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A Minimum Quota For Home-Grown Music Played On Maltese Airwaves Could Soon Become A Reality

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A quota for home-grown music to be played on Maltese radio could soon become a reality under the Cultural Strategy for the next ten years.

The proposal aims to give both listeners and artists more exposure to music made in Malta by setting a minimum quota of 15% for all radio stations. It would include songs with Maltese lyrics and any music composed, written or performed by a citizen or resident of Malta.

“Basically, we want to boost royalties to distribute to Maltese artists,” Toni Attard, who led the drafting of the cultural policy told Lovin Malta.

“The more Maltese music is played on the radio, the more money can go to artists, especially those who depend on the arts for income.”

Giving Malta’s home-grown music more exposure could also help artists diversify their income streams and open the door to booking gigs by getting their names out there.

“More exposure could mean more gigs, more incentives to produce content and improve the status of an artist on the islands,” Attard added.

Currently, there are no quotas for playing Maltese music attached to the broadcast in Malta. However, with a minimum quota of just 15%, it might mean that the same popular artists are played in rotation as opposed to smaller, underground names.

Broadcasting quotas are already in place in other countries. In France for example, 40% of content played by private radio stations must originate from France during peak listening hours. There’s also an additional minimum percentage kept for “new talent”. On public stations like Radio France, there’s a quota of 50% and a lot more for emerging artists.

While it has been criticised by private radio stations in France, the positive effect for French artists has been proven. In 2018, 19 0f 20 bestselling albums in France were by home-grown artists while occupying 80% of the top 200.

You can read the 2021 National Cultural Policy here. Stay tuned for a breakdown of the policy.

Do you agree with quotas for Maltese radio?

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Sam is a journalist, artist and writer based in Malta. Send her pictures of hands or need-to-know stories on politics or art on [email protected].

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