Edited music

[N.E.G]

Hello everybody! I figure this is a good place to post this question to everyone on the forums: Should music still be radio-edited? Personally I feel that unless done perfectly editing is a major flaw to recorded music. Especially as the limits on what needs to be edited are vague (to a listener).

So do you feel editing music takes away from the recorded music? Should we do away with it? Discuss!

@mods: If this would be better placed in music, I'm sorry it's here. It just seems that the music section is devoted to speaking about other bands specifically. Feel free to move if necessary.

Lata

[andymister222]

ya i hate radio edits
i can handle a lil pg13 talk in my music

[Becky]

I think that it should be edited to some point, just because all different ages of people listen to the radio. I'd hate not to be able to listen to my favorite station in the car when my daughter is in there because I don't want her to hear constant F bombs being droppped.

[Odd One]

Editing out the expletives or other content that may not be suitable for all audiences is a must on radio as it is over the public airwaves & it really is up to parents to decide what their children hear or for that matter what they hear themselves. Publically broadcasting “inappropriate” material removes your ability to choose on some level.
I always buy the explicit versions of albums because I want to hear the songs the way the artist intended them. With that said, I don't really listen to the radio. It's like watching a movie edited for network TV, it has to be done for the same reasons but not something I would watch.

[siberianknight]

Honestly, I'm gonna be the odd ball here, I think it's useless.

Really, being someone who is young and has been around schools more recently, you'll honestly hear worse in school than you ever could on the radio. Trust me. They say worse in school and at work than you could imagine.

This is kind of the same respect as censoring sex ed in school just because you don't want your child to see private parts (Sound ridiculous, but people DO do this.) They're going to learn somehow whether it be through their schools internet through their friends (Filters AREN'T that hard to break at school. Even a novice kid can do it), or just hearing or seeing it. It's best in a controlled environment where the parent can tell them what's right and what's wrong so that they don't go around emulating it carelessly. I was expose to language, violence and sexual situations as a young child through art and movies, but my parents explained to me that I shouldn't emulate it. And i never did (Until I turned 18. xDDD )

As far another point, music is considered art, and if you have two nude women making out in a unique way in art it's "Tasteful art". But if you have foul language in a song it's "Inappropriate".

Not bashing anyone else. I'm just offering my ideas on the subject.

[Odd One]

Justin, you make very valid points but my son is seven & I still am able to exercise some influence over what he sees & hears. I think you are talking more about teenagers & having been one myself, I realize all bets are off once he gets to a certain age.

I believe it’s the parents responsibility to police what their children are exposed to, not the public airwaves (which incidently are subsidized by tax payers) so a little censorship seems appropriate. XM radio or cable is different, you pay for those so they are not available to everyone with a radio or a TV.

With that said, I let Sam listen to songs with explicit lyrics and some PG13 movies. I employ the theory of open dialog and full disclosure with him. He knows his boundaries pretty well & accepts our decisions when we say no (mostly)

It’s an interesting subject, I like these kinds of debates.

[Becky]

[4LK]

I disagree with music censorship, unless the language is way over the top and unnecesary in the song. (i.e. "Crazy Bitch" by Buckcherry.) I mean, me and my friends were all using "bad" words back in 4th grade. It's appart of society now. I don't think it would hurt anybody to have it in music on the radio. Then again, maybe that's just my rebellious teen attitude.

[Becky]

^^^ If/when you have children, you'll probably feel a bit differently about that.

[siberianknight]

[Becky]

^^^ Editing out something like barrel is dumb. My station leaves that part in.

[Odd One]

[Odd One]

[siberianknight]

[paulmason]

radio editing is kinda pointless in some ways, for example:

" i threw some bread out to a duck,
i met a girl and said "hey lets... "

if they were lyrics to a song, i can pretty much garuntee everyone knows what the last word is anyway.

I think that certain words shouldnt be offensive, its more the context in which there used. Like, the above lyrics are bad, even if the last word isnt there. So in my opinion the whole second line should be blanked out.

Unless a child is too young to piece the lyrics together, and it IS more about a certian word being used, that they may pick up on...well i have a genius solution!!!
SPELL THE WORD!!!!! just like when you spell out V-E-T for your dogs, or
D-E-N-T-I-S-T to people like me. Sure, it may get rather frusrating at times, but i can visualise people worldwide, sitting in thier cars nodding thier heads in approval and understanding to certian songs. the only problem is that the music may have to stop for the words to be heard clearly.

on another note, i made the above lyrics up all on my own. (just another example of me being a genius)

[N.E.G]

Well, geez, a guy get's involved with school again and when he gets back to the things he enjoys he realizes he has missed some good debatin'.

Mostly I agree with siberianknight. Amen to being on the lookout for zombies. Sneaky bastards. However I would continue the argument against censorship farther.

@OddOne: interestingly enough, we both agree that taking away a choice is a bad thing but disagree on what choice we are taking away.

To me, the most vile thing a person can choose to do is to take away the choice for another person. Most (if not all) crimes can come down to that standard. When I listen to the radio I have no choice in whether I want to listen to edited or unedited versions of music. Never mind that the censorship in general is pointless as paulmason pointed out, but I'm never given the simple choice of listening to unedited music. Now, I contend that I'm a pretty reasonable adult and perfectly capable of changing the channel if the music in question offends me or others in my car. Kinda like changing the channel when bad music comes on the airwaves. Simple.

I would also argue that the act of censorship draws more attention to the possibly offensive words/phrases in question than otherwise. To use a recent hit on the pop charts, the song "Run this Town" has a fair amount of profanity in it, particularly in Kanye West's piece. If memory serves, the words "coming" and a "nigga" are censored, although in a way that leaves no room for doubt as to what the words are. Meanwhile "ass that'll swallow up a g-string" is left clear as day. The song doesn't offend me in any way although I could understand why parents would want their children's virginal ears to not be exposed. However, were I still a child the conversation about that song would have went like this: "Mom, what were the words that were censored?" "I don't know, I wasn't listening" and then I would have gotten the answer from my sister or someone else sometime else. However, before edu-ma-cated about the wonderfully wacky world of reproduction I wouldn't have thought to ask what Mr. West was talking about when he said "the only good gonna come is good when I'm coming". I would have merely assumed he meant that he livened up the room/party/event/night when he arrived and made things better.

Side note: that was a ridiculously long paragraph.

Thoughts/comments/concerns/criticisms/aliens/zombies/Kanye West/ etc?

edit: If a mod feels like I violated the ToS, I apologize but am attempting to promote intellectual debate through example and am not actively attempting to conduct myself in an antagonistic manner.