Marv-L.A. said:
Hot AC could use some good news, so I hope that KPLZ does eventually meet KP's objectives as he states in the article, especially once the boost in advertising kicks in later this year.
It's funny to read these things that make Kent Phillips' moves sound like brain surgery.
It wasn't too long ago that people were lining up by the dozens on this board to say things like "Kent doesn't have time to program KPLZ," or "he's out of the building by 10:05" or "he's spending too much time on TV." All very amusing to read. But I digress.
Back to the topic. Quite frankly, as I said before, Kent is merely adjusting to the format, which is clearly in an evolution right now. This isn't rocket science.
Marv-L.A. said:
Furthermore, AC and country have been sharing more music in recent years; another recent article in R&R stated that the percentage of music shared by CHR/Pop and AC has never been lower, while the percentage of music shared by Country & AC continues to rise.
What you say about increased sharing is true, but it's not Coke and Pepsi merging. There have been a handful of Country artists who are crossing over more (Rascal Flatts, Martina McBride, Keith Urban to name a few), but it's hardly a tidal wave. Alternative and Rhythmic play bigger hands than Country.
What you say about the CHR/Pop and AC and Country and AC is true. You're simply outlining the evolution contemporary music is going through right now.
Marv-L.A. said:
AC and Country have been stealing listeners from CHR/Pop by the millions for almost two decades as CHR/Pop narrowed its target demo dramatically, and Hot AC certainly took another bite out of CHR/Pop's listening audience from its inception in the mid-nineties.
KPLZ's current 25-54 numbers (and the ultra-important 25-54 women) numbers clearly show that such is still the case well over a decade later.
Two words: baby boomers.
Marv-L.A. said:
Phillips states that he wants to get those numbers for KPLZ back to where they were in the late nineties when it (the Hot AC format) was indeed 'the sweet spot for advertisers', and certainly for listeners and baby-boomers who grew up listening to top 40 radio but started bailing out of the format by the truckload in the late eighties.
Again, adjusting to the evolution of contemporary.
KPLZ, in a way, is very lucky. KBKS should be the station taking the most advantage of this contemporary music shift, but they continue to falter and hand KPLZ the ratings.