Same Old Same Old? or A Whole New World?

While listening to Radio Disney this weekend, I was struck by how little things had changed since I was a tween and young teen, lo these many years ago. “I will love only you forever and ever.” “Love me for who I really am.” “I can’t live without your love.” “I’m really special inside where no-one can see.” “I’m for real, and I hate phonies” “You done me wrong.” “Baby, it feels so right when I’m with you.” And so it goes. Idealism, extreme emotions, high drama, focus on the self, and a deep desire to both fit in and be unique fill the songs that fill Radio Disney. These are the same themes that have been the hallmark of teen music for decades.

In addition to the music, much of the programming and promotion on Radio Disney had a very familiar feel to it. There were interviews with stars, contests—“Be the third caller and you could win…”—request lines, relentlessly upbeat disc jockeys, and young people on the phone trying very hard to sound very cool. Although I was trying to call the radio station from a Princess phone and today’s teens are calling from cell phones, the desire to be on the radio has not changed. Although my personal heartthrobs were Mark Lindsey and David Cassidy (much though I cringe to admit it) rather than the Jonas Brothers, the passionate adoration and desire to know every single possible detail about that person’s likes and dislikes are not very different today than they were when I was young.

And yet, some things are very different than they were. I used to have to listen to a song over and over and over again to try and figure out what the lyrics were. There were endless debates: did he say “Rolled up like a deuce” or “Rolled up like a douche”? (How sophisticated we thought we were to be able to say that work without giggling…) Nowadays, the lyrics are there for you with a click if you want them. I’m not entirely sure why that seems important to me, but it does. I’d welcome others’ thoughts on whether this instant availability of the lyrics matters.

When a radio station had a limited broadcast range it could only reach the people within its area of service. There was at least the possibility that popular songs or singers could vary from region to region. The capacity of Radio Disney to reach the whole nation instantly probably increases the homogeneity of popular music. The same songs and stars will be hits in New York, Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles all at the same time.

Although there was some crossover between TV and music stars, i.e., David Cassidy, for the most part, music, movie and TV stars were different people. A musician followed one route to success and needed one particular set of people to back him or her, while a TV actor followed another route and needed a different set of people. The people who owned radio stations and music labels were not the same people who owned TV stations. But now, Miley Cyrus is a music/movie/TV juggernaut. Her TV show feeds demand for her music and her music and TV show promote her movies. Several of the songs I listened to this weekend were from the soundtrack of a soon to be released movie. There isn’t as much separation between entertainment venues as I remember.

I have heard it argued that the Internet would have a democratizing influence on music; anyone could get their music out there and find a following. Radio Disney seems to be an example of the opposite effect. By playing to young people’s desire to be on top of whatever is cool at the moment and being able to blitz the whole country with the few songs and singers that its owners deem to be marketable, Radio Disney has an enormously powerful effect on what tweens and teens listen to.

The idea of big corporations dictating what kind of music is available was also brought forth in the “Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes” and “The Way the Music Died” websites. This possibility bothers me a little less in those cases though, because they deal with music aimed more at adults. The argument that recording companies won’t buy hip-hop music with honorable or inspirational lyrics, that hip-hop musicians perform violent or homophobic songs because that is what sells has, in my opinion, some validity to it. If hundreds of thousands of people pay good money to buy songs with lyrics that I happen to think are hateful, it seems a little pointless to wring my hands and complain about the record companies or recording artists. As a society, we get the music we pay for, and if don’t like what is being paid for, we should probably think about why our culture values such songs.

Marketing to children though, may be a little different, simply because kids are developmentally more inclined to follow the herd. The need to fit in is so great at this age that it makes me a little uncomfortable to think of such a small group of people whose only motive is profit having such great influence. Having said that, though, I wonder what the solution would be. I would be very interested in knowing what others think about kids and music and marketing. Is anyone else troubled? Or am I over-reacting? Perhaps just another older person worrying needlessly about “young people these days?” In any event, spending time with Radio Disney was a very interesting and thought provoking experience.