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Elliot in the Morning gone from Rock 100.5?
- Thread starter MarkW
- Start date
I know you’ve given her a ton of flack on here over the years, but you can’t deny her leadership/impact on the format as a whole during their heyday. Like pretty much any alt station 20 years ago, the music/audience changed, and 99X struggled with that. Not only that, when corporate steps in and limits a PD’s ability to do what they felt has worked for years (as what Demery documented on his site years back), you’ll notice it. I don’t place blame on Leslie for what inevitably happened 15 years ago - I blame other factors.
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And what other brand would work? “Radio” and “Alt” weren’t that memorable, and “The Buzz” is also an old brand that likely isn’t relevant today.
Williams wanted to take the station in a more rock oriented direction and keep it current and recurrent focused. Fram stepped on his toes and insisted the station adopt the "New Rock and 90s Alternative" approach. Williams has been very clear about that in interviews. Susquehanna had little to do with that decision on a corporate level; it was Fram's call per Williams. It was all downhill from there. Williams went to The Buzz and jumpstarted what turned out to be an impressive career at Clear Channel / iHM.
Fram definitely was a very big part of the station's success in the 90s, without question. She was also a big reason for its diminishing relevance and ultimate downfall. She refused to adapt to changing music trends and listener preferences. It was very sad watching 99X's ratings erode from one year to the next.
Fram definitely was a very big part of the station's success in the 90s, without question. She was also a big reason for its diminishing relevance and ultimate downfall. She refused to adapt to changing music trends and listener preferences. It was very sad watching 99X's ratings erode from one year to the next.
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He just recently left after many very successful years there.
If Cumulus allows the PD to program the station the right way, it would be a active/alternative hybrid. Number one modern rock station (I'm lumping active and alternative in the term modern rock) is KPNT in St. Louis. Go look at the playlist. Disturbed, Muse, Lumineers, Alice in Chains, Nine Inch Nails, Metallica, Tool, Korn, The Strokes, Breaking Benjamin, Twenty One Pilots, White Reper, Blue October, Seether, Mumford & Sons. They do an indie show on Sunday nights that dig deep into the hipster/indie scene, and they do lots of 'way back' weekends where Nirvana is more than just Smells Like Teen Spirit. I get it - St. Louis is not Atlanta but historically, in St. Louis, a pure active rock and alternative stations has tried to compete and KPNT is able to squash them every time. Local morning show is also huge. The station leans more active or more alternative depending on the current state of music. In 2013, it was 90% pure alternative, now it's about 40% alternative. It's not a cookie cutter modern rock station and with the specialty shows, has a playlist that greatly out does most typical active or alternative stations.
KPNT's success is mostly attributed to a strong set of personalities, especially the morning show. If I had to guess, the morning show accounts for most of the ratings success, not the music. The music is just a part of the whole picture.
WNNX could play the same music, but with bad or lackluster personalities, it won't be successful. That's not even considering if there is an audience/demand for such a format in Atlanta.
By the way, the current 99X is light years better than the awful Radio/Alt 105.7 iHEART had out there. The leaner newer and avoid the big hits of the 90s that you can almost hear on any type of rock station, including classic rock. There HD station on 99.7-2 has an awful sound and 98.9 signal sucks so I'm not so sure the ratings is really fair in predicting how it would do on a bigger signal.
Atlanta radio recycles brands so much—Power, X, Q, Rock, Peach—that we feasibly can solve this climate change crisis after all.
Yvonne Monet is middays at Q99.7. Greg Russ (Decker) is on WSB. Toucher and Rich are on a sports station in Boston. What will happen to Southside Steve and Axel? Will they keep their afternoon gig?
Thanks. I wonder which Atlanta station might take Southside Steve in? I highly doubt he will move away from Atlanta. Maybe EVH will take him in. I am really curious as to what will go on 98.9. Hopefully something good.
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That is where I am thinking Christmas might land.
Don’t forget “The Beat”
The old 105.3 The Buzz followed a music formula similar to that of KPNT. Disadvantaged signal and all, it matched or defeated 99X in multiple important demos routinely.
The present day Cumulus-owned 105.1 The X in Kansas City had followed a similar music formula. Its ratings are weak, though, due to the market having a well programmed heritage Active Rock station (KQRC) on one side of it and a longstanding Alternative station (KRBZ) on the other side of it. In reviewing KCJK's music log at TuneGenie, that station now appears to be run of the mill Active Rock, even though its panel status may not have changed yet. The elimination of most alternative product must've happened within the past month. I guess they've given up on trying to split the difference between KRBZ and KQRC and are now attempting to attack KQRC head-on (spoiler alert: KQRC should win the battle fairly easily).
The present day Cumulus-owned 105.1 The X in Kansas City had followed a similar music formula. Its ratings are weak, though, due to the market having a well programmed heritage Active Rock station (KQRC) on one side of it and a longstanding Alternative station (KRBZ) on the other side of it. In reviewing KCJK's music log at TuneGenie, that station now appears to be run of the mill Active Rock, even though its panel status may not have changed yet. The elimination of most alternative product must've happened within the past month. I guess they've given up on trying to split the difference between KRBZ and KQRC and are now attempting to attack KQRC head-on (spoiler alert: KQRC should win the battle fairly easily).
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Talk to people who worked at Turtles, Peaches, Wax n' Facts and ask what station was moving all alternative releases before 99X. It didn't take a genius.
Mark, I don't know whether or not you give too much "credit" to Axel. Unlike in the old days when the buck stopped with the PD, they often have limited roles. Corporate has a lot more control over local decisions than they used to. Hard to say what's really been happening here.
MTV was more influential in exposing early and mid 90s alternative music to the masses than anything else, in my opinion. Rock radio aficionados were also paying close attention to what stations such as KROQ and KOME were playing at the time.
99X was arguably the most successful of the stations that converted to modern rock in the early 90s.
99X was arguably the most successful of the stations that converted to modern rock in the early 90s.
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