By Sam Wilson
In recent years, it seems like radio has lost its relevance among young adults. Although Millennials and Gen Z’ers still listen to the radio, it’s often in passing – for a few minutes here and there. Ask any 20-something to name the afternoon host on your local country or top 40 station and they’ll most likely draw a blank. There are many well-documented and rather obvious factors contributing to this decline – the rise of streaming, the lack of a quality on-air product, and the increasing prevalence of work-from-home lifestyles, where going into the car and turning on the radio is now no longer a daily occurrence. These are all legitimate concerns, and are factors that the radio industry should be paying attention to in discussing their marketing strategies toward this age demographic. However, there’s another issue that I don’t hear anyone in the industry talking about, specifically within country radio – the lack of young artists.
When country music boomed in the late 1980’s and 1990’s, the genre was filled with rising artists that were similar in age to the listeners it was trying to attract. Garth Brooks, Faith Hill, and Travis Tritt were all 26 when their debut singles ascended the charts. Tim McGraw, Trisha Yearwood, and Martina McBride were 27. Natalie Maines of the (Dixie) Chicks was only 23.
Nowadays, many country artists don’t experience breakout success until at least their mid-30’s. While I’m not denying the talent of these individuals, what I am shaking my head at is what took them so long to break out in the first place. I think what has been happening in recent years is that as radio station ownership has consolidated, playlists have tightened, and there are less program directors that are willing (or even allowed) to take chances on emerging artists. When a young, new artist does become an overnight success (Luke Combs, Morgan Wallen, Kane Brown, Bailey Zimmerman, Kelsea Ballerini, etc.), they are the exception to the rule.
What country radio needs to do to attract more young listeners today is precisely what they did (and were successful at) back in the 90’s – let artists that are the same age as their audience have the spotlight. These artists were raised in the same generation as their listeners, and can better connect to them on so many levels – with their usage of social media, with their references to pop culture in their music, and their overall lifestyles. Younger artists also bring with them tremendous amounts of energy, which makes their music seem all the more authentic and relatable, and guarantees incredibly dynamic live shows.
This doesn’t mean that established superstars will have to go anywhere. Back in the 90’s, the previously-mentioned artists shared air space with older mainstays like Reba McEntire, George Strait, and Alabama. So then why can’t artists like Erin Kinsey, Tucker Wetmore, Julia Cole, and Restless Road get airplay alongside Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Carrie Underwood, and Jason Aldean in the present day?
It’s time for country radio to embrace these young artists. Without them, it will go the way of mainstream rock radio, a format that lost its popularity as it failed to keep up with the times and attract new listeners.
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