Why Do Some Songs Have a “Radio Edit”?

Sometimes a song exists in several versions, one might be longer, another might be shorter and then there's the “radio edit.” Radio stations often have rules or practical reasons for avoiding certain language or content.

So parts of a song may be removed, changed or shortened, sometimes it's only one word, sometimes entire sections disappear.

The interesting part?

You can hear the same song on two platforms and technically be listening to different versions.

Same artist.

Same song.

Different edit.