Is there away of controlling bad language content or parental controls on Sonos Radio? Listening to Alternative Energy on the new Sonos Radio service but have stopped using it because several of the songs Played have bad language.
We have children and it’s not an acceptable risk to leave radio playing.
Doesn’t appear to be at this time.
I think Sonos has a duty of care issue with there Radio Service. There is no advisory warnings. Not sure who to report that to but hope someone is listening. I’m very disappointed that a premium brand has overlooked this.
+23AFAIK only three music services on Sonos support parental controls today: Amazon, Apple and YouTube. Not even Spotify, so this isn’t as important a feature as some may think/expect.
The ‘Kids Rock’ station is named in such a way that it looks like it is aimed at children. However, it appears to be mainstream pop and rock hits that don’t have explicit language.
I am looking for this too. I have been checking out the new Sonos Radio stations, and was enjoying Rock Pantheon, then Alternative Energy… until Rage Against the Machine and NIN (and even Mumford & Sons) came on… lots of explicit language, and I’ve got a 3 and 5 year old. You can’t skip songs!
This was frustrating to say the least, while tiling a bathroom floor. Come on Sonos, you’re better than this. You offer parental controls in your own app, how can it not apply to your own music service?
+2I too found bad language an issue. Initially I tried Thom Yorke's playlist on the 'Curated Sound System'. Unfortunately it opened with a track which sounded like continuous mains hum. I then switched to 'Sonos Sound System' to hear an interview with a female musician. However after several minutes of utterly tame sycophantic questioning, dealt with politely by the artist, the interviewer then threw in the F bomb and I switched off.
Not at all what I had expected. We often have young children in the house and bad language is just not appropriate on the radio for this and many other reasons.
+26Hi everyone, thanks for asking! I’ve made sure to pass along your feedback to the team. Some stations are designed to be family friendly, such as that kids rock that was mentioned, but there isn’t a way to filter what’s playing. I’ll let you know if there’s any news around changes in this regard in the future for the Sonos stations.
+18I have to disagree. To me it is not a problem to listen to music the way the artist has created it. If children hear something their parents don’t like them to say themselves the parents should talk to them about it. Bringing up children is not removing al obstacles from their paths, but it is about talking with your children about how you view the world and letting them make their own choices. Censorship is the easy way out.
I really hate the way Spotify for example has given in to this pressure, by not implementing the choice to hear music as the artist has intended it, but to confront me with silences and censored music.
Off-topic, somewhat political opinion:
I really don't understand why there should even be censored versions of songs. If the song stands without explicit language, then why even include it? To quote the great poet Willard Carroll Smith Jr., “Do me a favor, write one verse without a curse”. If the song requires it, then don't remove it and just choose not to listen if you don't like it.
I experienced the epitome of this strange behavior when I was once looking for an uncensored version of the song "Teenage Dirtbag”. This song has the line “Her boyfriends a d***[slang for male genitals], he brings a g**[firearm] to school.” I could find versions that censor out both these words, but also a version that didn't censor the male genitals, but it did censor the firearm. A song produced in the country with the largest porn industry in the world and a self-destructive fascination with their constitutional right to bear arms... No, school shootings are not a joke, but pop songs are not the cause and censoring them will not help one bit.
I do appreciate that an indicator or warning for explicit content may be good to have.
I have to disagree. To me it is not a problem to listen to music the way the artist has created it. If children hear something their parents don’t like them to say themselves the parents should talk to them about it. Bringing up children is not removing al obstacles from their paths, but it is about talking with your children about how you view the world and letting them make their own choices. Censorship is the easy way out.
That’s all fine and you are free to raise your children as you wish. However, others are free to raise their kids with a different approach. Besides, censorship in this context, isn’t just about children, but the choice to listen to music as you wish. Personally, I want to listen to a genre of music without having to be concerned that a song is going to come on that will bombard me with language I don’t want to hear. I don’t want it playing while guests are over for example as it would naturally be a reflection on me, whether accurate or not. It would be nice to have versions of these genres where everything is relatively tame and/or I can skip through tracks I don’t want to hear.
And yes, turning it off is an option, but I don’t really think that’s an option that Sonos want their customers to pick.
As far as the reason censored version of songs exist...at least in the US, public radio station are required by law to avoid using certain language, or face heavy fines. If an artist wants his/her song played on the radio, which used to be about the only people would be aware of the song and thus potentially buy it, the song needs to be censored.
Personally, I don’t mind a little language here and there, but in many cases, it’s over used to the point where it’s annoying or I start feeling uncomfortable. That could mean I prefer a censored version if I like the song overall, or will just skip if I don’t. IMO, explicit language is good for occasional use to describe heightened emotion or situation beyond normal. When it’s used as everyday normal words for normal life, then it tends to just be shock value, or to give the impression that the speaker’s normal is more than everyone elses...and it just comes off as annoying to me. That said, I do have friends who cuss/curse constantly, and it is there normal without realizing it. I tend to just overlook that. However, when you’re creating a song or other work of art, I don’t think the same really applies, and I tend to be just turned off by it.
I gave it a listen, ad the same issue except no kids, just me not caring for that kind of thing.
It would make avoiding stations with that type of language easier if they were simply labeled explicit.
Even better would be an option to hide explicit stations, my satellite TV has had that for years.
I was enjoying Sonos Radio until it played Parental Advisory content with our 4 and 2 year old kids in the room. So it’s not an option without anyway to see what is coming up next or showing that channels include explicit content. For something that is entirely in Sonos control it’s pretty disappointing.
Wow, 5 months later and still nothing? Not even a way to skip the current song and move to the next one? I think as others have mentioned, there are times when some may just find it inappropriate to have f bombs ringing out from all angles. Some may not mind, and that’s ok, one would think on a premium system that this would be an option. Not sure how Amazon, YouTube Music and Apple can provide this but SONOS can’t?? Seems odd.
TuneIn and Sonos Radio are the equivalent of terrestrial radio. No song skipping possible.
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