By L.A. Stevens
August 10, 2026 (Washington, D.C.) — Somewhere in a Washington, D.C. filing cabinet, a deal is being negotiated that will decide how much money songwriters make for the next five years. Most of those songwriters have no idea it's happening. That's the problem.
The Songwriters Guild of America, Jeff Price's
Word Collections, Eminem's publishing company Eight Mile Style,
and other pro-creator organizations have asked the
U.S. Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) to reject a conflicted royalty rate deal and send it back for real, arm's-length negotiations — the kind creators actually get a seat at.
Here's the backstory. Every five years, the CRB — a small federal panel almost nobody outside the music business has heard of, yet one that quietly shapes how songwriters get paid — sets the "mechanical rate":
the per-song royalty owed to songwriters and composers whenever their music is pressed onto vinyl, sold as a download or licensed in another physical form. This round, Phonorecords V, covers 2028 through 2032. It's shaping up to be a fight worth paying attention to.
In late June, the major labels along with the American Association of Independent Music, the National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA) and the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), proposed a settlement to the CRB. Their pitch, in essence: leave the existing rate structure alone. That sounds harmless enough — maybe even fair. But our joint objection filed with Word Collections, as well as those filed by Eight Mile Style and others, say it's anything but.
Read More - INCLUDING THE FINE PRINTWhether you're a pro songwriter or the heir to a catalog, there's a lot to look after: licensing, royalties, copyrights and getting your rights back. We can help, and we do it for less than anyone else. We're songwriters too, so we we know how important it is to hold on to your royalties.
PRO SERVICES -Not published yet but driven to make music? As a developing songwriter member, you get feedback on your songs from pro hit writers, live gigs, contract reviews, gear giveaways and discounts on Awards entries and dual memberships.
GROW YOUROur work in Washington has helped raise royalty rates, opened the courts to songwriters whose work gets stolen and shut down large-scale piracy. What's next? We want the MLC to pay all songwriters, plus we're taking on the companies that train AI on human-made songs without ever paying the writers of those songs.
ISSUES THATShow off your best songs. The SGA Awards spotlight the best songs from rising songwriters. Winners get trophies, cash prizes, live gigs and a workshop with a multi-diamond pro writer. It's a great place to get noticed.
105 Continental Place, Suite 320 Brentwood, TN 37027
www.songwritersguild.com
(615) 742-9945
