Swimming Against The Tide

The world of corporate music and radio is a frustrating one. For one thing, it's got absolutely nothing to do with "music" or "radio." It's all about the bottom line, supporting data, and business drivers.

If you're an idealist who just wants the world to be a better place, you're gonna have a little problem. For the world to hear you and graciously accept your message, you'll need the largest platform you can find. But when you finally find it, you'll discover that nobody wants to support you if your vision breaks any of the established paradigms. As if it wasn't hard enough already!

There are two main ways of having it your way.

Neither is guaranteed to work. In fact, both are nearly guaranteed to fail, but it's all we've got. The first way is to simply do what you do and disregard the opposition. If your goal and message are powerful enough, then enough people will get behind you and your music or ideas will eventually sweep the world and it will become a better place at long last. The second way is slightly more underhanded. You blend in with the establishment, establish yourself more and more, and when you're ready you start executing your noble agenda - eroding the system from within and the world becomes a better place at long last.

The trouble with the first method is that I can't at the moment think of anyone who's actually succeeded in it and is around to tell the tale. The trouble with the second method is that before you start breaking the rules, the system corrupts you and you become "one of them." For example, did you know that Alan Greenspan was an outspoken critic of the Fed and an ardent supporter of the gold standard? Until he joined them.

• Joining the elite in order to introduce change is a near-certain recipe for losing touch with your base.

• Going it alone is a near-certain recipe for alienating your base - because you're the lone nut after all!

So what gives? How can we achieve something better if none of the systems seem to work?

Perhaps we have something to learn from the spy business. And from Sun Tzu's Art of War . Or Machiavelli's. Double agents have infiltrated governments and organizations and have successfully managed to bolster the interests of their "base" (until they got caught). Couldn't we all become agents for change? Only trouble is... "change" without a precise definition can be pretty problematic. There has to be a definition of what "change" is "supposed to" mean. Perhaps it's best then if I finish by quoting Sun Tzu: "So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a thousand battles without a single loss."

What does all this have to do with music or radio? The sooner you find out, the sooner you can become part of the solution, and help move your dreams that much closer to reality.

Also check out my other blog Write A Song About This.