Soft adult contemporary has been considered a tricky format to program because, unless there is a very older population present, the said station wouldn't rank high in the ratings. Even so, billing may be hit-or-miss at best for this format due to demographics (Relating to advertising, 55+ are said to have strong brand loyalty). Even today's 45-54 year olds aren't as tuned in to soft music, generally speaking, as yesterday's.
WEZI launched on 106.5 FM in Jacksonville in 2015, making Jacksonville join Tampa Bay and Miami in having a Cox-owned Soft AC in Florida. But it didn't stop there. iHeartMedia flipped Rhythmic Oldies 98.1 Kiss FM (KISQ) in San Francisco to 98.1 The Breeze. Although there was initial outrage over the format switch, KISQ in particular has enjoyed staying in the Top 5 ratings at least most of the time. But it may not exactly be a high biller, as the station was launched to chip away KOIT's ratings. Both KOIT and KISQ rank high in the market.
Now, today, Entercom has decided to launch a Soft AC, this time in Seattle. Although KMPS has done well in the ratings, ranking higher than sister station KKWF, and the DJs/staff of KMPS insisting that they are still with the station, KMPS nevertheless was flipped to 94.1 The Sound, with slogan "Relaxing Favorites at Work." Like KISQ in San Francisco, KMPS was launched to chip away some ratings away from its competitor, this time being Hubbard's KRWM (Warm 106.9).
As Soft AC is considered to be a retiree format, it's a bit strange to see newly launched stations in San Francisco and Seattle. But Soft AC is also present in places like Columbus, Chattanooga, Cape Cod, etc. Perhaps America in general is aging, but are 35-54 year olds into soft music more than we thought? Especially given that adult contemporary artists like Michael Bolton have long been gone from mainstream AC and more contemporary, uptempo music has been in favor by the general 25-54 population.
WEZI launched on 106.5 FM in Jacksonville in 2015, making Jacksonville join Tampa Bay and Miami in having a Cox-owned Soft AC in Florida. But it didn't stop there. iHeartMedia flipped Rhythmic Oldies 98.1 Kiss FM (KISQ) in San Francisco to 98.1 The Breeze. Although there was initial outrage over the format switch, KISQ in particular has enjoyed staying in the Top 5 ratings at least most of the time. But it may not exactly be a high biller, as the station was launched to chip away KOIT's ratings. Both KOIT and KISQ rank high in the market.
Now, today, Entercom has decided to launch a Soft AC, this time in Seattle. Although KMPS has done well in the ratings, ranking higher than sister station KKWF, and the DJs/staff of KMPS insisting that they are still with the station, KMPS nevertheless was flipped to 94.1 The Sound, with slogan "Relaxing Favorites at Work." Like KISQ in San Francisco, KMPS was launched to chip away some ratings away from its competitor, this time being Hubbard's KRWM (Warm 106.9).
As Soft AC is considered to be a retiree format, it's a bit strange to see newly launched stations in San Francisco and Seattle. But Soft AC is also present in places like Columbus, Chattanooga, Cape Cod, etc. Perhaps America in general is aging, but are 35-54 year olds into soft music more than we thought? Especially given that adult contemporary artists like Michael Bolton have long been gone from mainstream AC and more contemporary, uptempo music has been in favor by the general 25-54 population.