TV Shows prime my ears for music I would otherwise hate
As I continue to watch shows like American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance, I’m becoming increasingly aware of an interesting side effect. Music that I would otherwise hate — that would normally cause me to flip the radio station if it came on — is actually becoming tolerable. In fact, maybe tolerable is too weak of a word for it.
When a singer on American Idol covers a new song, that I’ve never heard, I immediately create a mental association between that song, that singer, and that TV show. This will happen whether I like the singer or not, and whether they do a great job or a horrible job. It doesn’t matter, the association is formed. Later in the show, when they recap the performances and tell everyone to vote, the song again gets associated with that singer, and that TV show. The next day, on the results show, they play a clip of each song that was performed, further strengthening this mental pathway. If the person gets voted off/sent home, they perform the song *again*! At that point, I will have seen their face, and heard them singing that song, at least 4 times!
Now, regardless of whether I would have ordinarily liked the song, I will remember American Idol every time I hear the actual original artist’s version on the radio, or in a TV commercial, or in a store at the mall. I am naturally curious to hear the original version of the song, to compare with the American Idol performance. So I’ll let it play. I like watching American Idol, so hearing the song automatically makes me think positive thoughts. Then, my brain associates the American Idol performance, the singer on that show, and the original artist’s version of the song, in a positive fashion, because I like watching the show. Now, not only did they make me associate an awful song with positive things, but they also strengthened the collection of mental pathways around the American Idol TV show, which helps to keep me looking forward to the next episode.
This also happens when a popular band performs a song on the show. Even if it’s not my favorite band or song, I will appreciate it more — every time I hear it — than I would have if I hadn’t seen the performance on Idol.
It’s incredible to me, how these shows are able to do this, but I am not bitter about it. I still enjoy the shows, even though I’ve discovered a new form of marketing that most people are probably not consciously aware of. I’m sure a lot of people have also noticed this effect, but I’ve never heard anyone talk about it. It’s pure marketing genius, if you ask me.
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July 15th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Dude.
Dude.
Dude.
No.
July 18th, 2007 at 7:32 am
Hehe.
The good news is that this does not happen with every song. Just a few. Also, it happens more with So You Think You Can Dance than with American Idol, and the ones that stick with me the most are the ones that hot girls dance to. :)
July 26th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
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