Do Musicians Bribe the Radio so their Songs get Played?

It seems like once a song is played it gets really popular and people like it & partly just because it was played on the radio. But is it true that people bribe the radio to play their song? If this is the case then how can one bribe or take part in such scandals legally? The radio can take part in such scandals in the number of ways.

Firstly, the labels would pay DJs, or even give them gifts to play the music of the label's artists. It's called payola, and it’s illegal now.

Second, comes the Role of Music Director (or MD for short) and he is the person in charge of scheduling the music on the station. The person who operates the computer program which determines how many "spins" a song will get in a week.

So, if your label wants to get your song a spin, they won't go through the DJ but have to approach the MD. Your regional label rep takes the MD out to lunch, they have a nice time and at the end when the label guy is picking up the check he asks "can I count on you to give me 5 spins a week on my new song?" this is how they bribe.

When my friend was in radio, promoters sometimes came by to offer everything from lunch to cash donations to the charity of his choice if he would just have his station give X record some extra airplay.  He encountered influential program directors whose rent was paid by a record promoter, and sometimes, the station got an exclusive appearance by a famous performer in exchange for heavy airplay of his or her music. 

It's not ethical yet, sometimes it happens.  No doubt every profession has its dishonest side, and the music biz and radio are no exceptions.  But please don't lose sight of this fact:   not all record promoters are into bribery, nor all music and program directors on the take.  Many of us strive to do things the honest way.

So operating a radio station strictly like a business can lead to artistic stagnation. As the radio industry main aim is to provide information, education, and entertainment, for promoting the welfare and happiness of the masses.

So instead of going in illegal bribes to play their music, labels can actually have to find which radio station is hit and have more listeners. IRAM(Indian Radio Audience Measurement) is an Independent survey of Indian Radio industry to help you out to get the details on individual radio station data which will benefit many labels & advertisers to make their song hit.