Tag Archives for " payola "

Spotify Makes A Move To Stop Playlist “Playola”

Spotlister playola on the Music 3.0 blog

Way back when radio was the main channel for developing a hit, record labels tried to game the system by bribing radio station program directors with money and gifts to add a record to the station’s playlist, a process that became known as payola. Several scandals ensued and the practice became illegal, but labels and […]

Continue reading

Artist Sponsorship Is Today’s Payola

Payola has always been part of the music business and many insiders feel that it’s the reason that some artists become stars, and some stars become superstars. Without money or favors changing hands between the record label and the radio station/streaming service, a song might never gain the visibility it needs to become a hit. […]

Continue reading

The Seamy Side Of The Music Business Circa 1980

Playola

I just returned from speaking at Nimbus School of Recording and Media in Vancouver (one of the best recording schools anywhere – thanks Mike, Rob and Brandon), and one of the questions that I received from the students was if the music business is more difficult now than it was in the past. Actually, getting into […]

Continue reading