In fact, IMO, Sirius is the savior of radio. It's where all the really good radio talent went when terrestrial radio was mostly turned into garbage. Most of the biggest names in radio from the 60's through the 90's are there.

People balk at paying for Sirius, but there is real quality entertainment there. It's not an iPod pretending to be radio like streaming services. It's actual radio, with on-air talent, and an ever-expanding library of original content.

Even on what you might think are low-interest channels like the 40's channel, or the Sinatra channel, or the Jimmy Buffet channel, or Tom Petty channel, there are new shows made daily, live concerts, and all kinds of things that "real" radio used to do, but gave up in favor of automation.

There are even hyper-niche channels like one that plays Carolina Shag (coastal North and South Carolina music from the 50's and 60's), or the one that's all independent Canadian music, or half a dozen stand-up comedy channels. Or something that I enjoy way more than I'd like to admit: Yacht Rock, which is the kinds of music that you'd imagine that a couple named Chad and Buffy would play on their yacht off the coast of Montauk. Or as the channel describes itself, "Everyone's fifth or sixth favorite soft rock songs from the 70's and 80's."

There's still excellent terrestrial radio, but you have to seek it out. WXRT/Chicago, KCSN/Northridge, KING-FM-HD2/Seattle, and KGFN/Goldfield leap to mind, but there are others.

The rise of Citicasters/Jacor/Clear Channel is what made me quit radio. But these few holdouts (some even corporate-owned!) are still producing quality radio, and if you can't find something to listen to on Sirius, then I don't know what to say.

/ Worked for 10 years in radio on-air and behind the scenes

/ Happy Sirius subscriber