Music has been part of human lives for several thousands of years. We have been able to create all kinds of sounds from basically anything. Rocks, wood, strings, glass, and everything else can be used to create an interesting sound. By combining all of the sounds together, we are able to make music. Today, we do not have to bang on instruments to get music because we have quite an easy access to it. We can easily discover new songs through the radio, use applications such as Spotify for our favorite songs, or use any of the other modern solutions.
However, even with access to services such as Spotify which allow us to listen to songs of any album or artist from anywhere in the world, people still come back to listening to the radio. This happens because the radio is not just about music. It is about the ads, podcasts, talk show hosts, and many other things. It can add a bit more character to your drive to work or to home. It makes you feel like you aren’t driving by yourself.
If you still believe that applications such as Spotify are much better than using the radio, here are some points I have thought of that may convince you otherwise.
Music discovery
Personally, I believe that the biggest reason why people still stick to listening to the radio even with so much more modern solutions these days is that it allows for random discovery. Using today’s applications such as Apple Music, finding a new band or song is easier than ever. Either the algorithm will find one for you or you just have to do a quick search.
While all of this sounds great, it makes things a bit more insignificant. Having the ability to find anything that you want in a matter of seconds, it kind of makes new songs not that interesting. I know, it sounds weird, but this may actually be true. Some people prefer to discover things randomly on their own instead of relying on the Internet or other modern technologies.
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Another thing I should mention is the fact that applications such as Spotify will only push famous artists on their front page. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it reduces the chances of discovering a smaller/local artist.
Assuming that you are bored listening to those same albums every single time while driving to work, I would suggest that you try going back to the good old radio days. Adding a bit more randomness in your day will make things a bit more unique. And there is nothing more chill and relaxing than discovering a new song on the radio as suggested by chilloutradio.
Podcasts
Two or three decades ago, podcasts were quite popular. Everyone would get up early for work, get dressed, and get to their cars as quickly as possible to catch the morning podcast. The subjects they would cover in these podcasts were hilarious and interesting. Who doesn’t like listening to a thought-provoking conversation between two people? However, once CDs and USBs were introduced in vehicles, the appeal of listening to a random station dropped significantly.
Fortunately, the interest in podcasts started to rise again. It seems like these days everyone is trying to create their own podcasts. I don’t have any problem with this because I do believe that a large variety of podcasts is a good thing. However, a high-quality podcast requires an experienced host that will hit the right subjects and talk about interesting points.
This is why I prefer to podcasts on the radio because they usually have much higher standards than other modern music platforms/applications.
It is free
I believe that one of the biggest reasons why people are so interested in listening to the radio is because it is completely free. All you need to have is a car or at least a receiver at home that will be able to intercept the emitted signals.
Everything that you intercept with your car or receiver is completely free. The idea that access to so much content is completely free and is quite amazing. Almost everyone today is trying to make some cash one way or another, but the radio has remained true to its purpose. Of course, there are some ads in between, but I don’t think that is such a problem. At least the ads on the radio are a lot more subtle than those on TV. If you ever get annoyed by the ad, you can always switch to another channel and listen to a different podcast or type of music.
It is a habit
Another reason why so many people enjoy listening to the radio in these modern days is that it is just a habit. Yes, you heard that right. Since most of us have been born into the world without CDs and or other more modern music-related solutions, it is quite normal to turn on to some station while driving to work. It comes naturally and you don’t have to bother about connecting your phone with Bluetooth to the car or whatever else you prefer. All you need to do is just start the car and then adjust the channel that you want to listen to. It is faster and it is simpler. What is there not to love?
I can’t exactly tell you when or whether people will start to lose this habit, but I think it should stay for at least a couple of decades until applications such as Spotify become much more affordable. Who knows, maybe the radio platform will quit on ads altogether in the future. Anything could happen.
In the end, it seems like people just want to return to simpler times. Even with access to all kinds of different media platforms, discovering new artists, bands, and songs through the radio makes things a bit more unique. For the best experience, I would suggest switching back and forth between a phone app such as Spotify and radio. This way you will get the best out of both.
