It's rare for mainstream radio stations to get deep with what they play. Look at someone like Bill Withers. Lucky if you hear anything outside of "Ain't No Sunshine", "Lean On Me", and "Use Me". It's all based on what was the most successful on the pop chart, and to me it's a disgrace because while having chart divisions is a bit pointless, it did show what audiences really liked. Yet for the most part, even if it's an R&B station, you're going to hear it cater to the pop chart, rarely the R&B chart.

It is that familiarity that keeps listeners listening, and a willingness to wait for something they are familiar with. Waiting means sitting through 5 to 11 minutes of ads, which equals survival for most mainstream radio stations. Even if you turn to another station, that station will also have a commercial break, and partly because that station, and the other five you turn to, are owned by the same company. It's all programmed to the minute detail. With Earth, Wind & Fire, I know I'm going to get the hits. If I want to hear "Happy Feeling", "Evil", "Build A Nest", or "Be Ever Wonderful", it'll be quicker if I hook up my iPod. The radio industry knows this, that not everyone has gone digital and if you're stuck with radio, your opinions do not exist.

Same with rock. You're going to always hear Cheap Trick's "Surrender", "Dream Police", "I Want You To Want Me (Live)", and "The Flame", but will you hear "Clock Strikes Ten", "Heaven Tonight", or "Up The Creek", or "She's Tight"? Unless it's a rock station with actual DJ's that care, absolutely not. Seeking a personality that still plays great music on the radio is like seeking a personality that still has a personality. If you have access to satellite radio, trust them. If you have apps, use that. Sadly, radio holds true to the phrase "you get what you pay for", and it suffers because of it.


Then again, you can also hold a bit of faith to who owns the station, who is the programming director, and who has knowledge of what music works. However, most radio stations are owned by someone not in your city or state, the programming director is a random box in Denver or Miami, and a database determines what is heard. That has been in effect since the mid-1970's, to find a way to eliminate the program director so that his own choices aren't used. Regional airplay almost doesn't exist, so if I were to drive to Denver, or Austin, or Cambridge, or whatever, I'm going to hear the exact same 100 songs on each station. When it comes to Pop radio, that's how songs become gigantic hits for two months. The lack of variety and diversity limits what becomes a hit, which is why Katy Perry and Pink can seen massive when in truth they eliminated the competition, so that no one else can have even a minor hit. Fortunately, there is a thing called YouTube which is able to persuade some to listen to something else, but when you have companies paying for fake hits, it's hard to tell what the public really wants when the industry is based on what you should be hearing, so they can give you more commercials.


Years ago, there was a study on what made a hit in the United States and England, and why the type of artists that became famous were so different. It was regional tastes and interests. A lot of times, a one-off novelty hit could have massive success in England, even if it lasted for a week or two. The U.S. was based on the important hits, and maybe a novelty here and there. That changed in the last 15 years, and one can argue much of today's pop music in the U.S. are on the level of "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" or "White & Nerdy". People seem to be happy with having a laugh, long enough to where they'll be interested for two weeks, only to realize "why was this funny? Why am I listening to this?" Then they can get their check for $2.75 from Spotify.

A lot of today's pop is very bland, too much sameness. That's why turning to a country station as a diversion is interesting, because they're making decent pop that I might forget the moment I shut off the car, but I was more entertained than hearing someone scream their lungs out, gasp for air, and try to entice me to go to iTunes to buy their song. Listening to something "other than" pop comes off as if you're the enemy of the state, and I think c'mon, it's fucking music.






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