You know, the thing that seems to happen in every country other than the UK!

I found it strange last night when Ella Henderson was promoting her song on the biggest talent show in the country, but when asked when it was released, she said 'June 8th' (or sometime around then) WTF

In this digital age where songs can become available immediately, they make people wait weeks and weeks!

Look at Ariana Grande. Her song hit number one on iTunes across the planet, yet here its available to pre order but not buy in full till JULY!

In what universe is this a good idea?
Surely if songs are available elsewhere then they are just going to be easier to download 'illegally' for free, it makes no sense at all.

This is also why UK radio is a mess IMO. (As stated in another thread currently running)

I have also mentioned a few times that I use iTunes 'USA' for most of my downloads now, they even have UK artists songs available on there weeks before the UK! Bizarre.

Ella is at 32 on pre orders alone! Why not just release it! It wi hit number 1

They tried it a couple years ago and it didn't work. Regarding Ella, I think she's holding release because they'll have a special guest on each night this week so iTunes sales are going to be all over the place and it'll be easy for her to sustain any lead.

Plenty of examples of this, Lana Del Rey's single only just came out, been out in America for awhile, same with Ed Sheeran-Sing and a couple of Jason Mraz's songs and Cher Lloyd as well.

Why does it take Brits ages to get into songs when they become hits straight away in the rest of the world

I remember when Selena Gomez performed "Come and Get It" on the The Graham Norton show last year, but you couldn't even buy the track in the UK until almost two months later! And they wonder why people illegally download music!

I don't really know what they do it. I'm sure there's a business strategy in place, but surely they must be aware of striking when the iron is scorching hot. It's like they love waiting until its almost burnt out? :S

Kylie's Into The Blue was around for months before it's initial release so by the time it was released the hype was gone. Adding to that, the fact she was on The Voice and couldn't do any promo.

I've asked this question many times.

And I think it has to do with the fact that the UK is entirely sales based whereas other major markets take into account radio and streaming. So in order to maximise sales they build momentum and demand before dropping the single.

But with the internet that is now pointless as if it's released WW there is always a way to get it rather than waiting two months or more. The UK really does need to release things earlier.

They tried On Air On Release a few years ago and it just didn't translate well into the UK market. Many songs that could have been hits ended up with less impressive chart positions (Nicola Roberts is the example I always think of. She even expressed being unsure of the tactic as she was used to the tried and tested six week promo schedule).

Unless a song has a main event surrounding it then On Air On Sale won't be as effective.
Cheryl performing on the BGT finale is obviously a huge event as it is tied in with her return to the X Factor and her return with a lead single.

Radio in the UK is different to the US where OAOS is more effective. The UK general public are not aware of other singles appearing on air as easily and so OAOS will not be as promising to these artists.

Personally, I'm a fan of the build up to a single release. I agree that six weeks is sometimes far too long and that the power is gone from the release. 3/4 weeks would keep it fresh and new while also building up demand.

i totally get what you are saying here.
but isnt it time UK Radio changed?

also, i think perhaps 2/3 weeks wait after a song premiers is perfectly acceptable, but most songs are taking months!
Nicole Scherzinger has her new song on soundcloud today, UK release: July 28th!! Two whole months!
Its just silly.

Maybe this will all change if streaming is counted in the charts then

I think even if UK Radio changed, the UK public would have to change.

UK Radio do play current and upcoming songs but Radio isn't listened to by most of the general public. I don't listen to radio whatsoever, I get my music information by keeping my ear to the ground in terms of new songs I may like, but then there are some people who don't actively look for new songs and only listen to the radio as a background factor.

In the US, there are so many radio stations to cater for all aspects of the market that it reaches its audience easily. In the UK its one of the BBC stations or maybe Capital. They have the monopoly of radio listeners, but that is still only a sliver of a market.

Also in the US radio adds to the US billboard chart. Plus as there are so many with such a wide reach to maximise on a songs potential the song is almost immediately released when it is sent to Radio. Add streaming and Youtube plays it's a case of all bases covered.

In the UK I is entirely sales based so to maximise those sales releases are held back yes sometimes too long but that's the way it is.