re: What is with the constant referencing of other songs in modern country music?

Mainstream fm music isn’t about art anymore, and probably never really was. It’s all about serving as a vehicle for advertising. Rather than selling a product to a consumer, entertainment media now seeks to create a consumer to sell to an advertiser. They use tv, social media, and radio to mold listeners and viewers into belonging to specific subcultures that they can then market products to. Each type of music has a molded listener who is conditioned to desire certain products, wear certain styles, etc. We, as consumers, are sorted into these sized boxes. It doesn’t matter if the music sucks, it’s just a delivery vehicle for the advertising and cultural programming, indoctrinating you on how you should see yourself, who you want to be, what you want, and what you think is cool. Then, once they’ve told you what suite of products to want, they tailor ads for those products to you so you’ll buy them and reinforce the programming. They can do this now due to the massive consolidation of the entertainment, telecom, isp, and search engine industries. Like 90% of all entertainment media people consume is provided through less than a half-dozen companies, and all the other steps of the process include less than 10 companies total.

quote:

---

Where I work, country music is generally the genre played

---

Sucks for you

quote:

---

Programmers will play whatever gets ratings.

---

No, they decide what will get ratings, because they decide what gets played. If your song doesn't get played, it doesn't get in the charts, if it doesn't get in the charts, it doesn't get played, and they own the charts and make the ratings. It's like Bob has said, it's a handful of people who make all of the decisions. A friend of mine recently bought a small town radio station, he probably has less than 2,000 listeners everyday, and even his music is programmed, he get's to do his own local commercials but that's about it.
Oh, he is a great singer, and can't even play his own records on his radio station, because it would mess up his deal with the programmers, who also pay him for playing the national ads at his station. He could DJ himself and play whatever he wants, but then he would lose out on that national ad money, and he would be having to survive on local advertising, in a county of less than 15,000 people.

quote:

---

Stations will jump from country to news/talk or even rap if they think they can get more listeners/ad revenue.

---

Right, but to get that national ad money, they have to go along with the programming for whatever genre it is, because that's how it gets paid out. They are given slots, in the programming, to run their own local ads, and of course the number of listeners helps dictate what local slots are worth, but still the local economy dictates that as well, so even a small radio station needs the national ads, and there's only 1 way to get them.
He could, in theory, go independent and play whatever he wants, then he has to hire DJs, spend more time selling ads, or hire a salesman, the way it is, the station basically runs itself with very little of his time invested. He also owns a recording studio, a music store and a T-shirt/ sign shop, and goes all over the country doing singing gigs, so he's spread pretty thin.

quote:

---

I spent several years in radio. I know how it goes. Basically, he wants a radio station, but doesn't want to get his hands dirty running it.

---

I think what has happened more than anything else, the programmers got so much control, that they took out the incentives for local radio to be independent. There are very few independent radio stations anywhere anymore, it's sad as hell really, but I understand it. In a more populated area, a good independent country radio station, might be able to do ok, but you have to have the advertising. A person has to look at the return on their investment, in time and money, and because of where his radio station is, he's going to have the same advertisers, regardless. He's the only station around. His whole radio station, takes up a space about the size of a closet, I don't even know where his broadcast antenna is located, I'm sure I've seen it, but didn't really notice.
In a lot of ways, it's just like the trucking business. The big companies are able to do everything at a lower cost, so they can keep rates down at a lower level, to try and run the smaller guys out, they've tried everything to do that. All of the technology requirements and environmental controls were initiated by the big companies, in an effort to run the smaller guys out, because if they accomplish that, then they can charge whatever they want, and it will cost everyone. The only thing you can do is stay in the game, until you no longer can make it, or it's just not worth it.

I would seriously consider changing jobs before I would listen to 8 hrs of contemporary country bullshite every day.

It's bad and getting incredibly worse somehow. My thought is many of these songs reference other songs because it's the only connection it has to country music.

I thought about something similar earlier today and almost started a thread. iTunes Country station was on at home. Several new songs played the ole "this is how I grew up" card. But there is NO WAY any of these new artists actually experienced any of it, most of them were born in the 90's. One said something about not buying pre-worn out jeans. bullshite! You were buying jeans in the 2000s....that's basically all they sold then! Now get off my lawn

About 5 or 6 years ago I was sitting at Hooters discussing the current state of country music with the waitress. She of course argued that it spoke to her and she could relate. I told her I’d write her a country song on the back of a napkin just to prove my point. I stuffed it full of cliches about dusty roads, old hank, tractors and plowing fields. Hell I was drunk so what did I care. Next time she saw me, she came running up to me and was like omg, I was driving home the other day and I heard your lyrics on the radio!! I laughed my arse off but I think she was a little pissed that I ruined the genre for her.

Swear to God, this thread gave me an idea for a song, already wrote it, and have it half arse worked out on guitar. It's a countrified tribute/rip off, of a very famous rock song. I'll be working on doing a demo for it and I'll post it on here soon. What the hell. It hits all of the new country clichés, and the guitar is going to be pretty kick arse. I actually am kind of liking it
Got one part in there about a guy making a bong out of a quadrajet

quote:

---

Back in the day, that consile was just an arm rest that folded up revealing an extra seat so girls could slide over next to you, but trucks haven’t been made that way in 20 years.

---

I had an 05 Z71 that begs to differ.

I also know a dude with like a 10 Z71 that has one.