What I Know About the MMA

In the music industry, the MMA stands for the Music Modernization Act. This act is responsible for the modernization of music in terms of copyright legislation in consumer preferences in the new technological age. The actual MMA itself is separated into three parts. There is the Modernization Act which deals with blanket and mechanical licensing, the Classics Protection and Access Act which deals with bringing songs before 1972 into the federal copyright system, and Allocations for Music Producers which is there to insure that music producers and sound engineers receive royalties for their sound recordings.

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In my opinion, one of the most interesting parts of the MMA is the Classics Protection and Access Act because it provides a valid point in the modernization of old and especially classical music. This act basically states that music made before 1972 must be federally copyrighted into the new system. This also means that if you use music made before 1972 for commercial use, you must also acquire a license in order to play the sound recordings. You may be exempt for noncommercial reasons but you must qualify first for the exemption. There are also rules placed in how long a copyright goes for, which is usually around 95 years after the song was recorded or created.

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Overall, my opinion on the MMA and especially the Classics Protection and Access Act is that it is very useful in this day and age because a lot of artists sample music from the past. I know for sure that a lot of Hip Hop, Rap, and some R&B artist sample classical and old music for the sake of adding a new flair to their music. With this act in place, I feel like it will make artists give credit where credit is due. This is so important because I believe we as artists can definitely be as creative as we can to reinvent content, but ultimately nothing is new under the sun.

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