Here's what I know: Independent promoters were all outlawed at the major labels a long time ago. Indies only work indie artists and labels. Today at major labels, promoters are employees, and everything they do is under legal scrutiny. Anyone who deals with label promo people fills out loads of forms that say there is no quid pro quo. I once was given an interview with an artist, and a form that said I didn't have to play that artist's music. So why would I do the interview? But that's what they do to eliminate the accusations of payola. Meanwhile, Taylor Swift records for an independent label, and she doesn't seem to be hurting with radio airplay. Same with Jason Aldean. The problem isn't payola or indie promotion. It's bad music and bad promotion.
One thing this article doesn't talk about at all is the payola that takes place in non-broadcast media. And that's an area where idies are superstars, just as they were in the 80s. But keep in mind that payola doesn't mean accepting money for airplay. That is perfectly legal. But you must identify the airplay as paid. Back in the 50s, some DJs picked the music they played, and occasionally took bribes. In the 60s, DJs lost that power, and music directors made those decisions. Today, some music decisions are made at the corporate level. The music industry doesn't like that system, because they can't influence it, and they say the music decisions are bland. So the reality is that whatever system is put in place, you'll have artists and labels complaining.
The reality is that the United States is the only country that has payola laws, and they only apply to OTA radio. The only reason it gets brought up is that some artists think their music is better than it really is, and can't understand why they aren't getting airplay. The label needs to blame someone, so they blame radio. I think we need to ask ourselves if this charade is really necessary, since the rest of the world seems to do just fine without it. Artists should make better music, their labels and managers should come up with better ways to market it, and then none of this will matter.
