Update: Pay to Play?

The music community is taking sides over the Performance Rights Act.

It's a bill that will force radio stations to pay copyright owners and artists royalties for playing their music.

Senator Blanch Lincoln is chief sponsor of the Local Radio Freedom Act. It's a resolution directly opposed to the Performance Rights Act.

If any group knows about promoting music during rough times, it's the Ted Ludwig Trio.

The group's New Orlean's melody found a home in Little Rock after Hurricane Katrina.

"Hurricane Katrina of course destroyed our home, my mother and I," says Ludwig.

There's a push by Congress to give struggling artists a boost, by having radio stations pay to play their music.

"I always feel artist are underappreciated of all types including musicians," says Ludwig.

Ludwig, though, sees both sides of the issue.

The radio stations are actually responsible for making a lot of the more popular artist famous.

"Without the radio stations playing the music those artist would not be around," says Crain Media Group operations manager Sonny Victory.

The details of the act are still being worked-out. The idea is an annual rate based on station's profits. Some reports put the fee as low as $500 to as high as $5,000.

"All companies are going through a hard time and the more that they put a burden on us as far having to pay for these fees the harder it's going to get for everybody involved," says Victory.

With two CD's under their belts, the Ted Ludwig Trio says the relationship between artist and radio goes together like a bass, guitar and drums.

The Ted Ludwig Trio plays in Little Rock twice a month at the Capital Hotel and The Afterthought.

A Senate Committee approved the Performance Rights Act last week. A similar bill was already approved by the House.

Sheryl Crow, Nancy Sinatra, Hebie Hancok and Billy Corgan have appeared on Capitol Hill to voice support for the Performance Right's Act.

Scroll down to read a statement from Senator Blanch Lincoln:

"As a rural state, Arkansans depend on our radio stations for local news," Lincoln said. "The performance tax would cost Arkansas's radio stations more than $9 million a year, threatening the stability of our local businesses that are not only the source of important information, but also the source of jobs and financial support in our communities. Businesses and families already are struggling through this tough economy, and the performance tax further threatens our local radio industry and the quality programming it provides."