NEW 94 L.A's Hit Music

[BRNout]

Does any radio station in this digital day & age still round off their frequency in their image logo?

Actually, yes. One great example is Boston's Kiss 108. Another is 94 HJY from Providence (an AOR formatted station). And there's Philadelphia's CHR, known as Q102. Need I go on? I can cite many others.

Oh, it's not that I disagree with you about the validity of flipping Movin' to such as CHR as suggested - it probably wouldn't happen for a number of reasons. Although some folks at CBS in Houston may argue with us on that. However. I do need to point out that not everything in the original post is impossible. You certainly can image a station without using the precise digital frequency. Successful stations do it every day.

Allow me to disagree with you.
Those stations you mentioned ALL got those names before the wide use of digital frequency tuners, and they keep those names because research indicates that people recognize them. Kiss 108 came on the air in 1978, and WHJY in the early 50s! WXKS FM doesn't have to go educate people that they are on 107.9 because their audience already knows. But if Kiss were to come on the air today, it would probably choose the name "107.9 KissFM." In fact, they almost changed their name to that in 2000, but decided not to, for the very reason I just gave.

On the other hand, Q102 isn't really a good example, since they are on 102.1, so they aren't rounding it off, they actually are on 102 (because there is no 102.0 in the US). I think people can figure that out.

How is Q102 not a good example? It's rounded off, which is the point here. Granted, there is more of a tendency to round off those stations at .9 or .1 - and there always has been. To avoid what happened in Hartford back around 1980 or so when you had "96 TIC FM" (96.5) and KISS 96 FM (95.7). Of course, that was the old ez listening version of WKSS.

And, digital radio tuners WERE around when Kiss 108 came to be - which was in the early 80s. 94 HJY was not branded as such in the 1950s either, it was a lot later. In pre-digital days, they were always WHJY. They could have easily changed their positioner, just as "Oldies 103" (WODS) did in the later 1990s (adding the .3). So you really didn't prove your point here with me. How about Rock 101 (WGIR Manchester)? And, the newly reintroduced 94 WYSP Philadelphia (formerly Free FM)? CBS could have stuck the .1 in there a few months ago when they changed formats, but it didn't flow. Nope, it's not that unusual.

Other posts also bolster what I was saying - that the NEW 94 name wouldn't be all THAT odd. Though I wouldn't advise it.

 

[BRNout]

Power 106 started in 1986, and (if memory serves), most people had digital radio dials by that time.

uh....no.....

I sure did - in my car and on my receiver at home. Only my little portables lacked it at that time. They became pretty common in cars starting around 1980 or so.

Oddly, I recall that FM stations were ultra precise about frequency prior to the free form days of the 1970s. Then, most seemed to get "sloppy" about frequencies - almost all rounded them for a while. With digital radios, the precision did return (to be fair) but that is not a hard and fast rule.

 

[pbf1]

Power 106 started in 1986, and (if memory serves), most people had digital radio dials by that time.

uh....no.....

I sure did - in my car and on my receiver at home.

You said "most people."

I didn't say YOU didn't have it.

I had it too. Carver receiver at home, Alpine in the car. But most AVERAGE listeners still did NOT.

(You and I are actives, not average.)

 

[85cutiekid]

David-

I have ZERO to prove to you. You are a consultant, someone who consults. You give an opinion. Just because you consult, does not mean you are correct. I can name a few flunker consultants right now. Jan Jeffries/Don Parker those who can do, all other program or consult. So you can't and you don't. So you can break out all the numbers and do your mathmatical equasions and play by the old play book, or you can jump out of the box and do something different. It is no surprise you would err on the side of caution. Someone such as yourself isnt able to take off the suit and live life. You sir are the very last person, I would ever take advice from.

Like I said those who can't consult.

A new day is coming, somehow I think KIIS is feeling the June gloom a little early. I'm just sayin...

TMINUS and counting....

 

[BACKnUSSR]

David-

I have ZERO to prove to you. You are a consultant, someone who consults. You give an opinion. Just because you consult, does not mean you are correct. I can name a few flunker consultants right now. Jan Jeffries/Don Parker those who can do, all other program or consult. So you can't and you don't. So you can break out all the numbers and do your mathmatical equasions and play by the old play book, or you can jump out of the box and do something different. It is no surprise you would err on the side of caution. Someone such as yourself isnt able to take off the suit and live life. You sir are the very last person, I would ever take advice from.

Like I said those who can't consult.

A new day is coming, somehow I think KIIS is feeling the June gloom a little early. I'm just sayin...

TMINUS and counting....

What exactly are you talking about?
Jan Jeffries and Don Parker are both very smart and capable programmers.

KIIS would crush another Top 40 right now (its a time of strength for them).
You are talking about a station that has handled all comers for the past two decades.
They and KROQ are two stations in LA that you'd be at a disadvantage to take on.

 

[davideduardo]

David-

I have ZERO to prove to you. You are a consultant, someone who consults.

Actually, that is not my present situation... but reality is proving to be a nebulous characteristic to you.

You give an opinion.

Actually, I find out listener opinions and help to serve up what the listeners want.

Just because you consult, does not mean you are correct.

Actually, the only people who are correct in radio are the listeners.

I can name a few flunker consultants right now. Jan Jeffries/Don Parker those who can do, all other program or consult.

Huh?

So you can't and you don't.

Lemme see... #1 and #2 and #8 25-54 in LA... or the 20-year #1 in market 13 or the highest cuming station in the hemisphere... that is doing. What have you done?

So you can break out all the numbers and do your mathmatical equasions and play by the old play book,

We sell by the numbers, as the advertisers demand a metric to base rates on. You can not succeed int he top markets without numbers.

or you can jump out of the box and do something different.

Golly, gee. Ya think so? Would the first top 40 in South America qualify? Or the first FM in northern South America? Or a station that had the Clarin newspaper write "It took a foreigner to show us Argentines that we like our oun national rock music" when Mega 98.3 went #1 in a city bigger than New York?

These are a couple of the out of box experiences I have had. Please regale us with some stories about your successful stations that did not follow the "playbook" (whatever that is).

It is no surprise you would err on the side of caution.

I'm one of the least cautious persons you might ever meet. But for you to throw that kind of unproven, erroneous insult, it would be interesting to know what you have done that makes you an expert. Right now, you are sounding like a disgruntled guy at a bar with one too many laid on.

Someone such as yourself isnt able to take off the suit and live life.

I can't remember the last time I wore a suit. See how totally off you are?

You sir are the very last person, I would ever take advice from.

Likewise, I'm sure. That was just a cheap shot, anyways. People who can't discuss resort to insults.

 

[RicoGregg]

David-

I have ZERO to prove to you. You are a consultant, someone who consults. You give an opinion. Just because you consult, does not mean you are correct. I can name a few flunker consultants right now. Jan Jeffries/Don Parker those who can do, all other program or consult. So you can't and you don't. So you can break out all the numbers and do your mathmatical equasions and play by the old play book, or you can jump out of the box and do something different. It is no surprise you would err on the side of caution. Someone such as yourself isnt able to take off the suit and live life. You sir are the very last person, I would ever take advice from.

Like I said those who can't consult.

A new day is coming, somehow I think KIIS is feeling the June gloom a little early. I'm just sayin...

TMINUS and counting....

It's actually quite true that you have zero to prove to David Eduardo. It's highly doubtful that a quality company like his employers would ever hire you. It's the RADIO BUSINESS and listeners that you need to prove yourself to.

If you ever somehow manage to get employed at a medium-to-major market station that plays music, chances are more than excellent that they'll be using the services of a consultant. You would love to make half the money some of those guys make. And you're insulting them already. That's just great.

You couldn't take advice from David Eduardo. You couldn't afford an hour of his valuable time.

BTW, isn't what you're saying about 93.9 on this thread (FM 94. That is so early 80s.) and your "sage" statements on the Arkansas boards a, oh, I don't know, sort of a form of....CONSULTING? You're trying to tell an L.A. station what they should do, right? Looks like consulting to me, however amateurish.

 

[SuperRadioFan]

To you newbeez who don't know who David really is, here's a link that will tell you much. David used to have it either in his profile or signature, but whatever, peruse it and you'll see "consultant" doesn't begin to describe Senor Gleason!

http://www.davidgleason.com/

 

[accessdlp]

I am just getting through this thread.

Let's see, how many time have I heard that Dees was moving to (fill in the blank) for about two years before he landed at 'MVN? How many format flips have (fill in the blank with the CBS-FM station of choice) gone through? How many times has (fill in the blank with any statin doing less than a 5.0) planned a flip, according to "inside sources?"

And how many times has none of it been true.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again......until it's on company stationary, it's all talk and nothing more.

 

[CHRles]

Jan Jeffries and Don Parker are both very smart and capable programmers.

LMAO! Jan Jaffries is the worst PD for Top 40 radio I have ever seen, and yet Cumulus put him in charge of ALL of their CHRs. They sound overly Adult, and at times every other song is a ballad or a Recurrent/Gold title.

 

[davideduardo]

]

LMAO! Jan Jaffries is the worst PD for Top 40 radio I have ever seen, and yet Cumulus put him in charge of ALL of their CHRs. They sound overly Adult, and at times every other song is a ballad or a Recurrent/Gold title.

They sound overly adult because you can't sell teens. On the other hand, I believe while Jan was PD in Roanoke, he had the highest CHR share anywhere in the US.

 

[RicoGregg]

LMAO! Jan Jaffries is the worst PD for Top 40 radio I have ever seen, and yet Cumulus put him in charge of ALL of their CHRs.

They must think something of him.

 

[CHRles]

David, when was he a PD in Roanoke? The dominany CHR in that market since the early 80s has been K-92. While it's a great CHR it's never posted the kind of double digits that stations like 98.5 KRZ Wilkes Barre used to get, as well as a few other CHRs.
It's true that you can't sell to teens, but stations like Z-100 NYC and KIIS-FM L.A. do a great job of catering to 18-34 year olds. The Cumulus CHRs sound very stale in comparison, and they all sound exactly the same. That means that pretty much what you hear at 104.3 ZYP Huntsville is also what you'll hear at 104 KRBE Houston and Q-100 Atlanta. Q-100 has a real chance of getting high ratings now that it's on one of Atlanta's top signals, but so long as Jan is running the show it just won't. And what about KRBE? There's a reason why Hot 95.7 recently launched in Houston, and why a lot of the station's longtime jocks left the station in the past couple of years.

 

[davideduardo]

David, when was he a PD in Roanoke? The dominany CHR in that market since the early 80s has been K-92. While it's a great CHR it's never posted the kind of double digits that stations like 98.5 KRZ Wilkes Barre used to get, as well as a few other CHRs.

I believe he took it in 80 or 81, and by '82 it had a 25 share average for the year, followed by two years of over-30 share books. KRZ's best year average was a 15.5 in 1992.

It's true that you can't sell to teens, but stations like Z-100 NYC and KIIS-FM L.A. do a great job of catering to 18-34 year olds.

KIIS is predominantly 18-34 females, like nearly all successful CHRs are now. And it is 55% Hispanic.

And what about KRBE? There's a reason why Hot 95.7 recently launched in Houston, and why a lot of the station's longtime jocks left the station in the past couple of years.

KRBE did a masterful move to a more mature, cume driven adult approach before the PPM went currency. They increased both cume and share 18+ in a major fashion. Most people in the market think the realignment of KRBE showed that Jan is one of the first to really understand the PPM.

 

[CHRles]

Jan is an idiot. He brought Z-102 Savannah down to its lowest numbers, hence the recent flip. He hasn't exactly done a whole lot with Tower 98 in Toledo either. He seems to be obssessed with Rob Thomas songs. Let's take a look at which CHRs are still playing a stiff like "Little Wonders"
http://www.mediabase.com/mmrweb/AllAccess/Details.asp?sngcde=THOMLW++

Oh look! All of these CHRs are programmed by Jan Jaffries (with the exception of Q-107.3 Columbus, Ga). What a coincidence. Yup, we all know how similar Youngstown and Montgomery are, as well as Houston and Melbourne :
I'm trying to think of other CHRs in the 80s and 90s that had huge ratings. Z-102 Lubbock comes to mind, Star 104 Erie, WVIC up in Lansing, nearby WIOG Saginaw, Q-105 Tampa.

 

[pbf1]

Let's take a look at which CHRs are still playing a stiff like "Little Wonders"

It was #5 Hot AC. They lean adult. (There you go.)

 

[kentuckymedia]

I consulted a station with Jan once. He is a stable programmer, nothing fantastic but nothing bad about the guy either.

I will tell you this. Rob Thomas-Little Wonders can and should be played on a CHR when competing against a Rhythmic CHR. Thats called understanding the demos. Not all CHR's are made for 12-24 and not all are made for 18-34 and not all are made for 18-49. However CHR should be the format for all three demos.

If Emmis launches a new CHR on a signal in LA. My first bet is it would be a little more adult leaning than that of KIIS. Reason why, its called squeeze play! Its normal in markets where there are two CHR stations. One has to take the younger end, one has to take the older end. Both wont co-exist trying to go after the 18-24 year olds.

If 93.9 were to go CHR. Look for Sarah Bareilles, Colbie, Nickelback, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, Michelle Branch, Matchbox Twenty, Usher. Its also known as "CRACKER TOP 40" to people who program Rhythmic leaning stations, and thats okay! They may lean rhythmic and clean up the cume. However when it comes to sales, guess who is going to be wiping up those dollars!

 

[CHRles]

Ummm, I like Michaelle Branch and all, but what recent records has she had charing on CHR radio?
I do agree with you that a new CHR in L.A. has a good chance of pulling decent numbers if it's adult friendly, but that doesn't necassarily mean sounding overly vanilla/white in a market like L.A.

As for Jan, I've had negative messages from more then one PD and MD at CHRs where he has a say in the music. The guy is loated.

 

[CHRles]

Sorry that should read Michelle Branch ;D

Getting back to the issue of CHRs with abnormally high ratings, I know 95.1 WAPE Jacksonville had about a 22 share in the summer of 1987. Honolulu had 3 CHRs at the time, one with nearly a 10 share (KXPW), while KQMQ 93.1 had more then a 16 share (the third CHR, KMAI, posted a 6.6 share at the time). KJ 103 Oklahoma City also had a 16 share at the time, and Hot 101 Youngstown over a 20 share. WQUT in the Tri Cities area of TN, a Rock leaning CHR, held a whopping 24.1 shares (!!), and nearby K-92 Roanoke was still posting a 22 share.
Wink 104 Harrisburg held nearly a 22 share at this time. WVIC Lansing was doing a 22 share, and 102.5 WIOG had over a 22 share in Flint. Q-105 Tampa was doing an 18 share.

In 1989 Tucson's 93.7 KRQ posted a 23 share in the winter. B-104 Mcallen was with nearly a 20 share. Chattanooga's WSKZ 106.7 had a 20 share in summer of 88, and a 19.2 in summer of 89
A lot of CHRs were unable to post the kind of monster ratings that they used to by 1990, but there were some cases of CHRs reaching alltime highs in 1989. For example, Y-107 Nashville with nearly a 15 share, 99.7 DJX with over a 15 share, 97.9 NCI Columbus with a 16 share, Sweet 98 Omaha with a 17 share, 107.3 KKRD Wichita with a 15 share. 96 TIC in Hartford had nearly a 14 share in both the spring of 88 and 89 while .
Interesting to note that a lot of these stations are still doing CHR today K-92 Roanoke, KRQ in Tucson, KRZ Wilkes Baree, KJ 103 in OKC, APE in Jax, Hot 101 Youngstown, 107.5 The River Nashville, DJX in Louisville, 97.9 NCI Columbus, 102.5 WIOG Saginaw (although it left for a few years) and even KQMQ has been back to doing CHR in the past couple of years.

 

[davideduardo]

Getting back to the issue of CHRs with abnormally high ratings, I know 95.1 WAPE Jacksonville had about a 22 share in the summer of 1987.

18.5 for the year.

Honolulu had 3 CHRs at the time, one with nearly a 10 share (KXPW), while KQMQ 93.1 had more then a 16 share (the third CHR, KMAI, posted a 6.6 share at the time).

15.5 for the year 1988.

KJ 103 Oklahoma City also had a 16 share at the time, and Hot 101 Youngstown over a 20 share. WQUT in the Tri Cities area of TN, a Rock leaning CHR, held a whopping 24.1 shares (!!), and nearby K-92 Roanoke was still posting a 22 share.

K 92 had two full years averaging over a 30 share. I can find nothing any higher and for such a long period of time.

Wink 104 Harrisburg held nearly a 22 share at this time.

1988 average was 21.3.

WVIC Lansing was doing a 22 share,

Never had a year over a 17.8, and that was '92.

and 102.5 WIOG had over a 22 share in Flint.

In flint, never got over an 11 share. That was 1988.

Q-105 Tampa was doing an 18 share.

But it was anything but CHR as the Power Pig proved. It was talk in the morning, AC in mid-days and lite CHR at night. And it got killed.

Jan Jeffries' station in Roanoke probably had the highest CHR shares over a period of years since the AM Top 40 days. He must have been doing something right, as the available airchecks prove.