Why is most of the music on mainstream radio today just......well plain bad ?

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Permalink Reply by Denise Brigham on October 27, 2009 at 11:10am

Hi Steven - This is Adrian. I am Denise's manager and executive producer. We have been heavily involved in a radio promotion campaign for months now with her new album and I can shed some light on this. Actually you answered your own question when you said "formula-based". First if you aren't aware 2/3 of U.S. radio stations are owned by just three large corporations with Clear Channel being the mega-monster. Years back when the FCC changed the rules for ownership these large syndicates started devouring independent stations as quickly as they could write the checks. In some cases in smaller markets they would buy up a station just so someone else couldn't get it and then they'd just plant a satellite dish on the roof and feed the programming from a central office. The only local employee would be the janitor.

As for the music itself, it goes beyond being a formula. Format play lists are for the most part done at the corporate headquarters. Local program/music directors have almost no say in what goes on the air, and can get their wrists slapped big time if they don't follow company dictates. At the central planning offices three things effect what gets on the air. First is the influence of the major labels and their marketing budgets. When they roll out a new song and have ads everywhere and the artist all over TV shows, etc., that, along with the labels radio promoters breathing down the necks of the PD's, pressures the network to push that song. There is still no guarantee even with that though if the song/group is not similar to what in their eyes is "safe" material. New artists or music goes into focus-group testing, and that is very formulaic. Finally the radio business is so competitive over audiences that the PD's and their departments become VERY chart conscious. They only want to play the big hits because those are what they believe are the most popular. That becomes a Catch 22 for new artists because if you're not charting you won't get on the air, and of course you'll never get on the air if you're not on the charts. Welcome to the world of corporate radio!

There is some hope however as this whole scenario is starting to unravel. The major labels and their heavy-handed influence are fading, and two of the three giant networks are in the process of going into bankruptcy. In the coming years both the labels and networks will break up into smaller groups with more local and niche oriented marketing. Internet radio will be the future as people will be able to not only tune in on their computers, but also their web capable cars and cell phones. Then listeners will be able to choose from thousands of stations all over the world that will offer an unprecedented variety of styles and music. Sounds good right? Not really, it will probably hurt music very badly!

Now any kid with computer, a few hundred dollars for software, and a microphone can record stuff in his basement and then get it on iTunes and and some net station somewhere. He doesn't even have to be any good, auto-tune takes care of that! We are already seeing the pop and rock markets flooded with a lot of garbage that just take up space and time. Now add in the growing popularity of streaming and legitimate musicians have a huge problem facing them. When listeners can tune in and listen to what they want when they want there is no need buy the music, and royalty payments from streaming are so low as to be non-existent. When musicians/bands can't recover the cost of making an album there won't be a second, and you're going to wind up with nothing new except the basement/garage band junk. That is the scariest part of the future of music, and a challenge artists will have to face that is far worse than the current radio mess.

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Permalink Reply by Melodic Revolution Records on October 27, 2009 at 2:19pm

I have been saying this for a long time not in as much detail, but the point being the same. this is very well written and a shame that only a fraction of the people will ever read this and out of those that do read this wont care. how I long for the days when music was magical and meant something.I will re-post this on my other sites as it needs to be read.
Thanks nick

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Permalink Reply by Murky Red on March 19, 2012 at 12:16pm

Well, I read all the posts, and I still don't know what to think of it. One thing is for sure: the future is very uncertain for musicians/bands. And I also think that we need another business model, but what?
It would be a good start if the music industry not only would look to how much they can earn, how much they can squeeze out an artist because the shareholders are too greedy, but really go back to the days when good music really still meant something. And maybe (but it's a little maybe) could the musicians themselves changes the situation.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but there are small lights in the dark. Some good internet radio stations select on quality; they don't play just whatever, and one can see on their fast growing audience that people appreciate this kind of approach. I would like to put my hope on that...

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Permalink Reply by Steven Jackson on October 27, 2009 at 2:56pm

I'm not so sure it is scary.
If people are recording in their basements...good for them !.
Sure a lot of it will be garbage but there will be some good stuff, how do I know ? just listen to some of the stuff on this station.

http://www.somojo.net/

You have to sift through and find the good stuff but isn't this what music should be about, discovery !!!
A lot of the great musicians have started in the garage/basement, they don't have to worry about following formulas or trying to please some A&R guy or Record Producer.
Personally I want variety in music, because the lame stuff on the radio just doesn't cut it for me.
If Commercial Radio stations are going the way of the Dodo because people are tired of the rubbish being offered then so be it, they've only got themselves to blame !.
Same with Record Labels who are hurting because people aren't buying Cd's.
Why aren't people buyings Cd's ? I'll tell you why because most are rubbish.
You can buy a Cd to listen to an artist's latest hit, and then the rest of the Cd is filler....this happens time and time again.
No wonder people just download the 'hits' again they have created this mess.
When good quality music is being created once again people will start buying Cds again.
But quite honestly most of the stuff out there is crap.
I go on Facebook and regularly people are asking me to vote for this artist or that artist so they'll get more exposure...but does this necessarily mean they are any good !!!. Most of the time ....no.
I always check them out, I don't just blindly vote....yes.
Unfortunately Record labels want artists who have 'Instant HIT potential' but for most musicians it doesn't work that way...an artist has to develop and that might take a few albums.
The Beatles didn't just become great...it took time.
A band like Genesis took years before they made any money, same with The Who and lots of others too.
You want 'Instant Stars' you'll get 'em but none will have any 'staying power'.
I really don't think the situation is as bleak as you paint it to be....
'the cream will always rise to the top'.

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Permalink Reply by Denise Brigham on October 27, 2009 at 4:42pm

I hear you Steven. We're in huge transformation period in the industry right now and the old model we've discussed is going away. The problem is there is no new model to replace it yet. It's plain and simple the music equivalent of the lawless old west, and depending on how everything lays out when the dust settles it might not be such a pretty picture. I'm hardly defending the old practices, but there was one good thing that came out of them, and that was mass market exposure for new and existing artists. If that goes away with the demise of the labels and their massive P/R departments, and radio and internet splitting into tens-of-thousands of tiny delivery channels, it will be extremely difficult for new artists to ever get enough exposure to generate the sales necessary to pay for recording the music in the first place, or to fill concerts big enough to pay for the expenses involved. When on-demand streaming becomes the main delivery method for music no one will even have to buy another CD or download, and that is going to be disastrous. It may not effect the kid with a beat box doing a rap song, but major productions, like the one we just did, will never see the light of day when the labels/investors won't have any way to recover the six figure production costs. We could very well be on the road to a future where there are no more stars or great bands, just a bunch of musicians playing their saxes in the train stations for tips. Hopefully there will develop new ways of reaching the large audiences necessary to support great talent and projects, regardless of the genre, but so far all we are seeing is an almost unstoppable fragmenting of the market, To me, that's very scary!

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Permalink Reply by Steven Jackson on October 27, 2009 at 5:45pm

There is an old saying and I believe it to be true....talent will find a way.
If someone can create music that is excellent people will find it, it just might take longer.

http://www.somojo.net/Steven_Jackson/

Like this guy.
He writes great music, has a decent voice and writes about stuff that is relevent today.
I believe great bands and musicians are out there and they will find a way.
It is probably a natural progression.
Like the end of the Disco era when Punk killed it off, this might be a way of seeing off the crap that is so pervasive right now.
I am not worried I think it's healthy, the record labels have only themselves to blame they created this mess.
It is a shame they didn't sign artists who actually had talent instead of the pretty 'one hit wonders' who look good but have about as much talent as my cat.
Maybe if people are doing home recordings we'll get away from the 'sterile' 'over-produced' sounds that pass as music and get back to some raw music that actually has feeling and sounds like it was created by human beings and not robots.
I for one as an artist welcome the change I think it is necessary.
Like I said I do believe that talent will always find a way.

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