Country Radio Has a Problem
By Four Walls
@FourWalls (86855)
United States
April 4, 2016 7:35pm CST
Last year a Sony Records executive let a cat out of the bag. Giving a speech to country music radio programmers, consultants, and executives in early 2015, Sony Nashville CEO Gary Overton stressed the importance of being on country radio as the ONLY way to become successful.
A month later, he was out of a job.
It really wasn't what he said as much as the fact that he allowed a corporate secret (the mainstream music industry is tightly controlled, to the point where an artist's success is pre-determined) to become public knowledge.
Not that many people paid that much attention, mind you, other than music geeks like me and lots of country performers who are not on country radio. Apparently those who "don't exist" raised such a social media ruckus that Sony fired Overton because of the comments. (Technically speaking, he "stepped down" in "mutual agreement" with Sony officials. 
)
All of that is worthy of multiple pages of discussion in and of itself. However, there's yet another monkey wrench that's been thrown into the machine. That wrench's name is Chris Stapleton.
Stapleton has received NO airplay or "mainstream" support, yet he has managed to do what all of the hyped-by-record-companies and hyped-by-radio acts have NOT managed to do: earn a platinum album. (How bad are country sales? From the days where most of the biggest-selling albums of the 90's were "country" albums [e.g., Shania, Garth], the only platinum country album of the past two years....is Chris Stapleton's (Traveller).
Now that he's the hottest property in country music the radio stations either have to start playing him or risk losing even more listeners (country radio listenership has been in a downward spiral [not just a "trend," the numbers are dropping hard] for three years). However, if they play him next to rock or pop like Sam Hunt, people are going to wonder what the heck is going on.
Not that I care (if you've noticed about all the music I talk about, what's on radio is the last thing I worry about), but country radio is in crisis, thanks to the unplanned success of Chris Stapleton.
And, to all you people who discovered him without the assistance of mainstream country radio, GOOD FOR YOU!!!! 
The title song to Chris Stapleton's award-winning album Traveller
)
All of that is worthy of multiple pages of discussion in and of itself. However, there's yet another monkey wrench that's been thrown into the machine. That wrench's name is Chris Stapleton.
Stapleton has received NO airplay or "mainstream" support, yet he has managed to do what all of the hyped-by-record-companies and hyped-by-radio acts have NOT managed to do: earn a platinum album. (How bad are country sales? From the days where most of the biggest-selling albums of the 90's were "country" albums [e.g., Shania, Garth], the only platinum country album of the past two years....is Chris Stapleton's (Traveller).
Now that he's the hottest property in country music the radio stations either have to start playing him or risk losing even more listeners (country radio listenership has been in a downward spiral [not just a "trend," the numbers are dropping hard] for three years). However, if they play him next to rock or pop like Sam Hunt, people are going to wonder what the heck is going on.
Not that I care (if you've noticed about all the music I talk about, what's on radio is the last thing I worry about), but country radio is in crisis, thanks to the unplanned success of Chris Stapleton.
And, to all you people who discovered him without the assistance of mainstream country radio, GOOD FOR YOU!!!!
The title song to Chris Stapleton's award-winning album Traveller
Traveller available now: http://umgn.us/TravellerCS CMA New Artist of the Year, Male Vocalist, and Album of the Year http://www.facebook.com/ChrisStapleton h...
5 people like this
4 responses
@teamfreak16 (43655)
• Denver, Colorado
5 Apr 16
I've seen a couple of his videos. He's really good. And they have no idea what to do with him, because he's not Tim McGraw (whom my girlfriend loves, so I have to listen to him a lot. )
2 people like this
@teamfreak16 (43655)
• Denver, Colorado
5 Apr 16
@FourWalls - What would be totally cool is if they started handing out awards to Hank III. I'd so watch that.
And by Tim McGraw, I could have said Kenny Chesney. I can't tell them apart.
2 people like this
@FourWalls (86855)
• United States
5 Apr 16
@teamfreak16 -- There is a Robbie Fulks song that you must hear. The only problem is, I can't post it here because it has a four-letter word in the title. But go to You Tube and search for "Robbie Fulks" and "this town." It'll come up (and you'll understand why I can't post it). He hit the Nashville mainstream establishment nail on the head in that song. And, what's sad is that song is 18 years old...and things have only gotten worse. 
1 person likes this
@teamfreak16 (43655)
• Denver, Colorado
5 Apr 16
@FourWalls - That was great. Hilarious. And from what I've learned over the years, true.
1 person likes this
@crossbones27 (53005)
• Mojave, California
5 Apr 16
I think it is to the point it just needs to happen this way with all music. Radio scouts should all be fired, but not really because the owners are making them. Just let the people decide, I think we are at an intelligent point in society anyway. People will find what works for them and probably do not mind recommendations, but not to the point where they are picking every song.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (86855)
• United States
5 Apr 16
The main problem is that most commercial radio stations are owned by one of three companies. The "good" news, such as it is, is that "corporate radio ownership" has hit a Titanic-like iceberg: debt. I Heart Radio is about $21 billion in debt from acquiring all these radio stations that aren't paying dividends. Radio stations reverting to local or regional ownership would help. That way, some buffoon in New York who doesn't know that Jerry Jeff Walker or Guy Clark is more popular in Texas than Kenny or Luke wouldn't be programming the stations, someone in the area who knows the audience from experience and NOT Arbitron rating book numbers would be doing it and would be able to "let the people decide."
1 person likes this
@ElusiveButterfly (45941)
• United States
5 May 16
When I first saw Chris Stapleton's performance with Justin Timberlake, I was in awe. Never heard of him before that night. I listen to a variety of music stations, 3 of which are country and I hadn't heard any of Chris Stapleton's music.
After the awards show I did start hearing more of him on a couple of stations. It was slow at first. I now hear him a little more often, but wish it would be more frequent.
1 person likes this
@topffer (42155)
• France
5 Apr 16
It is interesting. Radio plays certainly a role in a singer's professional career, but some singers can reach success without any radio support. In France before the 1980's some singers were quite completely banned by the state from airwaves and managed to have a successful career (I am thinking at singers like Jean Ferrat or Georges Brassens).
1 person likes this
