Kanye West is headed to the White House, where he will witness a historic moment in entertainment law. According to TMZ, Ye will attend the signing ceremony for the Music Modernization Act, a bill that was unanimously passed by the Senate less than a month ago.
The multifaceted legislation is intended to modernize copyright protection for recording artists and songwriters in the digital and streaming age. MMA consists of three separate acts: The Music Modernization Act of 2018, which simplifies the royalties and licensing process as it pertains to streaming; The CLASSICS Act, which ensures satellite radio and digital services properly compensate artists for pre-1972 music; and the Allocation for Music Producers Act, which allows producers and engineers to receive larger payouts if their work is used on satellite or streaming platforms.
Kanye will watch President Donald Trump sign the MMA into law this Thursday. Recording Academy President Neil Portnow will also attend the ceremony, according to TMZ.
As previously reported, Ye will stop by the White House on Thursday for a lunch meeting with POTUS. The two are expected to address a wide range of topics, including criminal justice reform, Chicago gang violence, and American manufacturing.
News of Kanye’s White House visit broke Monday, more than a week after the rapper gave an un-televised pro-Trump speech on Saturday Night Live.
“The blacks want always Democrats.… You know it’s like the plan they did, to take the fathers out the home and put them on welfare.… Does anybody know about that? That’s a Democratic plan,” he said on the SNL stage. “There’s so many times I talk to, like, a white person about this and they say, ‘How could you like Trump? He’s racist.’ Well, uh, if I was concerned about racism, I would’ve moved out of America a long time ago.”
