Who needs the radio?

My first reaction when I heard about the payola scandal involving Sony BMG executives and radio stations in New York was: "duh." There is no way that any music expert would put "Don't Phunk With My Heart" on the radio six times an hour without being paid to -- or about a hundred popular artists that don't really deserve the air time they get. (The Pussycat Dolls? Please.)\nAnd when it was announced publicly that the airwaves of mass music were tainted by commercial corruption, I figured music corporations were paying their way onto air or I figured middle schoolers who call in and request songs had really bad taste in music. \nNew York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer noted it wasn't the middle schoolers: \n"Our investigation shows that, contrary to listener expectations, that songs are selected for airplay based on artistic merit and popularity, air time is often determined by undisclosed payoffs to radio stations and their employees." \nAccording to the release by Spitzer, Sony BMG execs paid more than $5,000 in two weeks to one radio station to play Good Charlotte, Gretchen Wilson and Franz Ferdinand songs.\nA ha! I knew no one actually liked that Franz Ferdinand song.\nWell, I don't need the radio. I've got iTunes and an iPod, and I've got friends. And we've got the Internet. I figure out the best new music without listening to the radio. Without "80s lunch hour," I would rather have earplugs in my ears than listen to the blather that streams through my car's radio.\nWill Smith and that song from "Hitch?" I don't consider you a musician if you only make music to plug your movies; it's even worse when it's bad music.\nMaybe the crappy music is part of the reason XM and Sirius have become reasonable alternatives. XM announced its second-quarter revenues are up more than $70 million from last year's. Maybe the reason record sales were at an all-time low was the fact that the most popular artists weren't very talented. People will pay for good music; they just won't waste it on a grab bag of two good songs on a 16-song album.\nI've had this debate -- that music needs substance and creativity again -- with my friends for a while now. We are all constantly looking for new artists who have original voices and sounds. There are some genuinely good artists that actually get airplay. But there are also some astounding artists who never come across the popular hit that sets off the avalanche. \nFor a couple months, I wondered if John Legend would ever break through despite the amazement of his early works. He might not be the savior to hip-hop but he's got soul -- that indescribable something that leaves you feeling good. And when I see his album outselling Lil' Jon and the Ying Yang Twins, I'm excited. When I think about the return of good music, I'm excited, knowing that despite what's playing on the radio, there is good music out there.