BPI & BRIT Awards CEO responds to BBC's announcement of a new primetime music show, for Record of The Day.
"In a music market that is increasingly global, dominated by a small number of international streaming platforms, it could be more challenging than ever for local talent to break through, when it is competing for playlist slots with superstar artists that resonate everywhere."
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The announcement of a new prime-time music series on BBC One this Autumn will not only bring a smile to those like me whose taste in music was forged on Thursday nights in the heyday of Top of the Pops. It's also a chance to address a puzzling asymmetry in the BBC's programming for the last ten years – amazing support for new music on radio, but very little (apart from Glastonbury, late night Later and some BBC4 documentaries) on television.
The news is significant not just for music fans, and for industry bodies like the BPI that care passionately about the future for British music and have long pressed the BBC to up its game. It's also an important signal for anyone who is interested in our national culture and the role of the BBC within it. For too long the argument that "everything is available on YouTube" has deterred programme makers from investing in a new TV music show. This view ignored the editorial and curatorial role the BBC can play in helping viewers and listeners navigate the tsunami of content in an on-demand world, and the need for programming of greater depth than online presently provides. In an age when there is an oversupply of entertainment, there is more need than ever for programmes that also fulfil the Reithian mission to "inform and educate", as well as entertain.
It's wonderful that we live in an age when, in a miracle often overlooked, pretty much all the music ever released is available to enjoy instantly wherever we are. But anyone who has stared blankly at the Spotify search box wondering what to choose or listened to playlists without having a single clue about the artists featured, will recognise that some expert guidance and context are essential to fully appreciate the luxury buffet the streaming services provide. So the sketches and interviews that will form a key part of the new programme, and the introduction to the personality and stories of new artists alongside major stars, will help provide a new dimension to the discovery of music in the UK.
This matters now more than ever. In a music market that is increasingly global, dominated by a small number of international streaming platforms, it could be more challenging than ever for local talent to break through, when it is competing for playlist slots with superstar artists that resonate everywhere.
This is where the BBC can play an essential part in supporting the success of British music, alongside record labels. The Corporation has long provided exposure and breakthrough opportunities for new artists, including through BBC Introducing and now the Radio 1 Brit List. It has helped to support the careers of UK artists who in 2016 accounted for one in eight of the albums purchased worldwide, and who in nine of the last 12 years have delivered the biggest-selling global release.
Six weeks of a new prime-time TV music show is only one step in the right direction. Auntie will face a continuing challenge from streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime and, if it is to compete, will need to innovate in how it delivers its programming. But at heart the BBC is about content, and in music as in so many areas of our national life, it is uniquely positioned to deliver content that can be judged for its quality and its cultural impact as much as for its ratings. These are the standards by which the BBC's new music series should be judged.
Whether TOTP fans will be satisfied by the new music show remains to be seen. But the BBC is rightly trying a new formula for new times that we hope will engage younger and older fans and become an established part of the BBC TV schedule. We'll be avidly tuning in and wish them great success with it.
