major projects to bring new jobs to the area and to rejuvenate its workforce. Seeing the opportunity to publicize these projects, along with the name of his hometown, Cummings chose to record the John Sebastian hit, […]
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