And they wonder why nobody listens to the radio or pays attention to the charts anymore. It's no secret that traditional radio stations are losing listeners to streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, as well as satellite radio like Sirius. While a significant portion of the population still listens to AM or FM radio on a daily basis, that number has been declining year over year, and the smallest portion of their listenership comes from the coveted Gen Z demographic, with just over half of this group tuning in to traditional radio versus choosing to get their music from streaming or satellite radio. And a lot of it has to do with the ability of those services to provide not only ad-free listening (for the most part) but music on demand, so that listeners can actually hear the music they want to listen to instead of the same three songs every hour. Of course that's one of the big criticisms of a lot of terrestrial radio stations: The lack of variety in the music that they play. Especially now that a lot of major radio stations are owned by large corporations like iHeart or Cumulus, many of the programming decisions are made outside of the studio and the stations simply play what they're told as opposed to what listeners want to hear. The result is you get the same handful of songs in regular rotation on every station, with a new song thrown in there every once in awhile, while some artists don't stand a chance of having their music heard by people who still rely on terrestrial radio to get their music. In the early days of radio, the industry had a major problem of "payola" schemes, where artists or labels would pay radio stations or DJs to play their music, which would in turn boost their songs higher on the weekly charts. This practice was outlawed decades ago, but that hasn't stopped the music industry (and radio) from trying to find ways around it. In recent years, the topic has even popped up in the context of streaming services, with artists being accused of paying platforms like Spotify to recommend their songs or put them on coveted playlists, which then boosts the song's chart numbers. (For the record, you can always rest assured that we get nothing from anybody for all of our playlists that we make here at Whiskey Riff. And we also don't have artists "under contract" or any of that nonsense, so the music we share or add to our playlists is whatever we want to. If anybody tries to tell you different, they're either lying, an idiot, or both). But anyway, the FCC is now investigating another way that radio stations have (allegedly) found to get around the laws against pay-for-play. A letter from Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr asked the agency to investigate allegations of a new form of pay-for-play scam in which radio stations require (or strongly encourage) artists to play free concerts like "listener appreciation shows" or "charitable concert events" in exchange for spins of their music. The radio stations obviously benefit from these shows by being able to give away or sell tickets, sell sponsorships, and receive other benefits that Blackburn claims are undisclosed and violate the rules against payola schemes. If artists decline, Blackburn alleges, artists are at risk of having their airplay reduced. According to her letter: "This forced quid pro quo applies to essentially all artists, regardless of their level of success. Artists in the industry have told me that it is not unusual for them to perform anywhere from 10 to 50 such shows in any given year. Those just starting out in their career will often perform more, while those that have had more success will have to perform fewer, but they will still be expected to do them. This practice is exploitative and should not be tolerated. Federal law and FCC rules prohibit radio stations from receiving undisclosed compensation for broadcasting songs, and this principle must extend to free performances for radio stations and networks. Artists should not be extorted into providing free labor in exchange for airplay." Blackburn ended by asking the FCC to investigate this practice and take action, and FCC Chairman Carr responded by announcing that his agency would be doing just that: "Thank you Senator Blackburn for raising this important issue regarding Payola schemes perpetrated by broadcasters. This conduct hurts America’s songwriters & musicians. I’ve asked our Enforcement Bureau to examine this & will provide an update here this week." https://twitter.com/BrendanCarrFCC/status/1886538067517006035 Of course the implications from these (alleged) pay to play schemes go far beyond simply getting a spin on the radio or having people hear your song. The music charts almost all take radio play into account when determining their rankings, meaning that if you're able to get extra spins from a radio station, your chances of getting a #1 hit go way up. Get a #1 hit, keep the label happy, sign another recording contract, get them to fund another tour that attracts major sponsors and sells millions of dollars in tickets...it's a big business that has far-reaching financial implications. But it seems like the FCC may be soon cracking down on some of their less-than-scrupulous practices.