I believe there was a significant decline in the quality of mainstream music at the end of the 1990s that can be tied directly to Clear Channel's monopoly on radio stations. Before 1992, there were laws in place that limited the number of radio stations a company could own. During the 1990s, Congress began relaxing these rules, particularly with the Telecommunications Act of 1996. After that, companies were free to buy up radio stations and hold monopolies in particular regions and markets. Clear Channel jumped on this. Before 1992, Clear Channel owned 2 radio stations, which was the limit at the time. By 1995, Clear Channel owned 43 radio stations. Today, the company is called iHeartMedia, and they own over 1,200 radio stations. And they're not alone. There are a handful of companies that own hundreds of radio stations across the country. Before the late 1990s, radio stations could play whatever music they wanted. A radio DJ wasn't just a babysitter for the station. They curated the playlists, and DJs were often the force driving the popularity of songs and artists. But once Clear Channel and other companies bought up all the radio stations, mainstream music became homogenized. Every radio station within a certain genre is basically just playing the same playlist curated by the company that owns them. The pop stations get the pop playlist, the rock stations get the rock playlist, and the DJs just hit the play button. There's no room for originality. There's no ability for a DJ to push that underground band they just discovered. There's no opportunity for a new artist to have a surprise radio hit. The mainstream isn't the most popular music. The mainstream is what iHeartMedia decides the mainstream should be. In that type of environment, where the mainstream is predetermined by a few companies, you're going to see a decline in the quality of music.