New KAAM Website and Format?

[michaelshiloh]

crbigband: You show class for not taking little1's insult bait. David Eduardo taught me not to take the bait, as he takes on this character in his posts that makes it seem like he knows everything about the radio bidness. Eduardo keeps the debate going. Seems to me like little1 is directly insulting. Whuss up, Little One?

 

[crbigband]

Thanks Michael! How goes it in Houston?

I also have to agree with Chuck's post as well. The one thing I don't believe I have mentioned in previous posts regarding KAAM:

My entire broadcast career has been at Adult Standard stations. I never applied at a country or rock formatted station simple because I had no desire to work in those kinds of environments. I'm not trying to be insulting here really - to each his own. Also, with the sole exception of my recent KAAM midday stint - I had complete programming autonomy. I played whatever I wanted on my Sunday big band and Sinatra shows in Houston on KQUE and KAAM (620 & 770).

Which is why on this next issue I believe I can speak with a certain modicum of authority:

There really is no point in an AM station to entertain the notion that they have any chance of competing with a FM airing the same music. Nobody who likes the Carpenters, James Taylor, Barry Manilow, et al is going to listen to KAAM when they can hear that music on Platinum. No listener who likes oldies from Elvis to the Beatles is going to listen to that same AM station when they can hear their favorites on KLUV (another FM).

And - this is strictly my opinion of course - listeners who tune in on the weekends to the above mentioned stations won't be getting a steady diet of sports programming and colon cleanser commercials.

"To thine own self - be true" so Shakespeare said.

Indeed. Chuck is correct here I believe. An AM airing high school and college football, various infomercials etc. - not to mention to lowering of power after sunset to 1000 watts - would be well-served in not alienating their core demographic by "updating" the music, done I suppose in an attempt to attract younger listeners.

But frankly I don't see any 40 or 50 year old interested in this stuff any more than someone 70+. In my opinion and based on the calls I received when I worked there and since, they have attracted very few new listeners and alienated their core demographic.

I'll be interested to see what happens next.

 

[LibertyNT]

Personally I Think KAAM would be better if they dropped all that infomercial garbage that runs on the weekends. I Do Like That Saturday night Oldies Party they run though.

 

[charles123]

Personally I Think KAAM would be better if they dropped all that infomercial garbage that runs on the weekends. I Do Like That Saturday night Oldies Party they run though.

Man I agree with you there now, the infomercials are so boring on the weekends on this station.

 

[michaelshiloh]

And Chuck, this is part of the point I think CR is trying to make: I stream a certain Standards station called KZQX at my house and my 12-year-old and my 9-year-old and especially my 2-year-old groove to this music. My 9-year-old lists Sinatra among her favorites (along with Hanna Montana and Spears). The 12-year-old knows more about Michael Buble than anyone in her class, according to her. Not necessarily because of KZQX, but there is a current undercurrent, if you will, that makes real American Standards new again.

My wife (39) and I (45) love Linda Eder and there's no one like Madeleine Peyroux. Her Billie Holiday-like music will make you melt, especially when she interprets Bob Dylan. These people sing "Standards" and they're young and they're my contemporaries. That's something radio or TV can't understand, but Internet-radio can. Different strokes for different folks and so on and so on and scooby doobie...

Things are good in Houston, CR. How's your bad self?

 

[Chuck]

And Chuck, this is part of the point I think CR is trying to make: I stream a certain Standards station called KZQX at my house and my 12-year-old and my 9-year-old and especially my 2-year-old groove to this music. My 9-year-old lists Sinatra among her favorites (along with Hanna Montana and Spears). The 12-year-old knows more about Michael Buble than anyone in her class, according to her. Not necessarily because of KZQX, but there is a current undercurrent, if you will, that makes real American Standards new again.

It seems KZQX is the hot topic of conversation today with the announcement that we will be going full power with our modified Standards format. It is one of those rare instances where "everyone wins."

By the way, I have KR to thank for some of this. Before KZQX got a license, I heard him play a few "new" songs like "Mildred Won't You Behave," by the Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra. That gave me the idea that this format wasn't really dead, it had merely been rendered unconscious by an overdose of dreck. We still play that and many other new songs on KZQX, and listeners seem to love it. It is all about having fun. A lot of this music is fun to listen to, even for young listeners who are hearing it for the first time.