Has music lost something or has the corporate-indie dynamic always been present?

The same could be said about philosophy. We’ve always had the actual thinkers and then those who just repeat what the originators say but in a more palatable, simplified way.

It’s unfortunate because usually the parrots are backed by a résumé that conveys authority, so people take what they say at face value instead of putting in the effort to judge it by its substance.