Put your hands up for change on the radio
Nick Nelson
Issue date: 4/23/09 Section: Opinions
Boom boom boom (Gotta get That) Boom boom boom (Gotta get That) NOOOO! You're done! What does "Boom boom boom" actually mean? Remember when the Black Eyed Peas wrote "Where's the Love?" That actually had a message that it was trying to get across to the listeners. It was a song that had a general beat, but these days you can't get a top 10 song on the billboard charts without a fast beat.
As I look at the Billboard top ten songs, seven out of the ten songs are rap/hip hop. The other three are, of course, at the bottom of the ten with Miley Cyrus, The Fray, and The All-American Rejects. Yes, the Rejects are at the bottom of the top ten.
Whatever happened to people writing songs about their "actual" feelings? The artists who rap and sing about their "Poker Face" or rip off Dead or Alive's "You spin me right round" with "Right round" are what I like to call sell-outs. For those of you who do not know that word, sell-outs are people who sell their soul to the devil or produce a song that has no meaning behind the lyrics and a beat that sticks in your head like syrup on your hand.
You try your best to get it off, but you need the strength of Zeus for that to happen. I have to give credit to T.I., though, even if his songs are upbeat and catchy. If you listen to his album "Paper Trail", the lyrics come from the heart. But seriously, what happened to the classic rock sound and the passionate lyrics. For example, "Livin' On A Prayer" by Bon Jovi is about staying together through a tough time in life. It's a classic song that has a great message and a beat that never gets old. Plus, you can find this song on Rockband 2, and who doesn't love that? I miss hearing songs like this on the radio.
Don't get me wrong, I do like some of the Billboard charts, just not the songs that make it to the top ten via Payola--the well-known method of paying for playing (record companies pay DJs to play their songs more often than other tracks).
These songs are played over and over again on the radio, just for record company benefits. So I say let's end this overplay phenomenon and tell our local radio stations to play all the songs in the library before repeating any. Or, we could just stop listening.
As I look at the Billboard top ten songs, seven out of the ten songs are rap/hip hop. The other three are, of course, at the bottom of the ten with Miley Cyrus, The Fray, and The All-American Rejects. Yes, the Rejects are at the bottom of the top ten.
Whatever happened to people writing songs about their "actual" feelings? The artists who rap and sing about their "Poker Face" or rip off Dead or Alive's "You spin me right round" with "Right round" are what I like to call sell-outs. For those of you who do not know that word, sell-outs are people who sell their soul to the devil or produce a song that has no meaning behind the lyrics and a beat that sticks in your head like syrup on your hand.
You try your best to get it off, but you need the strength of Zeus for that to happen. I have to give credit to T.I., though, even if his songs are upbeat and catchy. If you listen to his album "Paper Trail", the lyrics come from the heart. But seriously, what happened to the classic rock sound and the passionate lyrics. For example, "Livin' On A Prayer" by Bon Jovi is about staying together through a tough time in life. It's a classic song that has a great message and a beat that never gets old. Plus, you can find this song on Rockband 2, and who doesn't love that? I miss hearing songs like this on the radio.
Don't get me wrong, I do like some of the Billboard charts, just not the songs that make it to the top ten via Payola--the well-known method of paying for playing (record companies pay DJs to play their songs more often than other tracks).
These songs are played over and over again on the radio, just for record company benefits. So I say let's end this overplay phenomenon and tell our local radio stations to play all the songs in the library before repeating any. Or, we could just stop listening.
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