Payola, KISS, Spitzer and Music

[sleepyhead]

Some thoughts now that CC honchos in San Antonio are divesting "bodies" over the holidays in order to make there properties more "appealing" to the "investment" group that's taking over. Did John Hogan ever really give a bleep about radio?

Here's a novel thought. Music radio was at its best when music people in the record industry plugged product to music people in radio and produced artists such as Aretha, Hendrix, Dylan, Floyd, Wonder and countless others who'd never get a shot unless someone greased someone.

The history of payola goes way back to 1950's America getting all bent out of shape as to why there son or daughter was listening to that race music as compared to Pat Boone.

People pay for shelf space at Wal-Mart so why not radio! Do any of you remember when KB produced hops and concerts, made money, titilized there listeners and everyone was happy. Can you even attempt to argue as to the integrity of the present state of the radio and recording industries as compared to the 1960's and 70's when payola was rampant.

Admit it. It was better when music people who cared about tunes and artists rubbed elbows with other music people to promote music.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Grease, Man

If record companies want to pay a radio station to introduce an artist, that's not a problem. You just have to tell listeners that you're paying for airplay.

I'm not sure where you get the idea that there was lots of payola back in the "good old days" of the '60s and '70s. It's possible that it was more widespread because jocks actually picked their own music, but I doubt that it holds a candle to the organized "spin programs" of recent times.

One of the problems with music today is that playlists are so tight that it's difficult to get a new artist any airtime. Today's formats are much tighter, and programmers are much less likely to go out on a limb with when careers are made or broken by tenths of a share. Also, there's virtually no emphasis on teen radio today, which is where musical trends were made or broken "back in the day". The few stations with numbers dominant enough to allow them some playlist freedom hold enormous sway.

The thought that payola is good for the music industry, or for radio, makes no sense to me. If the music industry wants to buy spins, all they have to do is ANNOUNCE that they're buying spins. In fact, it would seem to me that a music company might actively market the fact that "We believe in new music. Here's someone you need to hear"

Payola is a dirty little secret that keeps money off the books, and hides it from the tax man. I'll bet that the recording companies are happy to get that monkey off their backs so certain programmers and mega-corps can't hold a gun to their head to extort money, goods, and services in return for airplay. From a listener's standpoint, the fact that songs would have to be played openly as an advertisement may mean fewer commercials in that particular hour.

 

[sleepyhead]

There's no argument. Listen to the Bills game this weekend and ask yourself just what the hell they're selling. People actually buy time on NFL broadcasts for injury timeouts. In effect when a player pulls a hamstring there's a sponsor lined up to "pay" for time while some over-paid jock lies on the turf in pain. How sick is that! Does payola even compare?

Payola was never really that "dirty". When the major networks bailed on radio back in the late 1950's and concentrated on TV operations, dozens of ownership groups started playing tunes to fill time. Some were very successful at it. Very few operators who survived the 60's and 70's got ahead by being suits. They'd been burned by suits.

For the past ten to fifteen years corporate returned to broadcast radio and, as far as I can tell, can't play the game. AM drive jocks are reduced the being shock "pottymouths". The playlists, as mentioned, are tighter. The freaking Dixie Chicks are being blackballed for making comments overseas while in 1966 Bob Dylan was on top of the charts. And what about the Gansgta stuff. Do you really beleive that anyone would promote it unless they were some lame, faceless suit.

Radio today, as became apparent over forty years ago, ain't that big. It holds less than 10% of the media bucks. Some suits in San Antonio thought that the medium could be a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Not so. Fortunatly the medium has survived by being music intensive. Talk and Sports have revitalized the AM band, which, if you really think about it, should be dead. Radio continues to demonstrate a certain flexibility. Elbow grease so to speak.

In the long run radio will continue to be the source for listeners to enjoy music. There's a dark side however. When Governor Spitzer goes after music people instead of Limbaugh I get miffed. When Spitzer slams payola, instead of the NFL Network hijacking my free football games, then I'm baffled. When Spitzer targets Buffalo and Rochester, when we all know you can't have a hit record unless some dweeb, who kisses some suits ass in NYC (which is an actual city that lies within the state of New York and is Spitzers hometown) really calls the shots, I can get somewhat overheated. When folks blindly think that payola is more than some minor transgression as compared to...well pick a headline...