The Radio Industry

  Getting Your Music Heard

Let’s say you signed with a small local independent record label (or even to your own)…you’re still going to have to find a way to get on air…

Start by knowing that there are no “nice guys” in the business. Don’t expect anyone to do you any favors out of the goodness of their hearts – they won’t. The bottom line in all businesses, especially in multi-billion dollar industries is profit.

You might know the receptionist at a radio station and get him/her to mention you or your band to an on-air personality or DJ - but the fact of the matter is there is probably a 99% chance the DJ won’t play your song even once, let alone put it on rotation…this is assuming he even listens to your record or remembers your name. Now…

There are certain paths that professionals take to ensure that their artists have the highest chance possible of getting on air. To understand these paths you should get a little familiar with the different departments in a radio station and how they connect.

Large broadcasting corporations nowadays own mostly all major radio stations. Clear Channel or Infinity Broadcasting, for example, might own and broadcast a hip-hop, country, rock , pop, and sports station all under one roof . A General Manager may manage one or all of these stations. This is the breakdown:

*We have excluded some positions that are of little use to up-and-coming artists. You can also use this list as a good though partial list of radio industry jobs.

General Manager (GM) - Is the main "boss" of a radio station. The GM is responsible for guiding and motivating the efforts of a station's staff. He or she is also responsible for goal setting, planning, hiring and firing, etc. The GM is the supervisor of all the deparartment heads in the station and resolves any disputes that may arise among them. All responsibility for the performance of a radio station ultimately falls on the GM.

Sales Manager - The General Sales Manager heads a staff that is responsible for generating revenue through the sale of radio advertising. Beneath the GSM may be a Local and Regional/National Sales Manager. The former handles local advertising while the latter may work more directly with advertising agencies looking to purchase air space for a regional McDonald's ad campaign, for example.

Program Director - The Program Director is responsible for bringing in, keeping and increasing a station's audience. The PD is responsible for everything broadcasted by the station...news, music, commercials. They plan the feel of the station and tailor it to their audience.

*Music Director - The Music Director many times serves as the primary assistant to the Program Director and is generally responsible for selecting what music the station will present to its listeners. He or she also determines the order in which the songs will be played (the "rotation").

Promotions Director - The Promotions Director is responsible for coordinating sponsor advertising with promotion by the station. They may also be responsible for the promotion of the station itself (which usually goes hand in hand with client promotions). If for example, Verizon Wireless purchases air-space and wants to pay a little extra to get the station's street-team at their event...the Promotions department is responsible for organizing this and contacting the programming department to make sure they mention it on the air.

Public Service/Community Affairs Director - This person is the station's eyes and ears in the community. They maintain contact with community, leaders, organizations, etc. This department is responsible for public relations efforts. In many cases they combine community interest with advertiser participation. Food drives, community chest drives, voter registration programs, etc. can be merged with free concerts, and sponsor advertising.

Note: In the past each individual DJ or on-air personality would need a broadcast license which they would obtain through taking classes and going through an entire process. It would be like their "diploma" and you would usually see it prominently displayed in their booth.

Those days are over. The FCC now grants broadcast licenses to the radio station's themselves. The radio station can decide who and what they allow on air, taking full responsibility themselves.

What this means is that if an individual DJ breaks FCC rules, the station will get a fine and warning. If it happens again the station's license may be taken away, not allowing them to broadcast at all! This is why Clear Channel fired Howard Stern and why Star (of The Star and Bucwild Morning Show) was so adament about "protecting the license".

And there you have it. The rap industry demystified...sort of. Well there is actually much more to it, but not a lot more important than what you just read. Let's put it this way, if there is one thing you should know about the rap industy it is that it is not "fair"...accept it and tackle the obstacle from a new angle...the INSIDE...which takes us back to either getting a record deal or starting your own record label.

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