So it seems that Max did come over last week for the Mobbed thing they did down in Boracay. Some comments about Max: he's either a total headcase or surprisingly unassuming. Too bad I wasn't there to see for myself. Oh well, I'm sure they'll have a TV special of that event soon or atleast they'll use footage from it for the VJ segments in between videos. See? I know my MTV!
I've been listening to the radio these past few days just to try and catch up on new music. When I was younger (like 12 or 13), I listened to a lot of radio—
Just got off the phone with The Boss looking for Mike, our supervisor, who's out of the office. What in the world is he calling at this time of the night for? He's somewhere in North America and should be asleep. His voice sounded stuffy. Spring allergy season I s'pose.
Going back to what I was saying before getting interrupted, FM radio was my constant companion back then. I knew all the stations and what type of music they played, knew all the commercials and promos they ran, knew the DJs' radio names and program scheds. It's all you can do when you have no place else to go during school breaks. That's why if you ask me stuff about 90s pop music, I'm pretty confident I can give you an accurate answer.
Also, MTV did not have an Asian cable channel until '92 so you can imagine the hold radio had on the youth as far as music was concerned. I mean kids still recorded songs off the radio back then, DJ talking over the ends and all, which was particularly annoying.
So how has Manila FM radio changed since New Kids On The Block? Well, for one thing, there's too many commercials. Requests hardly get played but noted down. This is because songs are scheduled and certain stations will only play a song once every shift which normally run between 3 to 4 hours. Your requests are tallied and become figures.
Another thing is SMS. Mobile service providers continue to milk the public through whatever is the current rave in the streets. They have texting contests about everything—a soap opera's ending, which girl used a certain shampoo, even a woman's sexiness factor. So goes with radio feedback. "Text in your vote" are the four words you'll hear ad nauseum over the airwaves.
Thank goodness for the music remains. Below is a list of songs I am loving at the moment and hearing them over the radio makes them more therapeutic in a way.
- Afterglow by INXS
- DaniCalifornia by Red Hot Chilli Peppers
- The Hardest Part by Coldplay
- King Without a Crown by Matisyahu
- Walk Away by Kelly Clarkson (!)
