Are specialty shows worth it for stations?

[TheBigA]

Trust my Lonely from Alessia Cara, would it impact a station in a negative way?

Trust My Lonely didn't chart in any country except Canada, where it peaked at #55.

Not the kind of song one risks one's career over just to "spruce up a playlist"

 

[tall_guy1]

Or isolated, unrated-market stations with no real competition in their small towns and no big-city radio within 100 miles.

It wouldn't be super often but maybe a few times a day away from drive times when the hits need to be "hot." It might also give people a bit of variety if they seek it, but those hits would not be in a row and surrounded by bigger hits. Higher ups might be more narrow-minded though and not want to try something like that.

 

[tall_guy1]

Trust My Lonely didn't chart in any country except Canada, where it peaked at #55.

Not the kind of song one risks one's career over just to "spruce up a playlist"

On wikipedia it says charted #25 on mainstream top 40 in the US.

 

[davideduardo]

On wikipedia it says charted #25 on mainstream top 40 in the US.

I'm thinking we should create a macro that deletes any post primarily attributed to Wikipedia....

(Just kidding... but unless Wikipedia sources the chart, such as Billboard or the like, that reference is useless)

And #25 and no higher is, in retrospect, a stiff. It's "The Little Train that Couldn't".

 

[tall_guy1]

I'm thinking we should create a macro that deletes any post primarily attributed to Wikipedia....

(Just kidding... but unless Wikipedia sources the chart, such as Billboard or the like, that reference is useless)

And #25 and no higher is, in retrospect, a stiff. It's "The Little Train that Couldn't".

I would perhaps think a song like that would not garner negative attention from listeners though if it is a "small" but relatively inoffensive hit (not one that was decried by listeners upon release though.) Bigger hits seem to garner views like "oh, I hate that song!" or "thats my jam!" It's kind of like how family guy or south park are more polarizing than Mission Hill (the cult classic my avatar is from).

 

[davideduardo]

I would perhaps think a song like that would not garner negative attention from listeners though if it is a "small" but relatively inoffensive hit (not one that was decried by listeners upon release though.) Bigger hits seem to garner views like "oh, I hate that song!" or "thats my jam!" It's kind of like how family guy or south park are more polarizing than Mission Hill (the cult classic my avatar is from).

Still, the issue is "why play it at all?" Listeners flock to CHR to hear hits, not stiffs from years ago.

 

[tall_guy1]

Still, the issue is "why play it at all?" Listeners flock to CHR to hear hits, not stiffs from years ago.

It might be a little better concept for Hot AC possibly (or some recurrent based), but might break up some of the monotony of only hearing big current hits or burnt to a crisp golds that get played often.

 

[davideduardo]

It might be a little better concept for Hot AC possibly (or some recurrent based), but might break up some of the monotony of only hearing big current hits or burnt to a crisp golds that get played often.

That is why those people go to those stations to begin with

 

[tall_guy1]

That is why those people go to those stations to begin with

I go to them, but quickly lose interest.

 

[AbrahamJSimpson]

Out of curiosity...has acstation ever attempted to play songs that don't necessarily test positive perhaps, but not overly negative. For example, if a station were to spin a song say Trust my Lonely from Alessia Cara, would it impact a station in a negative way?

I suppose the fact that at least this time is wasn’t an Ava Max song thrown into the rather bizarre suggestion is a win of sorts.

Maybe a Kansas City station should try this.

 

[AbrahamJSimpson]

I go to them, but quickly lose interest.

And?

 

[Kelly A]

It might spruce up their playlist, even if listeners remember it as "average."

In other words; this is just more asking the same question over and over, hoping for an answer that aligns to your eclectic musical tastes?

 

[Mikey Radio]

In other words; this is just more asking the same question over and over, hoping for an answer that aligns to your eclectic musical tastes?

I'm reminded once again of the quote below that was posted by @AbrahamJSimpson back on January 30, in response to a different (but very similar) comment in a different thread, also from tall_guy:

https://www.radiodiscussions.com/threads/why-are-big-hits-lost.758778/page-25#post-6573334

Audience: we don’t want that.
Your proposal: sure you do. You just don’t know it.
Audience: no, really, we told you what we like and dislike.
Your proposal: pffff, silly audience. You’ll take eclectic and like it.
Audience: bye.
Your proposal: What went wrong?

 

[TheBigA]

On wikipedia it says charted #25 on mainstream top 40 in the US.

Her career discography says it only charted in Canada, where it peaked at #55.

It really doesn't matter. If a radio station was going to pick one song by her to play, that would not be it.

It wouldn't be super often but maybe a few times a day away from drive times when the hits need to be "hot." It might also give people a bit of variety if they seek it, but those hits would not be in a row and surrounded by bigger hits. Higher ups might be more narrow-minded though and not want to try something like that.

I think we've given lots of examples where radio stations play songs once a week for variety. I think I've gone into a lot of detail about how playlists are done to demonstrate that. However, the examples you keep bringing up are EDM songs by foreign artists who often have very limited presence in this country. Those are more likely the reasons why their obscure songs don't get gold airplay, not because people are "narrow-minded."

 

[vchimpanzee]

That is my point. I am saying forgotten hits might elicit nostalgia for some that aren't particularly grating.

Some songs make me feel good for some reason even if I don't like them.

The majority of old songs that I like are just songs I like. And if they remind me of something, it's generally something unrelated to when it was popular.

 

[tall_guy1]

I do see Telepatia by kali urchis being played in LA on KIIS, though it has a larger Hispanic population, but that might be the kind of song I am referring to since it wasn't a smash hit.

 

[davideduardo]

I do see Telepatia by kali urchis being played in LA on KIIS, though it has a larger Hispanic population, but that might be the kind of song I am referring to since it wasn't a smash hit.

Remember that in the younger 18-34 and 25-44 predominantly female demographics that KIIS targets, the market is over 50% Hispanic... close to 55% in fact. So they include a lot of Hispanic women in their music testing and...

... pay attention to this again:

.... they only play the songs that test very well with their target audience.

 

[CTListener]

Apparently, Ms. Uchis (a made-up name, actual surname is Loaiza) was born in Alexandria, Va., and is of Hispanic heritage through her Colombian father, who didn't even meet her mother until he had been in the U.S. for several years. I can't imagine that she has much name recognition among LA Hispanics.

 

[Don CT]

Some songs make me feel good for some reason even if I don't like them.

The majority of old songs that I like are just songs I like. And if they remind me of something, it's generally something unrelated to when it was popular.

A lot of music is played at weddings to get the crowd in a mood, that doesn't mean I want to hear it on a regular basis.

 

[tall_guy1]

Apparently, Ms. Uchis (a made-up name, actual surname is Loaiza) was born in Alexandria, Va., and is of Hispanic heritage through her Colombian father, who didn't even meet her mother until he had been in the U.S. for several years. I can't imagine that she has much name recognition among LA Hispanics.

The song is largely in Spanish, so that might contribute to the following.