Stepped away from board to enjoy the holidays. Thought I'd check in to see what's new in 2024. With Christmas music over, any stations with new format's? How about that second country station? When did classic rock start to include the 90s (and what happened to radio stations playing all the great songs of the 60s)? Did we get an HD2 station playing 24 hours of Kokomo? What's the next big shoe to drop?
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New Year-Where things stand in Seattle Radio
- Thread starter DMK
- Start date
BJ Shea vs his daughter could be the best radio war of all time….
Like your prediction that sports radio wouldn't work on FM? You gave KJR six months, didn't you?
They could just increase Classic Alt tracks in the mix, over time. Stations tweak formats as they go.
One of the biggest problems with 98.9 is it's always changing formats. Nobody knows what to make of them. Are they going to be Regional Mexican next week? Or Vaporwave? They already lost the Country crowd and the rockers. When a station abruptly changes formats every few years, it's hard for listeners to trust that frequency again. And 98.9 has a reputation as a format wheel.
They may need to tweak the format. But for Pete's sake, don't completely change it. At least tweak it and give it another year. Advertising helps.
One thing that Hubbard has going for it with 98.9, nobody else is trying to do a mainstream AAA. I still think there’s a quite a bit of potential there. Yes, they need to differentiate themselves from KNDD, but the programming on KNDD versus KPNW is pretty different.
The biggest threat is KEXP, and it’s not an automatic guarantee that someone who likes KPNW is going to prefer the KEXP approach.
This is true. I often wonder about some of these stations that keep changing formats. It sure seems like there are owners out there that don't know what to do with certain stations as they're always changing. I wouldn't say 98.9 is that way yet, but since they dropped smooth jazz, they seem to have taken the place of 96.5 as the station that's always changing. Down here, that was 105.9 for many years, but that signal is going on 15 years with its current format and no sign of changing anytime soon.
Any idea what happened to KGRG? Was driving through the South Sound and they have flipped to something called "89.9 The Current". Stuff like Dua Lipa, Miley Cyrus and every auto-tuned rapper. Weird. They used to be a really good local/alternative station but lately they had started in on that "Active Rock" thing that I don't find super enjoyable but this "Current" format is something entirely different.
It's a school station. Expect change.
You mean like how you were positive KJR 93.3 would move back to AM in six months? Six months. That's a pretty short tenure for a format before changing, don't you think Bob?
How many years ago was that? 25?
So stations are changing rapidly, or aren't they Bob? Have any changed, then changed back within six months?
I don’t think that was KGRG.. it looks like they are very much still around. However, it wouldn’t surprise me if you heard another station on 89.9 as KGRG has a pretty weak signal. Unless you’re in the valley, you probably aren’t picking it up very well.
KWJZ (now KPNW) dropped smooth jazz in 2010, but the last two years were a smooth hybrid format...they omitted the word "jazz" from the branding until they went to Click. There was more chill music and harder instrumentals - even Jeff Beck tunes.
I can tell you that the KGRG-FM stream has rhythmic top 40 on it now. That's similar to KASB's format up at Bellevue HS, also 89.9. It looks like the little AM 1330 is airing alternative rock still...and I have no idea how GRCC keeps that station in business. It's class D, they filed for a construction permit (in the 2020s?) to go to a class B 710W-D/210W-N over the current 500-D/26-N. This station really needed an FM translator during the revitalization period but that period is long gone.
I can tell you that the KGRG-FM stream has rhythmic top 40 on it now. That's similar to KASB's format up at Bellevue HS, also 89.9. It looks like the little AM 1330 is airing alternative rock still...and I have no idea how GRCC keeps that station in business. It's class D, they filed for a construction permit (in the 2020s?) to go to a class B 710W-D/210W-N over the current 500-D/26-N. This station really needed an FM translator during the revitalization period but that period is long gone.
It's KGRG. I drove down 18 off of I-5 and then took 169 past the Muckleshoot. Top 40 and KGRG legal ID's. According to their BookFace page the format changed at 11:12 on 11/12. "The Classic Alternative" can still be heard on the HD-1 and 1330 AM.
Are you never going to let me live down a prediction I now admit was premature at the very least? In Seattle, we haven't seen a station change format that quickly, but I have in other markets. Since 102.7 in Austin dropped comedy several years ago, it's been through several formats, each lasting a year or so, including a run with ESPN that was all of about six months. There was also the 100.7 in Pensacola FL that was CHR for maybe a year, then went to the Cumulus Journey format for eight months, went to a simulcast of the news/talker for a year or so, and now does Classic Hits and has for a number of years. In Seattle, the shortest lived format I can think of was eight months or so on 95.7 as Hot AC Mix. So, they're out there if you look for them.
KGRG's branding as "The Current?"
Minnesota Public Radio might want a word with them about that. Who doesn't check these things before rebranding?
Minnesota Public Radio might want a word with them about that. Who doesn't check these things before rebranding?
I doubt the slogan is copyrighted. I also doubt they would care about another non-comm way out West using it. That would be way outside their immediate market.
Perhaps not. But in the streaming world we're in today, you'd think someone at KGRG could be a bit more inventive and not have to borrow slogans from one of secular noncommercial radio's bigger brands.
Also, The Current has a large streaming audience and is often mentioned in the same context as the likes of KEXP. And they're on HD2 on KPCC, which is a West Coast station too. Not sure why MPR wouldn't want to protect its brand against confusion.
Either way, it's lazy branding.
Also, The Current has a large streaming audience and is often mentioned in the same context as the likes of KEXP. And they're on HD2 on KPCC, which is a West Coast station too. Not sure why MPR wouldn't want to protect its brand against confusion.
Either way, it's lazy branding.
Just speculating, but if KPCC is well established with their slogan/brand, including streaming, they probably wouldn't consider a much lesser station in the form of station like KGRG to be a threat or cause confusion to their listeners.
“The Current” is the name of the student newspaper at Green River College. Seems the radio station is trying to reach students at the school by using the same branding.
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