KKLZ AND CONSULTANTS IN GENERAL

[Slurpee]

OK.... I give up.. Maybe one of you radio pros can explain something to me..

KKLZ changes to Classic Hits. They play a mix of music from about 1965 to about 1980. For round numbers lets just say 15 years. Now every year there's a top 100.. Why the )(@#*^#% does KKLZ keep playing the same songs over and over and over and over and over and over again???

A call to the station reveals that a "consultant" has put together the list of 300 songs that are the biggest and best and most wanted songs. Please explain why this happens! As a listener it doesn't make sense to me. If you are doing an older format why wouldn't you play a wider range of the music from that genre??

 

[davideduardo]

KKLZ changes to Classic Hits. They play a mix of music from about 1965 to about 1980. For round numbers lets just say 15 years. Now every year there's a top 100.. Why the )(@#*^#% does KKLZ keep playing the same songs over and over and over and over and over and over again???

Because the asked the listeners which of those many songs they still wanted to hear today, and came up with the list of good songs.

A call to the station reveals that a "consultant" has put together the list of 300 songs that are the biggest and best and most wanted songs. Please explain why this happens!

The person who answered probably did not tell you the whole story (and may not even know how programming decisions are made). While they may have a consultant, in a market as big as Las Vegas songs are tested with groups of listeners to find out which are worthy of play.

As a listener it doesn't make sense to me. If you are doing an older format why wouldn't you play a wider range of the music from that genre??

Because the other songs do not get good scores from listeners today...

Considering that KKLZ was 5th in 25-54 in the entire market in May, whatever they are doing is working. They have quadrupled since November in this demo, in fact.

 

[mailman ron]

Got to agree with Slurpee...When was the last time you heard an "oldie" and thought, "I haven't heard that song for years."...If you can remember, your next thought was probably, "This station's all right."...I know for me, a lot of the oldies I liked were more in the "Bottom 20" of the "Top 40"...My memories are jolted when I hear "Cinnamon Cinder", not " Satisfaction"...Do some marketing on the obscure songs from 1965-1980, the ones who were on the charts for 3 - 4 weeks, and I'll consider you a "consultant " and think you might have some talent...How hard is it to pick the top 20 songs of a 15 year period?..drag out an old Billboard and save yourself some money...until then, it's Bearshare, my MP3 player, and truly MY greatest (memory stirring) hits of all time.

 

[davideduardo]

Got to agree with Slurpee...When was the last time you heard an "oldie" and thought, "I haven't heard that song for years."...If you can remember, your next thought was probably, "This station's all right."...I know for me, a lot of the oldies I liked were more in the "Bottom 20" of the "Top 40"...My memories are jolted when I hear "Cinnamon Cinder", not " Satisfaction"...Do some marketing on the obscure songs from 1965-1980, the ones who were on the charts for 3 - 4 weeks, and I'll consider you a "consultant " and think you might have some talent...How hard is it to pick the top 20 songs of a 15 year period?..drag out an old Billboard and save yourself some money...until then, it's Bearshare, my MP3 player, and truly MY greatest (memory stirring) hits of all time.

That's not quite how a playlist is done. Generally, for a gold-based format, hundreds and hundreds of songs are originally tested against listeners either to that kind of format or who say they would listen to a pod of songs that represent the format. Of those, the ones that are playable today get on the air... chart position 30 years ago has nothing to do with it... the question is, "how much would you like to hear that song on the radio today."

 

[mailman ron]

Dave,
I agree that's not how it's done...which is why every oldies station is interchangeable with another. If you take the top 300 songs of all time, you are repeating them at least every day and a half...I don't want to hear "A Hard Day's Night" every other day, though I love the record...Radio today more than ever is money, first and foremost...Entertainment isn't in the equation anymore..Originality has been dead for 25 years...When "personality radio" was dropped, radio resorted to the easy route - limited playlists, repeated hourly..Now you can hear the same song the next day within 5-10 minutes of the time it was played the day before...Again, if that's what you think is fine, I'll be even more happy with my CD's and MP3's with a little diversity...I'm from San Francisco where innovation & change in radio is making a comeback. Vegas radio is a step below college quality but as I've read, you get what you pay for. Vegas will never amount to much because of what is settled for in "quality". It's too bad, it was a growing market quality wise 20 years ago.