April 6+ numbers released

[K.M. Richards]

The usual disclaimer applies that these are the numbers the stations and agencies care the least about and you'll have to wait for the demographic-specific rankings from David to see who the real winners are.

1. KBIG (My 104.3) 5.4

1. KIIS 5.4

3. KRTH (K-Earth) 5.2

4. KOST 4.9

5.KCBS (Jack) 3.9

5. KSWD (The Sound) 3.9

5. KTWV (The Wave) 3.9

8. KAMP (Amp) 3.6

9. KLVE (K-Love) 3.6

10. KFI 3.4

 

[davideduardo]

The usual disclaimer applies that these are the numbers the stations and agencies care the least about and you'll have to wait for the demographic-specific rankings from David to see who the real winners are.

25-54
KIIS, KBIG, KOST, KRTH, KCBS
KSWD, KLVE, KAMP, KROQ, KTWV

KRRL 11th, KPWR 19th

 

[34james]

I'm impressed KTWV, is now almost at a 4 share overall. KRRL, remained flat at 3.1, and Jack FM, also is almost at a 4 share. As well as KSWD. Rock is doing well in LA. now what to do with KLOS. It's flat at 2.0 overall the last 4 months.

 

[34james]

I forgot to mention KPWR. I thought they would rebound this book. Does not appear to be the case, they are down to 2.5 overall. Where KTWV, used to be.

 

[ChannelFlipper]

I'm impressed KTWV, is now almost at a 4 share overall. KRRL, remained flat at 3.1, and Jack FM, also is almost at a 4 share. As well as KSWD. Rock is doing well in LA. now what to do with KLOS. It's flat at 2.0 overall the last 4 months.

KLOS has only themselves to blame. They didn't take the competition seriously.

 

[DOB]

Trying to hold on to being a hip hop station is not going to work. Real has Big Boy, that sets them up all day and Real is not going to give the Hip Hop listener a reason to change the station, they are pure.

The game has changed and Power 106 can only survive by being a real rhythmic. When there were no other urban stations in the market Power was positioned correctly, but that alliance they had is broken is now, those who want pure hip hop got a station now and it also has Big Boy.

Being a well programmed rhythmic station for LA, certainly wont drop their ratings, at the very least they remain stable but a more attractive buy. They will be fine and a thorn in the side of Iheart if they cherry pick the very best of all types of current rhythmic music, heavy on mixshows at the right times, and become once again the party station. After all, back in 2004 it was Power's going hip hop that allowed Kiis to take the position they have found incredible success with. If anything kiis should have done the rhythmic emphasis that all chr's have now copied as tastes have changed nationwide 5-7 years before they finally did in 2004. Amp is a good poor man's kiis, but they dont own anything, power can capitalize here.

 

[davideduardo]

Trying to hold on to being a hip hop station is not going to work. Real has Big Boy, that sets them up all day and Real is not going to give the Hip Hop listener a reason to change the station, they are pure.

Real dropped 0.6 in 18-34 from March to April, and the morning show also declined. Big Boy has less than 2/3 the numbers he had on Power. In fact, Big Boy has the lowest rated 18-34 daypart on the station.

The game has changed and Power 106 can only survive by being a real rhythmic.

After just two months, Powere is just a share behind Real in 18-34 and looks to being in a rebuild. The effect of the month of no commercials on Real has worn off, and the Power music dayparts are looking very competitive.

Amp is a good poor man's kiis, but they dont own anything, power can capitalize here.

Hardly. Amp is in a 4-way tie for 6th in LA billings (with KNX, KLVE and KOST). They are a very successful part of the CBS cluster.

Finally, I suggest we look at Hot in New York where new PD Pio Ferro is on a 4-month uptrend and has now passed iHeart's Power in that market. The Emmis folks are very programming focused and two months in LA is hardly time to be talking about a reformatting.

 

[only1moore]

Well, even with the ratings slip, I wouldn't be surprised if KPWR rebounds from the KRRL effect but at the same time they need to freshen up the music mix a little and put more effort into promoting J. Cruz's morning show.

 

[34james]

Well, even with the ratings slip, I wouldn't be surprised if KPWR rebounds from the KRRL effect but at the same time they need to freshen up the music mix a little and put more effort into promoting J. Cruz's morning show.

Emmis, is already promoting J. Cruz heavily both on radio and the I heart radio app in-between radio ads. They are doing as much as they can to bring back listeners to Power 106.

 

[K.M. Richards]

Some of this duplicates what David said but with a little more detail in post #7.

Don Barrett reports in his column at laradio.com this morning that Big Boy's debut in third place (18-34 demo) is now sixth place. That, plus what David said originally ...

Big Boy has less than 2/3 the numbers he had on Power. In fact, Big Boy has the lowest rated 18-34 daypart on the station.

... leads me to believe that a lot of sampling went on, driven by the media attention over the Emmis lawsuit, and a lot of listeners did not find the new "Real" format compelling enough to stick around. Contrary to what has been offered as a point of view by another poster, I don't think Emmis has to do very much "rebuilding" at Power as they seem to be reacquiring a lot of the listeners that went down to the other end of the dial to see what all the fuss was about at 92.3; what I wonder (since I never listened to KPWR before and don't listen to KRRL now) is what Big Boy is apparently doing differently to have what should be loyal listeners following him from station to station now abandon him and go back to his former station.

Don also points out that the much-hyped return of Mark Thompson to L.A. radio over at 100.3 The Sound has also started to fall flat on its face. He dropped to sixth place in their key demo and the rest of the numbers are flat. Are we seeing the "replace Uncle Joe in mornings" curse repeat? As I posted back when the move was announced by Bonneville, this happened before and Benson was returned to mornings when things did not work as planned.

A good sign that The Wave's music tweaks to incorporate songs Hot 92.3 used to play is that Pat Prescott jumped from around 20th place in the morning to a tie for 10th place.

 

[ChannelFlipper]

Some of this duplicates what David said but with a little more detail in post #7.

Don Barrett reports in his column at laradio.com this morning that Big Boy's debut in third place (18-34 demo) is now sixth place. That, plus what David said originally ...



... leads me to believe that a lot of sampling went on, driven by the media attention over the Emmis lawsuit, and a lot of listeners did not find the new "Real" format compelling enough to stick around. Contrary to what has been offered as a point of view by another poster, I don't think Emmis has to do very much "rebuilding" at Power as they seem to be reacquiring a lot of the listeners that went down to the other end of the dial to see what all the fuss was about at 92.3; what I wonder (since I never listened to KPWR before and don't listen to KRRL now) is what Big Boy is apparently doing differently to have what should be loyal listeners following him from station to station now abandon him and go back to his former station.

Don also points out that the much-hyped return of Mark Thompson to L.A. radio over at 100.3 The Sound has also started to fall flat on its face. He dropped to sixth place in their key demo and the rest of the numbers are flat. Are we seeing the "replace Uncle Joe in mornings" curse repeat? As I posted back when the move was announced by Bonneville, this happened before and Benson was returned to mornings when things did not work as planned.

A good sign that The Wave's music tweaks to incorporate songs Hot 92.3 used to play is that Pat Prescott jumped from around 20th place in the morning to a tie for 10th place.

I have sampled the Mark Thomson show on the Sound mornings and frankly, have not been that much impressed. The show misses the Brian element more than I thought it would. I think it is because as co-star, Brian had much more creative input as an equal co-contributor and the two of them playing off each other's differences in personality made the show, but with Mark simply being the man, he has a whole posse of other show members that all suck up to him because he is the boss. This is not to say that I am pinning for the return of Brian; I didn't listen to M&B that much and I don't listen to Mark solo that much because I would rather have my classic rock in the morning than any of them.

The one thing I will say is that I would rather listen to Mark than Heidi and Frank. Mark's show is at least somewhat intelligent and witty, Heidi and Frank dropped the intelligent member of their show long ago, and the show has suffered ever since.

 

[TheBigA]

A good sign that The Wave's music tweaks to incorporate songs Hot 92.3 used to play is that Pat Prescott jumped from around 20th place in the morning to a tie for 10th place.

Great job taking a radio station many thought was DOA to the Top 10. Bonus time!

 

[Gregg.]

Not just top 10 but tied for #5. Who'd have guessed The Wave would be a top LA station again, still playing many of the vocal artists it aired during the Smooth Jazz days...Anita Baker, Sade, Luther Vandross, George Benson, Natalie Cole. But KTWV has eliminated all the instrumentals. And it plays very few white artists, even those who work in the jazz and rhythm genres. No more Sting, Steely Dan, Basia, Michael Buble. Sam Smith and Adele make the cut.

But OK, it's still a very good station.

 

[DOB]

Real dropped 0.6 in 18-34 from March to April, and the morning show also declined. Big Boy has less than 2/3 the numbers he had on Power. In fact, Big Boy has the lowest rated 18-34 daypart on the station.



After just two months, Powere is just a share behind Real in 18-34 and looks to being in a rebuild. The effect of the month of no commercials on Real has worn off, and the Power music dayparts are looking very competitive.



Hardly. Amp is in a 4-way tie for 6th in LA billings (with KNX, KLVE and KOST). They are a very successful part of the CBS cluster.

Finally, I suggest we look at Hot in New York where new PD Pio Ferro is on a 4-month uptrend and has now passed iHeart's Power in that market. The Emmis folks are very programming focused and two months in LA is hardly time to be talking about a reformatting.

I never said Amp wasn't successful, in fact that is my point, that just playing a safe list of current hit music on the rhythmic side gets results in LA. Power 106 could put on a rhythmic hit music station and get their share of the pie, there is much to take from kiis and amp.

New York is completely different than LA, and Hot 97 is different from Power. Hot 97 has always been much heavier with the hip hop and plays more hardcore stuff. They have been careful to add in a few rhythmic pop songs like Natalie La Rose, but Hot 97 by no means should do what I'm implying for Power, the make up of the New York market is different. Besides there are already 3 top 40 stations*the two gold selections of ktu an hour doesn't change what they mostly offer, in New York along with a bigger African American population as well.

Power 106 may very well overtake Real in the ratings, but there is limitations with both being hip hop stations. They will both settle around a 3 share and not get the demos that Power had before when they were the only game in town. I suggest a rhythmic hit music station. Play the very best hip hop songs that amp and kiis are slow to or wont touch or daypart, but instead of playing all of those lesser hip hop titles, play a broad mix of all the best rhythmic currents and a smart selection of power recurrents and choice gold.

Young adults today are different than they were in 2005 or so. Hip Hop, while having a very slight resurgence over the last year or so, is not near as popular now as it was then. New York is different, 2 hip hop stations there can be very successful, but their more potential in LA for a rhythmic hit music station. If Amp gets the numbers they do with such a minimal presentation that is nothing more than a jukebox, then a station with strong mix shows, talent that identifies with the demo, and a more adventurous approach where you play the hits first, a true party station that screams fun, can surely find their very profitable place in the market.

What I'm suggesting, done even half right would at the very least get the same numbers power is getting now, but it would be more profitable with those numbers as hip hop doesn't index as well as a rhythmic pop station does. I know it isn't as bad in the bigger markets as medium markets, but it is still not equal footing.

 

[K.M. Richards]

Power 106 may very well overtake Real in the ratings, but there is limitations with both being hip hop stations. They will both settle around a 3 share and not get the demos that Power had before when they were the only game in town. I suggest a rhythmic hit music station.

That suggestion made a lot more sense before the numbers came out. As it stands, it looks like Power isn't going to have to do much changing of what they've always done to rebound from the very temporary loss of audience.

I think David's on to something when he suggests that the audience primarily defected to Real during the commercial-free period. That's always when you get the most sampling and it's the reason you do launches like that. I still think the bigger question (pun intended) is why Big Boy doesn't seem to have held on to as many of his former Power listeners as everyone thought he would.

 

[davideduardo]

I think David's on to something when he suggests that the audience primarily defected to Real during the commercial-free period. That's always when you get the most sampling and it's the reason you do launches like that. I still think the bigger question (pun intended) is why Big Boy doesn't seem to have held on to as many of his former Power listeners as everyone thought he would.

Big Boy is amazingly talented, but good talent needs good direction. Jimmy and Rick at Emmis are two of the industry's best. And they guided Big Boy to be able to appeal to Hispanics, non-Hispanic whites and African Americans in this very diverse LA market.

iHeart's programmer seems to be a bit more focused on the African American audience, particularly with the music. The composition of the Real audience is thus going to be different... and smaller.

 

[davideduardo]

New York is completely different than LA, and Hot 97 is different from Power. Hot 97 has always been much heavier with the hip hop and plays more hardcore stuff. They have been careful to add in a few rhythmic pop songs like Natalie La Rose, but Hot 97 by no means should do what I'm implying for Power, the make up of the New York market is different.

Hot is actually ethnically broader, and it is less urban than Power in New York.

You missed entirely my mention of who is at hot. Pio Ferro was also PD in LA, where he had the #1 station for a number of years before moving on.

My point, though, in mentioning Hot is to show that Emmis is well capable of competing with iHeart in the general arena of hip hop based formats.

Besides there are already 3 top 40 stations*the two gold selections of ktu an hour doesn't change what they mostly offer, in New York along with a bigger African American population as well.

KTU is the KBIG of New York if you look at rotations. It is not competing with Z-100 or with Rick Thomas' station.

Power 106 may very well overtake Real in the ratings, but there is limitations with both being hip hop stations. They will both settle around a 3 share and not get the demos that Power had before when they were the only game in town.

Real is really an urban station. Power is a Hip Hop based station with primary Hispanic appeal. They can both coexist.

Young adults today are different than they were in 2005 or so. Hip Hop, while having a very slight resurgence over the last year or so, is not near as popular now as it was then. New York is different, 2 hip hop stations there can be very successful, but their more potential in LA for a rhythmic hit music station. If Amp gets the numbers they do with such a minimal presentation that is nothing more than a jukebox, then a station with strong mix shows, talent that identifies with the demo, and a more adventurous approach where you play the hits first, a true party station that screams fun, can surely find their very profitable place in the market.

You are visualizing a hole in the market that just does not exist. Remember, in 18-34 the available LA audience is about 60% Hispanic. Granted, they don't all like the same stuff, but they are not going to like anything more rhythmic than the kind of stuff KIIS plays.

What I'm suggesting, done even half right would at the very least get the same numbers power is getting now, but it would be more profitable with those numbers as hip hop doesn't index as well as a rhythmic pop station does. I know it isn't as bad in the bigger markets as medium markets, but it is still not equal footing.

That's not true. KPWR has a power ratio last year of nearly 1.1 and was 4th in billing in the market, just a couple of percent behind #3 KROQ. Power had the same exact power ratio as KBIG, which is as un-hip hop as you can find. Changing formats would destroy the image the station has among buyers and simply confuse them.

 

[davideduardo]

Not just top 10 but tied for #5. Who'd have guessed The Wave would be a top LA station again, still playing many of the vocal artists it aired during the Smooth Jazz days...

The bigger story is that it is now #10 in 25-54, which will make a significant difference in sales while the #5 in 12+ will not.