Kudos To Saul Levine: Country Replaces Classical On 105.1

[radioresearcher]

Great move by Saul Levine as KMZT becomes KKGO-FM (Go Country 105) on Monday.

This is one of the best decisions in a long time for the marketplace. Good for him and best of success.

Classical will still be served on 91.5, 1260, and KMZT HD.

 

[Michael Rivers Kramer]

Nothing against country fans but...

In my opinion, this is a cultural black eye for Los Angeles. KUSC while good, doesn't play enough of the classical hits. The LA schools are not providing adequate music education and music that has stood the test of time for centuries is going to get less exposure in Southern California. Thank you Emmis for getting the ball rolling!


First WGMS, now KMZT what next KDFC?...This is REALLY SAD!

Thankfully LA has KUSC!

 

[Mediafrog+]

If true, not a surprise. Been bad times for commercial Classical lately, with the final demise of WGMS in D.C., after having been kicked to a rimshot last year, along with WCRB Boston also relegated to rimshot status. Looks like the days are numbered for KDFC up the coast in SF, as well. Here in Houston we lost KRTS a couple of years ago.

Oh, well, I'm a classical lover but also a realist. Times, tastes, demographics and economics change, and Classical's decline has been in the works for years--actually decades. At least there are plently of alternatives, given the internet/satellite etc.

Having loved the Jazz incarnation of KKGO years ago (via cable FM) it seems strange to have the call connected with country--although I guess the Jazz format has been gone long enough (what--17 years now?) that listeners simply don't remember.

 

[leonardo10]

http://www.nbc4.tv/news/11096162/detail.html

Here is an article on the change. I think this is a good move on his part.

 

[Beachdog]

I keep reading here there's not enough cume in LA for a country format yet I keep seeing these artist on TV. There must be a good number of country fans in the market to support the station better them what classical captured. Is this a leap backwards for the froggy in Riverside?

 

[SuperRadioFan]

K-FROG can't be thrilled with the change, especially since they've claimed they are upgrading their signal into Orange County (read spent $$$). BUT they were NEVER considered by advertisers to be anything other than a station serving the Inland Empire.

The new Go Country 105 certainly will have a great signal ... better than KZLA ever had I believe.

EDIT: I just looked at the coverage maps from Radio-Locator and they're almost identical. The two signals 93.9 and 105.1 have around the same power, too (18kw).

Too bad that Classical music lovers now will be limited to KUSC. But that's the trend. You know Armageddon has arrived when WFMT and/or WQXR drops Classical

 

[Mediafrog+]

You know Armageddon has arrived when WFMT and/or WQXR drops Classical

You're only half-kidding. Those will be the last two in the Classical Death Pool. Final survivor will depend on whether the New York Times gets out of the radio biz.

 

[marko83]

Go Country? Sounds like a Dr. Seuss book.

 

[davideduardo]

K-FROG can't be thrilled with the change, especially since they've claimed they are upgrading their signal into Orange County (read spent $$$). BUT they were NEVER considered by advertisers to be anything other than a station serving the Inland Empire.

Despite being mentioned here, I see no recent modifications or CPs

EDIT: I just looked at the coverage maps from Radio-Locator and they're almost identical. The two signals 93.9 and 105.1 have around the same power, too (18kw).

KMZT´s antenna is much closer to the ground on Wilson, resulting in some considerable shadowing. KZLA is the bbetter signal

 

[mostb1]

K-FROG can't be thrilled with the change, especially since they've claimed they are upgrading their signal into Orange County (read spent $$$). BUT they were NEVER considered by advertisers to be anything other than a station serving the Inland Empire.

Despite being mentioned here, I see no recent modifications or CPs

EDIT: I just looked at the coverage maps from Radio-Locator and they're almost identical. The two signals 93.9 and 105.1 have around the same power, too (18kw).

KMZT´s antenna is much closer to the ground on Wilson, resulting in some considerable shadowing. KZLA is the bbetter signal

From the Frog's mouth itself: http://www.kfrogstations.com/frogboard/viewtopic.php?t=160&sid=869d5bc2991f81204023aa3d823887b4

 

[RadioFanBoy]

Looks like Saul is sticking it to the corporate man again (in this case CBS).

 

[davideduardo]

Looks like Saul is sticking it to the corporate man again (in this case CBS).

Why would CBS, with a Riverside station at Riverside rates, care what was done in the LA metro?

And KFRG, with about a share point in LA, and a very limited LA metro signal, was not going to become an LA station, either.

 

[scooty430]

Looks like Saul is sticking it to the corporate man again (in this case CBS).

Why would CBS, with a Riverside station at Riverside rates, care what was done in the LA metro?

And KFRG, with about a share point in LA, and a very limited LA metro signal, was not going to become an LA station, either.

Right, no impact in Los Angeles proper. But a country station brodcasting from Mt. Wilson is going to reach the Inland Empire and Orange County - areas where KFROG has many listeners. My guess is in the old days they had both KZLA and KFROG on their presets.

Inland Empire is also still growing in population...

 

[davideduardo]

Right, no impact in Los Angeles proper. But a country station brodcasting from Mt. Wilson is going to reach the Inland Empire and Orange County - areas where KFROG has many listeners. My guess is in the old days they had both KZLA and KFROG on their presets.

Inland Empire is also still growing in population...

Orange County is part of "LA Proper" as it is as much a part of the LA radio market as the SFV is. KFRG has no significant impact of LA ratings, getting as it does around a 1 share and being an out of market station.

Similarly, 105.1 is not likely to have any sales impact in the IE (it's low antenna height above ground does not put a very good signal into the IE due to terrain blockage). LA statons are frequently in the top 5 in the IE, but don't get any revenue in that market due to rate differences. So, for an LA station, audience in the IE has no value in the business sense, no matter how nice we may feel about achievement.

As a classical station, it got about a quarter of the LA share in the IE, so it will not be a factor in the IE, anyway.

 

[mbatchelor]

I pulled up the music that they are playing on YES.COM. and was quite surprised to see how many Classic Country songs that they are playing; very unique for a Major market country station. Most are very tightly playlisted, and current based. It will be interesting to see how well "Go Country" does compared to the former KZLA, as it looks like they are taking a much broader approach at the format.

 

[mostb1]

Sean Parr said on the air that Saul Levine told him "We're in it for the long haul". What does that mean to Saul, one year, maybe two?

The morning show was more Hot Country than the overnight automation which was almost only Classic Country. But they are running the Dial Global mainstream country satellite format most of the rest of the day. The music isn't going to reflect the tastes of L.A.,

At precisely 10 AM they abruptly dumped out of the last song from morning show (mid-song), went into the last few seconds of a country song from Dial Global, then dead air and into the next song. Sounds like crap hearing a satellite format station in the #1 revenue market in the world. What a way to run a Los Angeles station.

 

[romer979fm]

Sounds like crap hearing a satellite format station in the #1 revenue market in the world. What a way to run a Los Angeles station.

I was stunned at how bad the AMs sounded when they picked up country...(listening on-line)...
transferring that horrendous product to 105.1 is beyond comprehension. Unless Saul is trying to make
hundreds of small-market stations feel better about themselves, I don't understand why anyone would
put out such a third-rate product. Perhaps third-rate is too kind...

 

[mbatchelor]

I managed to listen to the online stream, and I think there are better sounding Country stations in places like Joplin, MO; For goodness sake, LA is Market #2; listener won't stand for a radio station that sounds like it should be on the air in Bentonville, AR. Get some real imaging; and find someone with a good track record running Big City country station.

There are a certain percentage of folks who will listen just because its the only Country station in town, but, if this is their on air product, I can't even see them doing as well as KZLA; which ultimately failed despite being a slick and well programmed station.

Another thing - Why doesn't the station stream 24-7. Kinda odd...

 

[dbdigital]

Sounds like crap hearing a satellite format station in the #1 revenue market in the world. What a way to run a Los Angeles station.

I was stunned at how bad the AMs sounded when they picked up country...(listening on-line)...
transferring that horrendous product to 105.1 is beyond comprehension. Unless Saul is trying to make
hundreds of small-market stations feel better about themselves, I don't understand why anyone would
put out such a third-rate product. Perhaps third-rate is too kind...

Interestingly KKGO's audio was a topic on today's LA Radio.com where some complained that it sounded 'tinny'. I have to agree. Having heard the stellar sound of KMZT for so long I was expecting something similar with KKGO but, so far, I have not been impressed with the audio.

db

 

[SuperRadioFan]

Point taken, db. Though we all know we are all audiophiles and thus are extreme critics of how fidelity and music should sound. We also know how formatics should sound and work. The satellite segue between the DJ's voice IDing the station into their live voice introing the next song sound to us like fingernails on a blackboard! All the above doesn't matter to Joe SixPack out there listening in his Ford F150.