Rapper turned politician looks to increase Polish airplay quota

Polish rapper Piotr Liroy-Marzec, who won a parliamentary seat in Poland’s October 2015 elections, is preparing draft legislation that would see Polish radio stations obliged to play more Polish-language music.

The rapper, commonly known as Liroy, wants to establish a 50 per cent quota for Polish-language tracks. The current quota stands at 33 per cent.

His proposal, however, has attracted criticism from numerous figures in the radio industry, who cite potential damage to audience figures.

“The idea of increasing the proportion of Polish lyrics could prompt some listeners, particularly young ones, to turn to increasingly popular streaming services from abroad,” said musical director of Warsaw-based Radio Zet, Joanna Sołtysiak, adding that online music services such as Spotify and Deezer do not have to fulfil similar obligations.

Mr Liroy-Marzec opened his MP’s office in Kielce, south central Poland, yesterday. He won his seat in the Polish Sejm (lower house of Parliament) under the umbrella of right-wing group Kukiz’15, an anti-establishment movement led by rock singer Paweł Kukiz.

Source: Radio Poland