Link to CMT.com

http://www.cmt.com/news/articles/1547845/2...?headlines=true

I definately have to agree with the artists on this issue...the playlists at *most* country radio stations are too narrow, with only the top 20 or 30 songs being played over and over again. What is missing from most stations is the variety of artists/music, including current songs by artists over the age of 40 (with the exception of a couple artists with the names Alan and George), and the 'classics'...with classics meaning pre-1985, not pre-2000, which is what a lot of stations consider as classics (sorry, but I don't consider Shania as being 'classic country' music!)

This is the kind of thing I was telling my grand daughter about and when she took her media business courses she found out . She now only listens to independantly owned stations. This is the Reason these artists aren't getting played. This is part of THE REASON WHY Vince Gill doesn't get played. Loretta Lynn winning 2 Grammy's last year or 2 years ago. When has anyone heard her on radio.

Makes me crazy . I don't have a clue to what can be done about it but I want to keep up on this hearing stuff. Hope it helps ????????????????????

Thanks for the link, Anna. I sure hope it does some good...and I agree. It doesn't make any sense that you have for the most part, 1 group of folks being played on the radio and another group of folks getting grammy nominations. Have to lean toward the grammys when it comes to picking those really talented and worthy musicians.

Here's a report that was done by the FMC:
http://www.allaboutcountry.com/cfm/news.cfm#33908

Study On Local Radio And Diversity Released By FMC

The Future of Music Coalition (FMC) released its very complete report on radio station ownership consolidation. "False Premises, False Promises: A Quantitative History of Ownership Consolidation in the Radio Industry," the study states that consolidation has led to fewer programming choices for listeners, as well as harming the listening public and music & radio industry employees.

In the report, they found that the top four station ownership groups have almost half of all radio listeners and that local ownership has declined by almost one-third from 1975 to 2005. 15 formats make up three-fourths of all commercial programming and formats with different names can overlap up to 80 percent in terms of the songs played on them.

The results in this FMC report showed radio listenership has declined over the past 14 years since its peak in 1989. Additionally, the playlists of stations in the same format owned by the same company can overlap by up to 97 percent.

The FMC concludes from its findings, "radio consolidation has no demonstrated benefits for the public. Nor does it have any demonstrated benefits for the working people of the music and media industries, including DJs, programmers—and musicians."

"From the recent new-payola scandal to the even more recent acknowledgements that giant media conglomerates have begun to fail as business models, we can see that government and business are catching up to the reality that radio consolidation did not work, the authors state. They insist that the Telecom Act worked to reduce competition, diversity, and localism, doing precisely the opposite of Congress’s stated goals for the FCC’s media policy. Future debates about how to regulate information industries should look to the radio consolidation story for a warning about the dangers of consolidated control of a media platform."

Recommendations: Either maintain current ownership caps, or lower them, retain current attribution wells as well as encouragement of ownership by small, independent or minority owners.They also suggests the adoption of the Local Ownership Index that the organization has developed, changing the full-power licensing process, licensing more LPFM stations and the use of the digital audio broadcast (DAB) transition as an way to reallocate spectrum to entirely local entities.

On the issue of diversity, the FMC proposes the FCC find a more accurate measurement of diversity and end payola practices. They also suggest ways to improve access to data about radio stations and programming, such as making all basic information on stations readily available on the FCC's Web site.They conclude that, "Radio has great importance for our culture, our economy, and our democracy. The public deserves to see it repaired."

You can view the report in its entirety futureofmusic.org on the FMC's Web site.

The NAB, before the report had even been released today, issued its own response, disputing the results. According to the NAB and BIA Financial Network, the number of radio formats has increased in a variety of ways in recent years. The NAB also says that the 1996 Telecomm Act has not prevented diversity in radio, citing the rise in Spanish-language radio around the country, as well as growth in Asian and African-American targeted stations.

Dennis Wharton NAB EVP of Media Relations said in a statement, "FMC's long history of producing questionable research and dubious data to fulfill its agenda-driven mission is apparent for all to see. As the BIA Financial Network study indicates, free local radio has more format diversity than at any time in its rich history. Moreover, with the advent of HD Radio, local radio will be providing more news, more music formats, and more public service for the 260 million people who tune in every week."

But in some areas, there aren't any independently owned stations that actually plays the kind of music those of us here want to listen to. I know in Miami, about the only independently owned stations were Hip Hop/Urban or Spanish stations, which actually leaves no choice for country music fans in Miami-Dade/Broward Counties, since there's only 1 country radio station and it's owned by Beasley Broadcasting. And when they lost Bob McKay to their 'sister station' in Philly, their playlist got even narrower than what it was, and Vince was taken off that playlist all together.

The major radio station here in the Waco area is owned by Clear Channel, but they do play a good variety of music, including a 'Classic Country Music' show at lunch time. And by Classic Country, I mean from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I'm sure they play some early 80s, but at least they're not labeling "Much to Young" by Garth, or Vince's "When I Call Your Name" as 'classic country,' like WKIS in Miami does.

Not sure why that last one posted...before I typed....

I wanted to add....not only are the playlists small - they have very little variety.
Country radio a long time ago was not afraid to play a much wider variety of "types" of country....from traditional country to folk/country, bluegrass, accoustic etc.
...to more mainstream country/pop.

I only like (listen to) a handfull of today's country stars (Paisley being about the only one with heavy airplay) but you never hear Roseanne Cash, Rodney Crowell....many which they now call alt. country now or Americana etc....GAC often plays their videos and calls it "Edge of Country"....some making the best music of their careers and never get the time of day from today's country radio.

I know a lot of formats have "fragmented" but corporate country is in many ways too limited and too "bland"...JMHO.

Vince's CD set is a perfect example of what radio should embrace - diversity and genre hopping!
---
Also - I wanted to add neither of the so called "country" radio stations here play Vince's new song and neither even mentioned he was in town for his last concert.....I officially have given up on Portland country radio.

The major radio station here in Central TX, WACO 100, has been playing "The Reason Why." The most I listen to the radio anymore is Saturdays, mainly because there's nothing on TV, but I do listen late at night and in the car, and last night I did hear The Reason Why. WACO 100 plays the classic country from noon to 1pm every weekday, but you will usually hear some classic country artists mixed in at other times. Then on Saturday nights, they have what they call "Texas Saturday Nights" where they play any and all Texas country artists, even those considered Alt Country. I haven't heard anything new by Rosanne Cash on the station (but then again I don't listen that much), but I have heard older Rosanne Cash songs on the station...one day they were playing one of her older songs and I could clearly hear Vince doing bgvs on the song. So, if anyone wants to take a listen to the station, you can listen online at Waco100.com. And if you want to hear some truely unique country, tune in starting at 7pm CT to the station for Texas Saturday Nights...you will hear everyone from Willie to George Strait to Pat Greene to people I've never heard of before. In fact tonight they were playing somebody who I didn't recognize the voice.

Just went and looked at the Last 10 songs played on the station, and the one I didn't recognize was a Wade Bowen song. I'm sure most of you have never heard of him...

I have almost given up on the 2 major country stations in Phoenix. They have talked about These Days and have ticket give away's for his concerts but do they play anything from These Days????? Very few times I have heard it on either station . There is another station that is known for playing old and new but I e-mailed them about The Reason Why and didn't even get a response. However,the thing about them NOT playing Vince's new music or other Grammy winners /nominated artist (the older artist ,so many I can't name them all here) is the artist don't make any money if they don't get airplay. So the only outlet for them is to tour and hopefully sell lots of any projects they have done or if they write a song and some one else records it and it gets played. I don't know how that works. Like Seegar and Kid Rock recording Real Mean Bottle. Vince would get royalties ?????? Where would you go to hear that song on radio ? And if they do play it does Vince get royalties ??????

KMLE Country just played John Mellencamp(nothing against him)........................go figure ???????????????

Sure hope to hear Faint Of Heart on the jazz station here. I would bet it won't be played unless it was on a Diana Krall record. That is what I was told about the song Vince did w/ Barbra S. I requested it on the country stations and they said it's on her record so they wouldn't play it.

It's a heavy subject for me so early . Guess I am finished ,for now.

One last thing , I can't blame an entertainer doing whatever it takes ( legally ) to earn a living from their career choices. Martina and Dean Martin are singing now.

I don't blame the artists either - many are trying to make a living and doing the best they can....I wonder though if some of those artists did not need a "certain sound" or "formula sound" and image etc to get play on Country Radio - what their music would sound like if they had the freedom to create what they wanted? Because radio would give it a chance and let listeners decide.

(Hypothetical I know - and some might sound the same - but I bet many would be a bit more "real" and a bit less "polished" - not sure that makes sense )

Many listeners that listen to country radio alone and their top stars today - inho - miss out on so much good music and miss out on expanding their musical appreciation (ie: a real country song - soundin - is "too country" for them, bluegrass has too many fiddles, edgier stuff sounds too gritty...etc....seems to me many are limiting their ability to appreciate a wide variety of sounds and styles).

Of course I know we will all have things we like or don't like but often some music take time and is an "aquired" taste....and if your never given a chance to hear it or are exposed to it....you never give it a chance....

Smaller playlists with only 1 sound = no variey on todays country radio. JMHO.

Thank goodness for XM and my IPOD!

Anna,

Anytime a songwriter's song gets recorded by someone else, the writer gets paid royalties from album/single sales and airplay, as well as the singer. So, for example, anytime one of Vince's songs that he's written on his album gets played anywhere (radio, tv, etc.), he gets double the royalties he would get if he didn't write the song. So, if radio played Vince's version of Real Mean Bottle, he'd get 100% of the royalties. If radio plays Bob Segar & Kid Rock's version of Real Mean bottle, Vince would get 1/3 Bob Segar gets 1/3 and Kid Rock gets 1/3.

Now, when it comes to album sales, *everyone* on the album has to be paid. So the record company gets paid, the producer(s) get paid, the artist gets paid, duet partners get paid and all the musicians and bgvs get paid. Of course, bgvs and musicians don't get as much of the percentage as the artist, producer and record companies do, but they do get some. From what I've read in the past, it will usually take a new artist 2 albums before they actually start making any money, because the record label will advance them the money to record their first album, and that money has to be paid back to the record company, no matter what the album is a success or a 'flop.'

My next question is this. Do the musicians,back ground singers get paid flat out when they do the job plus record sales and airplay ?

I think musicians get a flat rate...not sure about background vocalists...I would think that they would probably get a flat rate, too. I'm pretty sure producers and the record company only get royalties from album sales, not from airplay. Maybe there's someone who has more knowledge of this on here that can give us some answers?

This is the reason I don't listen to the radio as much as I used to. It's for variety that I listen to the radio and it's become less and less variety and now maybe I'm getting old but there there's too much buggle gum country out these days. haha an unintended joke "These Days"

anna

I just wish they would be fair in playing something of all the artist. I know there are a lot but I would think with so many great singers from the past they could play more than they do. And play some of their new music . I think it is unconscionable what has happed to radio today.