Kings of A&R

I think we all know that “exposing” new music is getting harder and harder. Everybody is getting sucked into the sea of the long tail. How do you expose “great” artists in the sea of mediocre artists? This reminds me of communist Russia, nobody wins, both artists and labels. In fact, labels should be extremely concerned with the current state of radio. Overly tight playlists does not give labels motivation to sign new artists, it’s demotivating.

Radio consolidation is shrinking playlists and creating a homogenized musical landscape, several singers and songwriters told the Federal Communication Commission on Monday.

“Big radio is bad radio,” Rick Carnes, president of the Songwriters Guild of America, told FCC commissioners in the second of six public meetings nationwide. “You can drive I-40 from Knoxville to Barstow, California, and hear the same 20 songs on every country radio station.”

Grand Ole Opry star Porter Wagoner said “clear channel” used to mean a powerful coast-to-coast radio signal like the one that used to broadcast the Opry.

But he said when you say it now, people think about Clear Channel Communications, the media conglomerate that owns hundreds of radio stations and other media outlets.

Wagoner also said radio consolidation restricts the ability of both veteran and new artists to be heard.

“The days of an artist receiving airplay as a new act are gone,” Wagoner said.

He recalled how his former duet partner, Dolly Parton, scored a huge country and pop hit with the song, “Jolene,” and he said, “The chance of that happening today is almost slim to none.”