Is Texas Music the next thing for country music?

[RFLA]

This new topic is to discuss a topic that was starting on the Dixie Chicks banned in Boston thread.Click here for the start of the original off topic discussion:http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,39052.12.htmlWhat we were discussing is with artist who are from the Texas/Red Dirt music scene. This is considered a outlaw tangent by some of country music today. Others classify it as Americana alongside other Alt.Country and like artists.Artists such as Jack Ingram, Pat Green, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Kevin Fowler, Shooter Jennings, and Miranda Lambert among others, who have come from or heavily influenced by this scene and have made in roads into the country music top 40 most of the time with sounds and looks that are different than some current country music such as Rascall Flatts.What is everyone's opinion on this. Is this a new direction of where country music may head in the next 2 years as an alternative to the "Nashville pop" sound?Also, For the Texas music fans, What do you think of Pat Green's new single "Feels just like it should"? Is it him returning a little to the Texas sound that brought him here, Is it still like the last two Americana apparently influenced major label cds, Or has Pat officially gone mainstream?Thanks RFLA

 

[Wolf2]

I have been kicking around the idea for contemporary country format which would incorporate both what Nashville is putting out as well as the music which is classified as Texas music. If you go on All Access and listen to music on the Texas Music page, a great deal of the music there is very good and as good as what Nashville is putting out. I'm not picking for an argument on Tex Music vs Nashville. But I think you could find a medium location between the two and create a new station. Currents, recurrents, gold from relevant artists (Waylon, Willie, some others would fit...but no Lorrie Morgan, etc - artist who have had any hits for quite a while now). The music would have to be sold, balance between Nashville and Texas and please, have some excitement about what is being played. Male-Female appeal balance. 25-4o demo target. Some pop country won't fit but some Texas won't either. You'll have to do some thinking about what you play...forget the charts.

Would be further interesting to produce the station with a toned-down hype factor - nothing wrong with it but if you're looking to create a different sound that will stand out from the station across town...it is something to ponder.

Thoughts?

 

[mrh1960]

Growing up in a small Texas town northwest of Houston, I have grown up listening to country music. Our local station plays Nashville artists, but the majority of what it plays are the Texas artists, and promotes their concerts and appearances in our town or in neighboring towns close by. Strange thing is, when I tune into the Houston C/W stations, they do not play these artists as a part of their regular programming. They only play them during special "Texas Music" programs. These artists are the ones that will keep country music alive because they appeal to the next generation of listeners, our kids. These artists have brought country music back to life and the kids in my town love these new artists. While the "big city" kids are primping to "look" country to attend a Nashville artists concert at an expensive indoor venue, the kids in my town are piling in their trucks and heading over to the rodeo arena, or a county fair to see Kevin Fowler, Todd Fritsche or Sonny Burgess...these guys are great and the kids love 'em.

 

[RFLA]

Haven't had the time to respond, but to Wolf 2, a good idea but you may want to look at the playlist of Texas stations for ideas.. Lorie Morgan I think would fit if you want a good all around station ( I could see say her song "5 minutes" followed by a sweeper then right into "down and out" by Randy Rogers)... I think you are aiming more as an outlawish country station perhaps?

I'm in South Louisiana and a couple of people are who turned me on to Texas music. I find that sometimes the people aren't as polished as say Nashville, and their subjects won't play on radio in other areas but yeah a lot of what I'm listening to is mainstream Texas music such as Randy Rogers,CCR,Pat Green,Cory Morrow, Jason Boland,etc... ones who rate pretty high on the Texas coundowns and I agree it's more of a true country.. but no one here plays it on radio but these same groups will sell out bars in Baton Rouge and New Orleans (I know Jason Boland is coming to New Orleans soon)

The music I think appeals more to fans truer to country.. 5 years ago this wouldn't play on country radio as it was turning pop harder every day but in the last couple of years, traditional has seeped back in and I think these same people could do good if given the chance on nashville styled country radio

RFLA

 

[musicsweep]

I programmed country Radio from 2000-2003. I worked at KYYK/Palestine, TX, KCKL/Malakoff Texas, and KWRD-AM Henderson, TExas. KCKL was a Real Country affiliate. KYYK was a contemporary country station that had begun leaning more to classic country. KWRD was a traditional country station.

Texas Music for the most part appeals to a small niche in the market, from what I have found. Artists such as Pat Green, Cory Morrow, Jack Ingram, Miranda Lambert, etc, do have broad appeal, but most Texas Artists have just one or two songs that the majority of the market that I served would listen to. So giving Texas music its own category in the rotation was hard enough, let alone devote an entire format to it.

SO what I did was I incorporated the good Texas songs into KYYK's regular rotation. I kept some "More Texas Music by MOre TExas Artists" liners on hand to introduce the cuts that just happened to be Texas artists. So I imaged Texas country, but I kept the format as mainstream as possible.

I had a friend that hosted the "Texas Country Hall of Fame" show at KJ 103 in Nacogdoches, Tx. He did well, but he always had good artists as guest on the show. I believe he had Miranda Lambert on the show. Starkey and Johnson were regulars, Blake Weldon (formerly of Blake and Brian, turned Texas solo artist), Cory Morrow stopped by etc. I wanna say that he interviewed Pat Green, but I am not sure on that. Nacogdoches has a vibrant night life, which draws Texas artists to town for live performances because the crowds will show up. Therefore, He got a lot of good guests. THings went well, until management fired him and cancelled the show in favor of a syndicated TExas music show.

As for my format at KYYK, all went well until the company fell apart. MRS Ventures owned KYYK at that time. You can read about the MRS downfall on the TExas, Arkansas, and Mississippi boards.

 

[bueller]

I worked at a Missouri country station. We were surrounded by strong signals and big budgets playing 100% researched, charted, tight playlists and giving away cash and trucks. The only show on our station that had listeners was the morning show for the trading post.

Something had to be done, so when I was installed as OM/PD, I started to make adjustments. Started really listening to the new music coming in, talking to the listeners, taking their requests seriously.

As I started working the Texas and independent music in along with some lost classics and lessening the rotation of the burned out songs, I started getting more people listening for longer periods of time. Started getting compliments from the audience when I was out in public, thanking us for playing new music and the old stuff too, for not playing the same stuff as the other guys.

We added Altville with Buzz Brainard. Within the first month, Buzz played 2 requests from listeners in our area. Keep in mind, the acts they requested had never been played on radio in this region or even on Altville in the time we'd aired it, and they had to go online to the website to do this. This is an area where people think most people are internet-ignorant, but they went to the effort to make those requests.

You know the drill. The morning DJ hated the music and so did the sales manager. So they claimed that advertisers were complaining about the "weird" music. Despite this month being a record billing month in the entire station's history. I was never once presented with the name of one advertiser who had a complaint, nor did I hear any complaints from the listeners.

Got called into the GM's office. Was told my audience didn't want to hear that "new" music. Was told they only cared about the top 40 and they didn't buy records. I said "you mean to tell me they will turn this station off if they hear something they haven't seen on a chart?" Of course this guy, ex Clear Channel, said "it's never worked anywhere it's been tried." Well it was working for us, but oh well.

Morning guy became PD. To this day, he plays straight by the charts and people wonder why the station went back to sounding like a low budget automated copy of the big guys instead of being their local station. I hyped local, emphasized it, and took the station in a good direction where we talked to our audience instead of AT them.

My theory is, the GM was too stuck in the big city CC way to understand the market. The morning guy never abided by my playlist anyways, skipped over my currents, etc. He had 12 years in the market.

Because his father in law bought him a radio station and let he and his wife run it. That was one of my first and most powerful exposures to how this business can screw over the listener in favor of status quo.

Todd Fritsch's cover of "I've Got Mexico" was the last record I added. Fortunately, I arranged to have Todd come in the studio before I was demoted. Got to meet him and hear him play an amazing live set at our station.

And as soon as he walked out the door, that new PD didn't spin his record anymore. He told me "I can't play an unproven artist in regular rotation." Todd came back this year and sang at the fireworks display in a nearby town. The newspaper promoted it. And a lot of people wondered who he was, because their "Hometown Country" station won't play his music. He just disappeared. Like tons of other talented artists who are screwed over by selfish, arrogant management in radio who think that Clear Channel wrote the Bible on radio formatting.

Proud to be a radio outlaw,
Bueller

 

[PaulBWalkerJr]

Bueller....

That sounds like many radio stations these days, unfortunately... Sorry to see it happened to you...

Paul

 

[sjs1959]

Y'all should listen to the stream for KHYI-FM in the Dallas suburbs, they do it right..

 

[275Gravekeeper]

Here's my $.02. I'm a late-20'something, born in the late 70s and cut my teeth on 'country when country wasn't cool' so to speak. Stonewall Jackson, Moe & Joe, George, and George, Loretta, Patsy, Gene Watson and Merle Haggard. I was a little tike when my folks played it nearly constantly on vinyl. Over the years, country migrated to Doug Stone, Lionel Cartwright and through the years of Perfect Stranger and a few cowboy acts like that. Then came Garth, Trisha, Reba, and the newer crop. I've been a broadcaster for nearly 12 years. A vast majority of that in radio.

Fast forward to today. I recently had a conversation with a family member who complained, after watching the ACM awards, and said "this young woman was on stage wearin' a leather jacket, with hair that made her look like a tramp, and talkin' like 'I'm gonna kick your a$$'". That family member said one thing: "That's not the country music we knew. What the he!! have they done to it??". My only response, off the cuff, was "Nashville's not what it used to be." Nashville's still a beautiful city, but all you have to do is stroll up Music Row and you can see what's happened. They've strayed too far from the roots.

Ok, so an acoustic guitar doesn't sell. Fine. As Chet Atkins once said, "What is 'countrypolitan'? (jingles his change): Hear that? It's the sound of money." And he's right. But I'm sure in the era in which Chet said that, he wouldn't have agreed with the current state of "twang".

Not long ago, I had the opportunity to fly in to Houston, visit a friend, then travel to Austin for a family member's wedding. There's a lot of bandscanning a person can do on the Katy Freeway, to Columbus and up 71 toward Bastrop and eventually into Austin. I learned one thing. Country, the way I once knew it, is still very much alive. It's just being called something different: Texas music. Texas music hasn't strayed from its roots and it's not trying to be something it's not. I got to listen to two great stations while in Austin (KASE101 and KVET). Imaging of both is superb. KASE101 uses the WMIL/Milwaukee package and sounds very countrypolitan with a distinct Austin feel. KVET is distinctively Austin, and lives up to its name: "Austin's GenUINE Original: K-VET". Fortunately, I left Texas with a compilation CD courtesy of a friend, and after acquiring a little more of a taste for Texas music, I've completely worn out the CD. Aaron Watson, Pat Green, Slaid Cleaves, Roger Creager, Kevin Fowler and many others. It's music I can't hear in the midwest.

After really listening to it, I realized that if I owned a station, I'd integrate the music in slowly and over the course of a few years, the public would get used to it. The whole station sound has to be intact before you drop that little mint in the boiling water. Most small markets don't image well. Most have bad weather jingles, even worse legal IDs or just poor programming all over. Spots often just purely SUCK on small stations. Often times, it's not the music itself that fails, it's the way it's presented. From :00 to :59:59, your hour needs to be kicked-off well, music & jingles/liners segue nicely, tight spot segues, good jock flow, good weather jingle, solid news (if applies), and tight community calendar stuff that's relevant to the audience. Drop in some fresh music once/twice an hour and they're not gonna mind.

As for sales people who get to complain, with validity, about the music, I have one thing to say. Instead of complaining, put together a promotion to make it work. There are several ways to build the mouse trap. Programming from the charts is the easy way. Anyone can read an R&R chart. 9 times out of 10, from my experience, an AE who brings back a complaint about the music and says "sponsors" are complaining, is making it up. They want to look good. They embellish. It's their nature. That's what brings in revenue in a down quarter. Take what they say with validity, but embrace a fraction of it. It would benefit an AE to take that enthusiasm for the negative and turn it into a positive, and educate the sponsor on how the music is fresh and how the station is being designed to appeal to a different audience.

 

[J-Street]

This post interests me more than any I have read on here. Unfortunately I'm short on time. I'll post more later, but for now, I just wanted to state that as a "young person," I think Shooter Jennings is GOD. Jack Ingram and Kevin Fowler are pretty good too and country stations around the country normally only play 1 of the 3 I just mentioned. What makes my opinion more relevant... I'm from TENNESSEE!

 

[Mr1derful]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when the Wolf in Dallas first hit the air, wasn't more than half of their playlist
Texas artists?

I think if KZLA would have incorporated some Texas artists into their playlist, they would still be country.

 

[RFLA]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but when the Wolf in Dallas first hit the air, wasn't more than half of their playlist
Texas artists?

I think if KZLA would have incorporated some Texas artists into their playlist, they would still be country.

Don't know on the Wolf 99.5 angle..I do know they are still promoting Texas music on their site and on air

Personally, I don't think the Texas music would have hit on KZLA... or at least anything that isn't national right now (mainly Pat Green and Jack Ingram).. but my thoughts would have been more Rascall Flatts type of music and less real country for LA.... Texas music IMO is more south and midwest based for fans and listeners of the format....

RFLA

 

[JimmyJames]

I really wish country radio, especially those who play classic country, would get behind some of the more traditional artists like Texas' Todd Fritsch. This guy's awesome, he's following in the footsteps of George Strait and has some great tunes, including "Small Town Radio", a great story about how radio is so important in small town community life, or at least used to be. Worth giving a listen to.

 

[country24]

Did I hear someone say "follows in the footsteps of George Strait?" That sounds like my kind of music.

I operate an internet radio station that plays Classic and Traditional Country and Western Swing. Most of my tracks are George Jones, George Strait, Hank Williams, Carl Smith Faron Young, Ginny Wright, etc, but I play as much as I can by current artists like Amber Digby, Bobby Flores, Brian Burns, Dave Biller, Dugg Collins, Ginny Mac, Izak and West, Jake Hooker, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Jessica Hawthorn, Liz Talley, Luann, Mile Siler, Billy Mata, Jazzabillies, The Quebe Sisters, The River Road Boys and Taylor Made.

My audience doesn't begin to compare with AM/FM stations, but there are some people out there listening. If anyone would like to send me a legally obtained mp3 file of some good traditional music like you described I'd love to give it a listen and put it on the air if it's appropriate.

My station is country24. You can find me at http://home.classicnet.net/country24 and you can email me at [email protected].

 

[smashedcd]

Did I hear someone say "follows in the footsteps of George Strait?" That sounds like my kind of music.

I operate an internet radio station that plays Classic and Traditional Country and Western Swing. Most of my tracks are George Jones, George Strait, Hank Williams, Carl Smith Faron Young, Ginny Wright, etc, but I play as much as I can by current artists like Amber Digby, Bobby Flores, Brian Burns, Dave Biller, Dugg Collins, Ginny Mac, Izak and West, Jake Hooker, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Jessica Hawthorn, Liz Talley, Luann, Mile Siler, Billy Mata, Jazzabillies, The Quebe Sisters, The River Road Boys and Taylor Made.

My audience doesn't begin to compare with AM/FM stations, but there are some people out there listening. If anyone would like to send me a legally obtained mp3 file of some good traditional music like you described I'd love to give it a listen and put it on the air if it's appropriate.

My station is country24. You can find me at http://home.classicnet.net/country24 and you can email me at [email protected].

what about heather myles?

 

[country24]

I'm not familiar with Heather Myles, but I'll see what I can find out.

 

[Live~Wire]

I worked mornings at KKAJ in Ardmore, OK. The two year ops mngr had driven the station into the ground with two or three different image packs running at the same time that I was hired. I too had Todd Fritsch in studio and he rocked, he even customized his song "HOMETOWN RADIO" for us. The boss said I couldn't play his music because he wasn't in the top 50 of MusicRow or R&R. HOW THE HELL DO YOU GET IN THE TOP 50 IF NOONE TAKES A CHANCE? Take for instance the song by Rhett Akins "Kiss My Country Ass", great song that I added to heavy rotation, HE FREAKED, but, told me it was my call, only after ratings took off and sales people were telling him they didn't have to sell anymore, the clients was buying over the phone. I quit 6 months into the gig because NextMedia sucks.
Just my opinion.

Tommy Young EX-Mornings

 

[asoundhound]

It's a shame - I've heard Todd Fritsch and he's a very talented guy. I think it's very short sighted of these "by the book" programmers that dont have ears to listen to the music for themselves and choose what's right for THEIR stations. Small Town Radio is a perfect country song for small markets and I don't see how any programmer who had an open mind could say otherwise.