For a musician, constantly listening to the radio may do more harm than good. This is especially true when actively engaged in the creative process. If an artist listens to the radio too much while cutting an album, it can deal a death blow to a promising career. There is only one exception to this rule and that is if the artist is listening to his or her own material.
The main problem that occurs is that the artist will most likely be heavily influenced by whatever he or she is listening to. This may prevent them from cultivating a style of their own or even maintaining one that they have already created. Musicians may start sounding like what is being played on the airwaves, and that is never a good thing when trying to stand out from the crowd. They may find themselves repeating certain phrases and lyrics from others. Without intentionally doing so, they will sacrifice their creative juices for the sake of fitting in to the latest sound of their genre.
Think of a revolutionary artist that when you first heard their material, had music that did not sound like anything you had ever heard before. In your mind, try to recreate the mood that you were put into. Try to remember what you were doing at the time. This particular impact is what the independent artist should be striving for. It cannot be achieved without a style that is original. As a connoisseur of hip hop, the Wu-tang Clan comes to my mind. Remaining true to the history of hip-hop, their sound was so unique, it was impossible to ever accuse them of "style biting"(copying).
So what is the takeaway from this discussion? It is simply to turn off the radio while working on new material. It is to focus on crafting your own sound, and not just chasing a fad. The music industry is so fickle, that if you do so, then by the time you are ready to promote your music, there will be a new flavor of the month. You want to be that flavor. Rapper Ice Cube said it best with lyrics from his classic song with the same name as this article, "turn off that bulls***, turn off the mother f***ing radio".
The main problem that occurs is that the artist will most likely be heavily influenced by whatever he or she is listening to. This may prevent them from cultivating a style of their own or even maintaining one that they have already created. Musicians may start sounding like what is being played on the airwaves, and that is never a good thing when trying to stand out from the crowd. They may find themselves repeating certain phrases and lyrics from others. Without intentionally doing so, they will sacrifice their creative juices for the sake of fitting in to the latest sound of their genre.
Think of a revolutionary artist that when you first heard their material, had music that did not sound like anything you had ever heard before. In your mind, try to recreate the mood that you were put into. Try to remember what you were doing at the time. This particular impact is what the independent artist should be striving for. It cannot be achieved without a style that is original. As a connoisseur of hip hop, the Wu-tang Clan comes to my mind. Remaining true to the history of hip-hop, their sound was so unique, it was impossible to ever accuse them of "style biting"(copying).
So what is the takeaway from this discussion? It is simply to turn off the radio while working on new material. It is to focus on crafting your own sound, and not just chasing a fad. The music industry is so fickle, that if you do so, then by the time you are ready to promote your music, there will be a new flavor of the month. You want to be that flavor. Rapper Ice Cube said it best with lyrics from his classic song with the same name as this article, "turn off that bulls***, turn off the mother f***ing radio".
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