Striving for a radio hit means you want to grow. For artists who haven’t yet grown a strong fanbase, radio is a sure way of getting exposure. I haven’t listened to Hot 97 in years but I can still recognize what a radio hit sounds like. Personally I can’t tell you what’s being played on the radio. So why are artists still chasing a radio hit in 2017? Why is Chris Brown still the go-to singer for when you want your song to do numbers? Due to the internet we see more artists with a platform to get their music to the public without ever touching radio. In the era of streaming and playlists, the times of being at the radio’s mercy is over. More often than not the radio isn’t putting you on to dope artists, it’s letting you know what’s already hot in the streets. To be put in rotation at a station, artists need to meet a certain sound with a certain formula. A specific sound, as well as a specific rotation of artists, dominate hip-hop radio. Recently we’ve seen 50 Cent argue with Hot 97’s creative director about the death of NY radio. Tyler, the Creator has never been an artist who needs radio, which brings me to my question: Do artists need their music on the radio in 2017? Hearing a song on the radio means it’s already been popular and is just being given extra life. The radio is notoriously late to what’s popping on the internet and usually doesn’t break new records anymore. His album sales prove that fact as well as all his sold out shows. I mean Tyler is one of those artists with an extremely loyal fanbase. Tmw Tyler hears #SeeYouAgain on the radio for the first time 🙌Ī post shared by HotNewHipHop on at 8:09pm PDT

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