By Tyler White | Staff Writer
Everyone wants their music everywhere, and the easiest way for people to get their music everywhere is to make it popular on the radio. The more radio plays, the more hits … simple enough, right? However, this reach for the spotlight comes with a price: sacrificing storytelling for catchiness.
One of the biggest problems surrounding radio is how much it depends on formulas and algorithms. Something that is accessible, catchy and easy to digest lyrically will most likely be promoted over something more complex. As a result, a pop music formula has become more and more evident throughout the years — and everyone wants to follow it to be the next big thing.
So, when you turn on the radio, you’re likely to find songs with catchy, energetic beats and simple yet engaging melodies that instantly get stuck in your head throughout the day. Maybe you’ll hear a more acoustic ballad with a rudimentary earworm four-chord progression. However, beyond the songs being “nice-sounding,” you don’t really think much more into the stories themselves.
The sad reality is that this drive to create the next big hit has led to fewer relatable songs and more sterility in the music industry. One of my favorite things about music is how much emotion and storytelling can shine through instrumentation, vocal performance and lyrical complexity. Concept albums and narrative songs hold so much passion, yet it’s often harder for those to break into radio.
Bands like Pink Floyd and Rush primarily focused on concept albums, crafting stories that follow a narrative driven by instrumentation and songwriting. Even modern artists like Kendrick Lamar put a ton of emphasis on storytelling, producing stories within their albums that are often sacrificed by how radio cherry-picks catchy songs.
This is not to say that radio is bad by any means. Chances are, you’ll find me jamming along to whatever is on the radio at that moment. What I am saying, though, is that the very purpose of radio seems to sacrifice what makes music so powerful. While I may be singing along with whatever is on the radio because it’s catchy, it’s a bit disheartening to know that the catchiness is prioritized over the story behind the song itself.
Don’t take this and disregard radio as a whole. What plays on the radio is fun and catchy because that’s what it’s supposed to be. However, I challenge you to go back and find music that’s more than just a quick, accessible listen and to appreciate the storytelling and emotion behind it.
