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104.3 KBIG censoring songs

Gregg. said:
Perhaps KIIS-FM, a Top 40 station aiming a bit younger, isn't as concerned with some spicy lyrics.
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So fun, unrelated story:

During the chorus of Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" (the smash hit from 2009), she repeatedly sings "p-p-p-oker face f-f-f-oker face."

Pretty much 99.9% of stations across the WORLD ran the lyrics as-is. Because, there's nothing wrong with the lyric, right?

Well, at Wango Tango, Lady Gaga admitted that KIIS was the only station that figured it out (and censored it):

 
Gregg. said:
the drop in ratings for Urban and Rhythmic stations in recent years is partly because they must edit so many of the lyrics on popular hip hop songs. That may be further driving young listeners to non-broadcast sources for their music.
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At the risk of sounding like a jerk, but this is WRONG.

Hip-hop has been heavily edited since it first hit the air in the early '90s. Heck, I had no idea that the end of "Forgot About Dre" back in '99 had a cannabis reference because on every station, it ended with "SMOKE... every day!"

What's killing hip-hop is what kind of killed rock in the late-1970s. It's stretching its legs from the popular era of the genre and trying new discovery. Unfortunately, in that process, it isn't the "fun" party music that makes great crossover hits. New hip hop is kind of heavy. And there are very few jams you'll see suburbanite kids bumping to on the cul-de-sac basketball court.

Kids find what they like, dig into that specific artist's catalogue on Spotify/YouTube, and ignore the rest. Great for Spotify. Bad for Power 106.

Side note: Some of the bigger hits (sans the Drake-Kendrick beef) all sound a bit too much the same. Snoop complained about it about a decade ago:


I'm worried hip-hop is going the direction of the Active Rock format. It'll never die. But I worry it'll become less and less crossover to CHR.
 
henry said:
At the risk of sounding like a jerk, but this is WRONG.

Hip-hop has been heavily edited since it first hit the air in the early '90s. Heck, I had no idea that the end of "Forgot About Dre" back in '99 had a cannabis reference because on every station, it ended with "SMOKE... every day!"

What's killing hip-hop is what kind of killed rock in the late-1970s. It's stretching its legs from the popular era of the genre and trying new discovery. Unfortunately, in that process, it isn't the "fun" party music that makes great crossover hits. New hip hop is kind of heavy. And there are very few jams you'll see suburbanite kids bumping to on the cul-de-sac basketball court.

Kids find what they like, dig into that specific artist's catalogue on Spotify/YouTube, and ignore the rest. Great for Spotify. Bad for Power 106.

Side note: Some of the bigger hits (sans the Drake-Kendrick beef) all sound a bit too much the same. Snoop complained about it about a decade ago:


I'm worried hip-hop is going the direction of the Active Rock format. It'll never die. But I worry it'll become less and less crossover to CHR.
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That was "The Next Episode" that ended with the weed reference, not "Forgot About Dre"
 
Take me back to the 70s and 80s where nothing was censored (for the most part). Money by Pink Floyd and the word BS sung in full. Steve Miller’s Jet Airliner and those funky “kicks” were often funky s-word. Love to Love You Baby, Afternoon Delight, - what happened? Now they have to edit “tight jeans”? I know - that was a different time period but they are really taking it too far IMO.
 
henry said:
(Side note: KBZN "Now 97.9" in Salt Lake City was so careful, they have an edit of Katy Perry's Teenage Dream that edits the lyrics "in my skintight jeans" to "on the dance-floor scene.")
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That's why.

Cumulus used to edit out "praying to a God I don't believe in" from the Script's "Breakeven".
 
Is there some kind of data that shows this sort of gratuitous, heavy-handed censorship doesn't offend more people than playing the song the way the artist intended would?
 
Theater of My Mind said:
Is there some kind of data that shows this sort of gratuitous, heavy-handed censorship doesn't offend more people than playing the song the way the artist intended would?
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In the same way, is there no thought given by the artist or the label about who that music will offend? Perhaps the small children who hear this language and how it affects their lives? Someone should be responsible for what is being said.
 
TheBigA said:
That doesn't address the question. Why is there no responsibility in the studio when the music is being made?
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Responsibility for what? Not writing music that sings about skintight jeans or a city on fire? Not being clairvoyant enough to not sing about P. Diddy 15 years before he'd be arrested for sex trafficking? Did you even read this thread do you just feel like you have to write some self-righteous reply to every post whether you comprehend it or not?
 
Theater of My Mind said:
Did you even read this thread do you just feel like you have to write some self-righteous reply to every post whether you comprehend it or not?
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I've been a very active contributor to this thread. I haven't replied to everything. Just the ones that motivate a response.

Artists have the right to say what they want, and radio stations have the right to either not play it or edit it. Seems basic to me.
 
TheBigA said:
Artists have the right to say what they want, and radio stations have the right to either not play it or edit it. Seems basic to me.
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Should art galleries gratuitously censor the paintings they hang too? Both the gallery and the radio company have the option to not exhibit the art if they can't handle it. This isn't even about broadcasters complying with the FCC's profanity rules. I think most people would prefer to see/hear the work as the artist intended it.
 
TheBigA said:
Fantastic. The music is available online for their own private enjoyment. What's the problem?
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Sure, drive the audience away for no good reason. All these things add up to why people hate radio, or at least don't care about it anymore. Big thumbs up from David Eduardo on this too. Good insight into how management types still don't get it.
 
Theater of My Mind said:
Sure, drive the audience away for no good reason.
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You assume everyone thinks like you. They don't. Some expect family friendly music on the radio. Hearing suggestive language can also drive the audience away. If it causes them to complain to the FCC, that's another headache. The people who want obscene music aren't listening to radio anyway. You can't drive away people who aren't there in the first place.
 


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