96.1 The Beat Charlotte is now Channel 96.1

[XCountry285]

How does it sound? They have the standard Channel logo

 

[atlantaboy]

Their ratings are in a free-fall (according to the Charlotte board), so however they sound, they need to sound different - personally, I don't think it's a good idea to go after Kiss 95.1, which has been the definition of CHR in Charlotte for 14 years - it's gonna be nothing but a losing battle

 

[danikayser84]

With a name like "Channel 96.1", they should go for a more rockish sound than Kiss, if you ask me. The branding "Channel" was also used in Albany (but for a rock station) and Detroit (for a CHR station), so I wonder which direction they'll take it in Charlotte

 

[atlantaboy]

With a name like "Channel 96.1", they should go for a more rockish sound than Kiss, if you ask me. The branding "Channel" was also used in Albany (but for a rock station) and Detroit (for a CHR station), so I wonder which direction they'll take it in Charlotte

Honestly, I think that if they start adding more rock, Kiss will too, and if they lean more Rhythmic, Kiss will lean Rhythmic - either way IMO Kiss is gonna beat them out just cause they're basically a radio legend in Charlotte

I only say that because I lived there when Kiss 95.1 was leaning so Hot AC that they were adding CD cuts by the Goo Goo Dolls and HAC-only tracks by Vertical Horizon, and it was still basically at the top of the market

 

[CHRles]

With a name like "Channel 96.1", they should go for a more rockish sound than Kiss, if you ask me. The branding "Channel" was also used in Albany (but for a rock station) and Detroit (for a CHR station), so I wonder which direction they'll take it in Charlotte

CHR. CC has in its arsenal some very successul CHRs with the Channel brand:
Channel 93-3 San Diego, Channel 94-1 Omaha, and Channel 96-3 Wichita. The station will stay Rhythmic friendly for now.

 

[only1moore]

Channel 94-1 Omaha

KQCH (Channel 94.1)/Omaha is owned by Journal Communications.

 

[bchristi]

The station still sounds pretty rhythmic only with the exception of an occasional rock song thrown in and the absence of core rhythmic hits. In my opinion, Nickelback or Daughtry sandwiched between Nelly and Kesha just doesn't sound good. They don't need the rock just to make a statement they are no longer a rhythmic CHR. There is also now several rhythmic songs that no station in Charlotte will touch because they are too rhythmic for 96.1's new sound but too pop for 97.9. T-Pain's "Hey Baby" is one such song (I think 96.1 plays this song in its Saturday night mix show but its not in regular rotation). 96.1 should have stuck to the rhythmic format...they will be a failure at the current bad sounding CHR format. Kiss is the real CHR in Charlotte.

 

[atlantaboy]

^Were their ratings falling when they were Rhythmic?

 

[XCountry285]

The station still sounds pretty rhythmic only with the exception of an occasional rock song thrown in and the absence of core rhythmic hits. In my opinion, Nickelback or Daughtry sandwiched between Nelly and Kesha just doesn't sound good. They don't need the rock just to make a statement they are no longer a rhythmic CHR. There is also now several rhythmic songs that no station in Charlotte will touch because they are too rhythmic for 96.1's new sound but too pop for 97.9. T-Pain's "Hey Baby" is one such song (I think 96.1 plays this song in its Saturday night mix show but its not in regular rotation). 96.1 should have stuck to the rhythmic format...they will be a failure at the current bad sounding CHR format. Kiss is the real CHR in Charlotte.

But isn't having Nickelback and Daughtry Sandwiched between Kesha & Nelly what CHR is?

 

[atlantaboy]

^Yeah for years Kiss 95.1 followed a strict policy of alternating between pop/rhythmic and rock literally every other song - they don't do it now, just cause there's not enough material out there IMO, but Charlotte CHR listeners are definitely used to hearing both rock and rhythmic on the same station

 

[XCountry285]

thats something i like to hear. i mean now its too much hip hop on CHR and its time for rock to make a major return

 

[danikayser84]

CHR/rock is starting to become a more popular format... for example, WBZZ in Albany is expected to flip to that any day now

 

[bchristi]

But isn't having Nickelback and Daughtry Sandwiched between Kesha & Nelly what CHR is?

Well...its not 2002 anymore. Back then CHR was probably 30% rock, 30% hip-hop, and 30% pop. Nowadays its probably no more than 5% rock if that. Plus Nickelback and their many clones were still charting big from 2001 through about 2006 (After 'Photograph' it started going downhill). Most of their recent songs have flopped on the Hot 100 as has Daughtry, and they currently get most of their airplay on Hot AC stations.

@XCountry285, if rock is to make a major comeback on CHR it needs to be something new and fresh, not the same crap that has dominated the airwaves since the mid-90s and like hip-hop, simply isn't moving people anymore.

 

[XCountry285]

What do you consider Paramore, Sick Puppies, Cartel, Mumford & Sons, Neon Trees? They all have attempted to climb the charts on CHR this past year.

 

[atlantaboy]

But isn't having Nickelback and Daughtry Sandwiched between Kesha & Nelly what CHR is?

Well...its not 2002 anymore. Back then CHR was probably 30% rock, 30% hip-hop, and 30% pop. Nowadays its probably no more than 5% rock if that. Plus Nickelback and their many clones were still charting big from 2001 through about 2006 (After 'Photograph' it started going downhill). Most of their recent songs have flopped on the Hot 100 as has Daughtry, and they currently get most of their airplay on Hot AC stations.

@XCountry285, if rock is to make a major comeback on CHR it needs to be something new and fresh, not the same crap that has dominated the airwaves since the mid-90s and like hip-hop, simply isn't moving people anymore.

I think a "new generation" of pop-friendly rock is starting to form, and it's making some headway on CHRs in Florida (Paper Tongues, Neon Trees, Cage The Elephant, My Chemical Romance, Sick Puppies, Temper Trap, etc.)

Don't think we're gonna see a slew of "CHR/Rock stations", but I think halfway through 2011 things will be back to the same balance they were in 2008 (don't have to go back as far as 2002 lol)

 

[bchristi]

Don't think we're gonna see a slew of "CHR/Rock stations", but I think halfway through 2011 things will be back to the same balance they were in 2008 (don't have to go back as far as 2002 lol)

I don't remember 2008 being a particularly rock-friendly year. There were a few hits but nothing like the first half of the '00s (2002 was the height of post-grunge).

 

[atlantaboy]

^Excluding the Clear Channel-Kiss cluster, I think most CHRs in 2008 still played a lot of rock recurrents/golds - IMO it wasn't really until the second half of 2009 that massive numbers of CHRs started throwing out the musical balance thing and playing 5-10 pop/rhythmic songs in a row

But yeah, the early 2000s was huge for rock on CHR - I want to say the #1 songs of 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003 were all rock songs (Vertical Horizon, Lifehouse, Nickelback, and 3 Doors Down) - I'd say 2000 was the peak, just looking at the number of rock songs (and rock/HAC stuff) on the year-end Top 100 of 2000

 

[htowler]

^Were their ratings falling when they were Rhythmic?

Because they Leaned too Much CHR/pop Now as a CHR/pop they lean too much Rhythmic. That may change with the rebrand as they may still be evolving.

 

[danikayser84]

Now I'm wondering if WKKF (102.3 Kiss FM) will evolve into a true Rhythmic (as it is, they only play like one non-rhythmic song per hour), while one of their other stations in the Albany market becomes a rock-leaning CHR (hmm, 98.3 perhaps? a former Christian station closed the Bible recently and flipped to oldies on 96.7... wonder if 98.3's long-running oldies format will decline as a result of this )... does any market have a coexisting "Kiss" and "Channel" both owned by Clear Channel? (Albany did until recently but Channel 103-1 was modern rock, not any type of CHR )