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.

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Officer Columns, President's Message

Tino Gagliardi – AFM International President

Status Report—AFM Pension Fund

March 4, 2019

If you’ve been following the status of the American Federation of Musicians and Employers’ Pension Fund (AFM-EPF), you know it has been facing severe funding problems since the Great Recession, despite earning relatively good investment returns since then and receiving a significant contribution increase

Recruitment, Retention, and Organizing with a Revitalized Music Performance Trust Fund

February 4, 2019

After suffering decades of budget reductions from funding cuts imposed by regressive record industry proposals that were first agreed to by the Federation in 1983, new money from online interactive digital distribution and licensing of sound recordings, bargained from the industry by the Federation in 2017, have breathed new life into MPTF.

Live Concert Venues and Media Rights: Are Musicians Sold Short?

January 2, 2019

When we consider fair wages and working conditions for musicians working roadshows, the Federation’s Pamphlet B and Short Engagement Tour Agreements (SET) are the gold standard.

Streaming: The Economy of Listening

December 2, 2018

Below are excerpts from a keynote speech given by SoundExchange President and CEO Mike Huppe at the AFM-FIM International Streaming Conference held in Burbank, California, October 2-3.

Rallying in Support of Striking Lyric Opera Orchestra Musicians

November 2, 2018

Following is the text of a speech Ray Hair gave October 12, in Chicago’s Daley Plaza in support of striking Lyric Opera Orchestra musicians.

AFM-FIM Conference: Musicians Are Entitled to a Fair Share of the Streaming Pie

October 2, 2018

At the AFM-FIM conference on October 2 and 3 in Burbank, CA, AFM and FIM members will discuss fair pay for musicians in television and streaming.

Theater Musicians Association—25 Years of Workplace Involvement

September 2, 2018

TMA is the newest AFM player conference. It began its journey 25 years ago, and is now comprised of chapters organized among locals that negotiate local agreements with theatrical venues and presenters that book Pamphlet B tours.

Networks Feel Street Heat at Negotiations

August 2, 2018

The #RespectTheBand campaign resonated—prompting coverage from Variety and Deadline Hollywood. Never before had concerted activity toward the networks and their source-program producers occurred on such an aggressive scale.

Negotiations Roundup—A Capsule View of Talks in Progress

July 3, 2018

The Federation’s negotiations with its bargaining partners, whether on an industry-wide, single-, or multi-employer basis, are a never-ending process.

The AFM-EPF and the Multiemployer Pension Crisis

May 2, 2018

The United States currently faces a worsening multiemployer pension crisis. One recent report estimated that 114 multiemployer pension plans across the country will become insolvent over the next two decades.

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