B92.9

[Radio_Realist]

> > >
> > It's not
> > > > going to happen in Pittsburgh either. Now just isn't
> the
> >
> > > > time for the format.
> > > >
>
>
> And that's the answer. There's just not much music out there
> anymore, relatively speaking.
>
> All the hip-hop sounds the same, all the rock sounds the
> same. It's tough to make an interesting sttaion out of what
> there is to work with.

I came close to launching a thread about that, but it wasn't just about Pittsburgh so I didn't. There was an article on the AP ysterday that said that the sales of recorded music are signficantly down, with the increase in sales by downloading not making up for the loss of sales of hard media. Your observation of the new music by new artists is correct. Most of it does sound pretyy much the same as everything else, at least most of it recorded by the new, up-and-coming artists.

The artists who used to record hit records are still cranking out great music. But that music isn't eligible for airplay on any sort of "contemporary" format station, since those artists have been officially declared "classic" by the radio police.

 

[jkf]

> > > >
> > > It's not
> > > > > going to happen in Pittsburgh either. Now just isn't
>
> > the
> > >
> > > > > time for the format.
> > > > >
> >
> >
> > And that's the answer. There's just not much music out
> there
> > anymore, relatively speaking.
> >
> > All the hip-hop sounds the same, all the rock sounds the
> > same. It's tough to make an interesting sttaion out of
> what
> > there is to work with.
>
> I came close to launching a thread about that, but it wasn't
> just about Pittsburgh so I didn't. There was an article on
> the AP ysterday that said that the sales of recorded music
> are signficantly down, with the increase in sales by
> downloading not making up for the loss of sales of hard
> media. Your observation of the new music by new artists is
> correct. Most of it does sound pretyy much the same as
> everything else, at least most of it recorded by the new,
> up-and-coming artists.
>
> The artists who used to record hit records are still
> cranking out great music. But that music isn't eligible for
> airplay on any sort of "contemporary" format station, since
> those artists have been officially declared "classic" by the
> radio police.
>

There is plenty of new music out there to create a high energy, balanced CHR in Pittsburgh, or anywhere else for that matter. The problem is most people in this market that rely on KISS as a CHR station don't get to hear half of the hits. KISS does as well as it does because it is THE CHR station in town. For now, anyways. Put an actual CHR that plays ALL THE HITS on any of the city grade signals and KISS would go down faster than a cold beer at PNC PARK on a hot August day.

 

[Radio_Realist]

I cannot disagree with that.

> There is plenty of new music out there to create a high
> energy, balanced CHR in Pittsburgh, or anywhere else for
> that matter. The problem is most people in this market that
> rely on KISS as a CHR station don't get to hear half of the
> hits. KISS does as well as it does because it is THE CHR
> station in town. For now, anyways. Put an actual CHR that
> plays ALL THE HITS on any of the city grade signals and KISS
> would go down faster than a cold beer at PNC PARK on a hot
> August day.

The reason that I cannot disagree is that since there is no station in town that plays ALL THE HITS, I don't get to hear much of what is on the current Billboard charts. What little I do hear sounds boring and repetitious. But, if someone who has heard the full range of current hit music says that there is enough good stuff out there to fill the airtime of a real CHR station, I'll take your word for it.

 

[shilton]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> The reason that I cannot disagree is that since there is no
> station in town that plays ALL THE HITS, I don't get to hear
> much of what is on the current Billboard charts. What little
> I do hear sounds boring and repetitious. But, if someone who
> has heard the full range of current hit music says that
> there is enough good stuff out there to fill the airtime of
> a real CHR station, I'll take your word for it.
>
See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL, Mainstream...right down the middle CHR. Now enjoying some of its biggest numbers in a while and they are taking on a few Rhythmics, a Churban (so to speak) and Scott Shannon's Hot A/C WPLJ. I hear this about every 5-7 years, people come along and say CHR is dead. CHR does well as long as the programmers play the hits and do not lean any one way or another. Its these programmers who think we only want to hear the RAP, or the ROCK that kill CHR's in their markets because that causes tune-out. If one follows the trends and is careful to play a nice blend of anything that is hot and current, they will fare well. Perhaps not #1 in every given market...but CHR can certainly do well and hold its own if programmed properly.

If one remembers back to the B-94 of old...in the late 80's and early 90's, it was one of the finest CHR's there was. If that station were still standing today, Kiss would be toast for sure. Kiss does well because it IS the only game. If it had serious competition, I bet it'd go down faster than the Titanic

 

[Oldiesgal]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> > The reason that I cannot disagree is that since there is
> no
> > station in town that plays ALL THE HITS, I don't get to
> hear
> > much of what is on the current Billboard charts. What
> little
> > I do hear sounds boring and repetitious. But, if someone
> who
> > has heard the full range of current hit music says that
> > there is enough good stuff out there to fill the airtime
> of
> > a real CHR station, I'll take your word for it.
> >
> See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL,
> Mainstream...right down the middle CHR. Now enjoying some
> of its biggest numbers in a while and they are taking on a
> few Rhythmics, a Churban (so to speak) and Scott Shannon's
> Hot A/C WPLJ. I hear this about every 5-7 years, people
> come along and say CHR is dead. CHR does well as long as
> the programmers play the hits and do not lean any one way or
> another. Its these programmers who think we only want to
> hear the RAP, or the ROCK that kill CHR's in their markets
> because that causes tune-out. If one follows the trends and
> is careful to play a nice blend of anything that is hot and
> current, they will fare well. Perhaps not #1 in every given
> market...but CHR can certainly do well and hold its own if
> programmed properly.
>
> If one remembers back to the B-94 of old...in the late 80's
> and early 90's, it was one of the finest CHR's there was.
> If that station were still standing today, Kiss would be
> toast for sure. Kiss does well because it IS the only game.
> If it had serious competition, I bet it'd go down faster
> than the Titanic

Two heritage CHR's are still going strong and really strong. WFLZ in Tampa is always in the top 5 in spite of continuous competition fron an Urban, a Churban, and 2 Rockers. WRVQ in Richmond was THE station in the seventies and eithties, but miraculously is still around. Can anybody name a truly "balanced" CHR that plays all the hits that has started up successfully in the past 5 years. It seems the KISS formats don't count cause they are two urban leaning, have a cookie cutter quality, and do too much VT'ing. Name one. And it's got to live 24/7.
>

 

[jkf]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> > > The reason that I cannot disagree is that since there is
>
> > no
> > > station in town that plays ALL THE HITS, I don't get to
> > hear
> > > much of what is on the current Billboard charts. What
> > little
> > > I do hear sounds boring and repetitious. But, if someone
>
> > who
> > > has heard the full range of current hit music says that
> > > there is enough good stuff out there to fill the airtime
>
> > of
> > > a real CHR station, I'll take your word for it.
> > >
> > See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL,
> > Mainstream...right down the middle CHR. Now enjoying some
>
> > of its biggest numbers in a while and they are taking on a
>
> > few Rhythmics, a Churban (so to speak) and Scott Shannon's
>
> > Hot A/C WPLJ. I hear this about every 5-7 years, people
> > come along and say CHR is dead. CHR does well as long as
> > the programmers play the hits and do not lean any one way
> or
> > another. Its these programmers who think we only want to
> > hear the RAP, or the ROCK that kill CHR's in their markets
>
> > because that causes tune-out. If one follows the trends
> and
> > is careful to play a nice blend of anything that is hot
> and
> > current, they will fare well. Perhaps not #1 in every
> given
> > market...but CHR can certainly do well and hold its own if
>
> > programmed properly.
> >
> > If one remembers back to the B-94 of old...in the late
> 80's
> > and early 90's, it was one of the finest CHR's there was.
>
> > If that station were still standing today, Kiss would be
> > toast for sure. Kiss does well because it IS the only
> game.
> > If it had serious competition, I bet it'd go down faster
> > than the Titanic
>
> Two heritage CHR's are still going strong and really
> strong. WFLZ in Tampa is always in the top 5 in spite of
> continuous competition fron an Urban, a Churban, and 2
> Rockers. WRVQ in Richmond was THE station in the seventies
> and eithties, but miraculously is still around. Can anybody
> name a truly "balanced" CHR that plays all the hits that has
> started up successfully in the past 5 years. It seems the
> KISS formats don't count cause they are two urban leaning,
> have a cookie cutter quality, and do too much VT'ing. Name
> one. And it's got to live 24/7.
> >
>

98YCR cross-state in York WAS until last year until they blew it up for classic hits. WVAQ in Morgantown is pretty close to a balanced mainstream CHR. Best CHRs of all time WAVA in Washington, DC before it went religious and WKHI in Ocean City, MD before a frog turned it country.

BTW, name ANY music station that is live 24/7 - no vT'ing, no syndicated shows after midnight.

 

[Oldiesgal]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> > > > The reason that I cannot disagree is that since there
> is
> >
> > > no
> > > > station in town that plays ALL THE HITS, I don't get
> to
> > > hear
> > > > much of what is on the current Billboard charts. What
> > > little
> > > > I do hear sounds boring and repetitious. But, if
> someone
> >
> > > who
> > > > has heard the full range of current hit music says
> that
> > > > there is enough good stuff out there to fill the
> airtime
> >
> > > of
> > > > a real CHR station, I'll take your word for it.
> > > >
> > > See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL,
> > > Mainstream...right down the middle CHR. Now enjoying
> some
> >
> > > of its biggest numbers in a while and they are taking on
> a
> >
> > > few Rhythmics, a Churban (so to speak) and Scott
> Shannon's
> >
> > > Hot A/C WPLJ. I hear this about every 5-7 years, people
>
> > > come along and say CHR is dead. CHR does well as long
> as
> > > the programmers play the hits and do not lean any one
> way
> > or
> > > another. Its these programmers who think we only want
> to
> > > hear the RAP, or the ROCK that kill CHR's in their
> markets
> >
> > > because that causes tune-out. If one follows the trends
>
> > and
> > > is careful to play a nice blend of anything that is hot
> > and
> > > current, they will fare well. Perhaps not #1 in every
> > given
> > > market...but CHR can certainly do well and hold its own
> if
> >
> > > programmed properly.
> > >
> > > If one remembers back to the B-94 of old...in the late
> > 80's
> > > and early 90's, it was one of the finest CHR's there
> was.
> >
> > > If that station were still standing today, Kiss would be
>
> > > toast for sure. Kiss does well because it IS the only
> > game.
> > > If it had serious competition, I bet it'd go down
> faster
> > > than the Titanic
> >
> > Two heritage CHR's are still going strong and really
> > strong. WFLZ in Tampa is always in the top 5 in spite of
> > continuous competition fron an Urban, a Churban, and 2
> > Rockers. WRVQ in Richmond was THE station in the seventies
>
> > and eithties, but miraculously is still around. Can
> anybody
> > name a truly "balanced" CHR that plays all the hits that
> has
> > started up successfully in the past 5 years. It seems the
> > KISS formats don't count cause they are two urban leaning,
>
> > have a cookie cutter quality, and do too much VT'ing. Name
>
> > one. And it's got to live 24/7.
> > >
> >
>
> 98YCR cross-state in York WAS until last year until they
> blew it up for classic hits. WVAQ in Morgantown is pretty
> close to a balanced mainstream CHR. Best CHRs of all time
> WAVA in Washington, DC before it went religious and WKHI in
> Ocean City, MD before a frog turned it country.
>
> BTW, name ANY music station that is live 24/7 - no vT'ing,
> no syndicated shows after midnight.

I meant has a truly balanced CHR started up in past 5 years. WRVQ in Richmond is live 24/7 because it is 200,000 watts and this is some civil defense rule or something.
>

 

[Part-timer]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> >
> > BTW, name ANY music station that is live 24/7 - no vT'ing,
>
> > no syndicated shows after midnight.
>
> I meant has a truly balanced CHR started up in past 5
> years. WRVQ in Richmond is live 24/7 because it is 200,000
> watts and this is some civil defense rule or something.
> >
>

I think FLZ is still live overnights, or has that changed?<P ID="signature">______________
"With God as my witness, I could have sworn turkeys could fly."</P>

 

[shilton]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> I meant has a truly balanced CHR started up in past 5
> years. WRVQ in Richmond is live 24/7 because it is 200,000
> watts and this is some civil defense rule or something.
> >
>
We're a small, but proud 50,000 watt Mainstream CHR in the heart of Central PA taking on a more rhythmic leaning CHR in town (State College & Altoona)

Been CHR for about 2 years, but blew up the station image and launched a new name this year (along with a much more focused playlist). Too new to say if we are successful, but having a nice stab at it. The station was born July 1, 2004. Visit us online www.G101fm.com

Not live 24/7...but pretty darn close. We run romeo's Playhouse at Night and Open House Party weekends...other than that..its all our own talent.

 

[Radio_Realist]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL,
> Mainstream...right down the middle CHR.

Sorry, I can't pick that station up in Pittsburgh. And looking up their playlist on yes.com doesn't help when the songs listed are mostly works that haven't been heard on local radio.

 

[shilton]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> > See Z100 New York for an example of a REAL,
> > Mainstream...right down the middle CHR.
>
> Sorry, I can't pick that station up in Pittsburgh. And
> looking up their playlist on yes.com doesn't help when the
> songs listed are mostly works that haven't been heard on
> local radio.
>
If you look closely...they stream live online (although the audio quality is kind of poor). Look in the upper right hand side of their home page and click LISTEN LIVE

 

[Radio_Realist]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> If you look closely...they stream live online (although the
> audio quality is kind of poor). Look in the upper right
> hand side of their home page and click LISTEN LIVE

On a dial-up connection, the online stream is worse than poor. If all I wanted to do was sample a few minutes, listening to on-line streaming might be an option. But to actually hear the music they're playing, and becoming familiar with the entire playlist, that's too much to expect from online streaming via dial-up link. That's worse than listening to music on an AM station!

 

[youngabe89]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

My question is, if Infinity decided it was going to shock us all and bring back B93.7, do you think it would survive? My guess would be, it would do okay, just okay. Simply because, for me, the talent that made up B93.7 was what kept me listening. I loved the morning show, Melanie Taylor, Adam Bomb, etc. I felt that they had a "Pittsburgh" feel. Without them, I don't know if as many people would completely flock back to the station. I mean obviously the music the station plays, plays a big role in the ratings the station receives, but for me and some others, the talent is a small fraction of if I listen or not.

P.S. I just noticed on RadioLocator.com the following...

WRKZ-FM 93.7 MHz
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
"Red 102.3"

I am about 1000% percent sure that is an error, but it struck me as amusing, dunno why!

<P ID="signature">______________
-S</P><P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by youngabe89 on 12/31/05 05:03 PM.</FONT></P>

 

[Radio_Realist]

Re: I cannot disagree with that.

> My question is, if Infinity decided it was going to shock us
> all and bring back B93.7, do you think it would survive? My
> guess would be, it would do okay, just okay. Simply because,
> for me, the talent that made up B93.7 was what kept me
> listening. I loved the morning show, Melanie Taylor, Adam
> Bomb, etc. I felt that they had a "Pittsburgh" feel.
> Without them, I don't know if as many people would
> completely flock back to the station. I mean obviously the
> music the station plays, plays a big role in the ratings the
> station receives, but for me and some others, the talent is
> a small fraction of if I listen or not.

My guess is that it would all depend on how well they put the new incarnation of B-94 back together. Regardless of how they brought it back, they'd need a massive advertising campaign in other media. In that, they'd have a choice of two basic options. They could push "The Bee is Back", and attempt to cash in on nostalgia for the old B-94. Or, they could take the opposite approach and push "The ALL NEW B-94!"

If they choose the latter approach, all they'd have to retain was a basic CHR music format. Beyond that, being new and different from the old incarnation of B-94 would be an asset to success.

Personally, I think any attempt to revive the B-94 image would be a mistake. That's not to say that a new CHR that's done well couldn't succeed at 93.7 (or 92.9, for that matter). But whichever station decides to launch a new CHR station should ignore everyone who makes any sort of suggestion to evoke memories of B-94, and should come up with a totally new identity cut from fresh, whole cloth.