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New York's Gone Country

J

JustPastBuffalo

Will Nash 104.1 or Nash 103.3 be next Buffalo country station.
 
Neither one of those stations (103.3 or 104.1) is in the kind of trouble that calls for a format flip. The best candidate for a station to take on WYRK is probably 92.9--but the cost may deter Townsquare Media from giving it a try.
 
Insiders say that Cumulus Buffalo got clobbered in revenue in December 2012 and for the months preceding. Don't think Lew Dickey will sustain this disaster much longer. Also, WBUF will never go up against its sister cash cow, WYRK
 
Once again, you're the expert, Ninth. You tell us. While you're at it, tell us how a format change would change their inability to attract better sales people.
 
---- said:
Why is this so interesting? NYC had a country [EDIT-post removed per TOS]
Click to expand...

Fair questions. Here's the way I hear and see it.

> It's interesting because: It's Market #1. New York. The Big Apple. The Show. Lots of people say "it can't be done." Now, a major broadcasting company, presumably backed by research and a detailed plan, says otherwise and is rolling the dice.

> It's interesting because: The build-up and lead into the format was superbly produced and executed. The production pros who put the pieces together and made them work pulled off a monumental trick. Nicely done. The Wheel of Formats (which, BTW, was a phrase used by my Buffalo radio contemporaries as far back as the early 70s) worked to generate interest among those in the business and perhaps the average listener as well.

> It's interesting because: The NYC market has been without an FM Country station since 2002 when Y107 dumped the format. Previous to that, August 1996, when the format was nixed by Y103.5, which went Dance as WKTU.

> It's interesting because: Cumulus spent a bundle of money buying an FM that had been languishing as part of a religious broadcaster's empire. More money is being spent on upgrading the plant and in getting the format tuned. Areas of great interest to programmers, music people and engineers.

> It's interesting because: The Nash Brand is being implemented to cross numerous platforms, from music, music publication, magazines, promotion and awards. This is big, a major impetus on Citadel's part.

> It's interesting because: The Nash Brand may, down the road, have an application to other Cumulus markets. May. I did not write or imply "will." Purely conjecture and speculation. A lot will depend on how the brand itself works in New York; because, as we all know, "if you can make there, you can make it anywhere..."

> It's interesting because: Jocks will want to know if there's a place at the table. Will New York's new Country station employ live 'n local air personalities? What about the morning show? How much syndication will be used. To be forthright, I cannot see how a Country station, needing to build and secure an audience with P1 listeners, can do this with a Jack, Mike or Bob approach. Knowledgeable personalities, especially from 5 a..m. to 7 p.m.would be a necessity.

> It's interesting because: It's not 1996 or 2002. Country is an across the board accepted format. Sales mavens will be watching this closely. What will this station bill? A knowledgeable poster on the NY board projects an optimum power ratios of .9, which projects to billing about $20 million annually. But what if it does a 1.0 or a 1.2? Major win. Major money.

> It's interesting because: It's January. A new year. It's radio. It's what we're all about. It gives each of us something to write about. Why not enjoy.

_________________________________________________
Song List, first hour: http://radiodiscussions.com/smf/index.php?topic=226996.msg2046828#msg2046828
 
It sounds like the launch of a network, not a radio station. "America's Country" Not "New York's Country...".
 
Yeziknoradio said:
It sounds like the launch of a network, not a radio station. "America's Country" Not "New York's Country...".
Click to expand...

I would agree. Look at Cumulus in Buffalo at 1270.

All said, this is a big chance they're taking, and it just might work out well. While people in Manhattan may not be the targeted Country listener, surrounding the 5 Burroughs there are another 6 million people in the metro. With Country product getting much better in recent years, this might be a smart move.
 
"Country" - and I use that term loosely - is MUCH more mainstream now than it was 10 years ago or 20 years ago. There's enough country/pop crossover that a lot of artists will be familiar to AC listeners in NYC.

That said, you can't just slap a generic country station into Manhattan and expect it to pull big numbers. Smart programming would emphasize familiar cross-over artists - which isn't necessarily smart programming in markets that already have established country stations.

It's a start-up. It's generic. It's jock-free. It's playing "blah-blah-blah in a row". Let's see how it evolves. Cumuless has plenty of very successful country stations in very big markets if they want to syndicate the format.
 
Excellent analysis, JPB.

And that first hour of music was quite strong...songs that make a statement ("How Country Feels", "Gone Country"), plenty of core artists with some hot newer acts (Lee Brice, Randy Houser, Thompson Square, The Band Perry) and more than a few legends (Strait, Reba, Garth, Alan, B&D).

I dunno how much of the past can be used as a predictor for the future. Country, like any other format, has its ups and downs and some of those downs have truly been wretched. The post-Urban Cowboy era (1981-86) almost killed it outright. A lot of people loved Alabama but couldn't stomach Louise Mandrell and RC Bannon. The Traditional Revolution of 1986 rebooted the format but it took the Hat Acts of 1989 to set the format in a direction for Mainstream success.

Back when Michael Jackson was the King of Pop, it was unfathomable to think that a Country artist might someday attain that kind of popularity. 30 years hence, it's not only happened, but multiple times.

Executing this format correctly involves emotional connection beyond most other music formats. To laugh, to cry, to get angry...listeners expect the "real" perception of the music to carry over into the personalities. If Cumulus has taken this into account then the station has a chance to exceed every expectation set forth. Based on that first hour...at least the music looks to be spot on.

Breaking from Country Aircheck, 10am 1/22/13 - "Cumulus is launching the "Nash" brand across its 83 Country stations. Plans include a monthly magazine, website, social media, concerts and television programming."

Charlie's translation: Here comes Cumulus' version of Taste Of Country, complete with syndicated jocks. If I worked at someplace like WQXK (Cumulus' longtime Country station in Youngstown, OH), I'd be concerned.
 
From Radio-info:

CEO Lew Dickey states, “Country is more than just music -- it’s a lifestyle that is rich with content and marketing opportunities because country is mass appeal and very much underserved in all forms of media. Cumulus is committed to serving this significant lifestyle segment that stretches from coast-to-coast by creating a full complement of content on the radio, in print, online and on TV.”

If they truly understand country, and country audiences, they'll need plenty of content providers for all of this. Smart operators would leverage their existing talent and expand their appeal to other media. Small-market, top-down operators would try to create a "one-size-fits-all-markets" package and jam it into a lot of different markets with the idea that "we'll give the hicks big-city radio, and they'll love it". Where they have competition, it may not fare so well.

I guess we'll have to wait and see what kind of operators Cumuless will be in this case.
 
SirRoxalot said:
If they truly understand country, and country audiences, they'll need plenty of content providers for all of this.
Click to expand...

So you're saying you understand country and country audiences?
 
TheBigA said:
SirRoxalot said:
If they truly understand country, and country audiences, they'll need plenty of content providers for all of this.
Click to expand...

So you're saying you understand country and country audiences?
Click to expand...

So you're saying you understand country and country audiences?
 
SirRoxalot said:
TheBigA said:
SirRoxalot said:
If they truly understand country, and country audiences, they'll need plenty of content providers for all of this.
Click to expand...

So you're saying you understand country and country audiences?
Click to expand...

So you're saying you understand country and country audiences?
Click to expand...

I didn't make a post that says "If they truly understand country..." That implies that YOU do. I'm just asking.
 
If you understand country audiences, you already know the answer. If you don't understand country audiences, I'm sure that you'll have an opinion anyway. So, what's the point in sparring with you? Are you going to tell us about when you programmed country on some unidentified major market station which you can't tell us about because it would "reveal your identity"? Or are you just going to defend whatever Cumuless does because all you ever do is defend corporate radio?

Seems like a pointless waste of my time, so I think that I'll let my statement stand and see how other radio people feel about it. BTW, you might want to reference the part of the original quote that says "Country is more than just music -- it’s a lifestyle..."
 
No, that means that Cumuless bought Citadel, who had a lot more answers than Cumuless in much larger markets. Talk to anybody at the "new" Cumuless, and to a person they'll tell you that it seems like a small market company forcing its small-market, top-down "systems" onto people who have been successful in big markets.
 
SirRoxalot said:
they'll tell you that it seems like a small market company forcing its small-market, top-down "systems" onto people who have been successful in big markets.
Click to expand...

There are alot of people who don't like to be told what to do. I've known a lot of these people, and they complain about New York, San Antonio, Atlanta, and anyplace that isn't them. Kind of like that small market company that ended up buying ABC. It really doesn't matter from the audience perspective. It doesn't matter where the person is picking the music. If it's not them, it's all top-down.
 
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