The radio industry never fails to impress and intrigue me with it's ever changing adopted formulas for success and the reaction of the generally dull (or so the playlist reflects) public that listens to and calls in requests from a twenty song-long rotation.
I had more faith in people than this.
TANGENT WARNING:
The most surprising aspect, to me at least, is that at the same time that I feel an uprising amongst many eighteen to twenty-somethings towards better music recognition, there's a sudden backlash of a larger majority who are happy with the bling bling producer and capitalist executive driven array of artists that continually poke their heads out of the polluted ocean called the music industry only to get a cramp and drown right back down again after half a years stint of wading in the muck. And then, instead of realizing that these jellyfish are fleeting, stereotypical representations of society and people and only contribute to the degeneration of many youthful minds, they get reincarnated into a weaker and duller strain again... and again... and you guessed it... again. If you want proof of evolution (or devolution) people, just take a macroscope to the recording industry. God didn't create Britney Spears... A lack of Darwinist progression has since sustained life forms that wouldn't survive if put to the test of nature.
Back to radio. Earlier I was only referring to the small amount of generic stations that control the major markets. I know that hoards and HOARDS of stations exist out there that are run on integrity and have made a great effort towards moving the industry back into a better direction (including podcasts and the like). Unfortunately, the ones with the money are the ones that can touch the most ears, which in turn gives them more money, which means more ears, and the more ears they touch before you do, the more ears you lack and the more ears are forced to listen to formula after formula. Just ask Clearchannel. Do they even care about music?
That's wrong of me to say, because I know that most people in the recording industry are there because of a passion for music, and if they had their way, would saturate the market with legitimately interesting and new artists. But they have to answer to Mr. Boss who is wondering why the budget has been cut $5 billion this year... What a stupid idea, to alienate your listeners because of money. They wired their own time bomb!
Maybe it's because of my position as a music industry major that I encounter more people with what I think are better ideals. Maybe I'm a biased bastard because I hate all that other crap. Maybe I'm not. Either way, I'm hoping the wave of digital growth will result in the majority of music listeners realizing that they don't have to rely on being spoon fed anymore. Radio has a long way to go in this overhaul.
