What's next for 103.1 in Central Long Island?

[BarryATL]

In the case of Long Island, I think the station is focusing on listeners who still use OTA radio and who are in the ages local accounts want to "invite into their store" or who might be homeowners needing repairs or a new floor or whatever. I think they are targeting both listeners and advertisers with the right demo focus.

Stations who are targeting local advertisers vs. agency do program different. A good example of one I am aware of is in Lake Charles, LA. KHLA The Lake has been doing Classic hits for 30 years. They usually lead the market and have almost no national advertising.

It appears the station is currently using premier networks in some dayparts, but during the 2000s was a lot of Middle of the road music. Some crossovers from country and a little Cajun thrown in once in awhile just to keep it feeling local.

I owned a movie theatre in Lake Charles at the time. KHLA was AWLAYS broadcasting from some local event or business. The station broadcast live from the theatre front lawn next to the road. Hundreds of drivers would pull up, drop a toy (Toys for Tots) in the giant bin and they got a pair of movie tickets, dinner at one of many restaurants and free station merch. They had this kind of activity down pat. They did it all with nobody at the station. During afternoon drive, the automation would go live to the announcer for 60 or 90 seconds after every two songs and after commercial sweep.

The station was hyper local, did a LOT of remotes, and could be heard in almost every office, or small business all day.

I did a halloween tick-or-treat promotion with KHLA and the local cable company. We had THOUSANDS of folks turn out at the the theatre for free trick-or-treating. Because of the crowd and the weeks long build up for the event, the local TV station was there and the local paper (front page the next norming).

So, my rambling point is if the station does not care about national advertising, they are free to program a station that the locals will like and hopefully the local advertisers will support.

 

[Jeffrey]

View attachment 6776

What is bro country?

 

[dcowboy7]

What is bro country?

You could google it - but then due to gemini it might just show all black peeps.

 

[MarcB]

That's possible, although some stations use faked listener voices for that purpose. You know, people exclaiming "I love your station!" in an accent foreign to the station's coverage area. If they are listening to what their listeners are saying, they're probably getting a lot of suggestions they'll never act on: Older folks asking to hear more Conway Twitty or Crystal Gayle, for instance, or younger ones who can't stand rock-influenced and hip-hop-influenced current country hits. The Wolf is not going to stop playing today's red-hot core artists like Morgan Wallen, Jelly Roll, Chris Stapleton, Kane Brown, etc. just because a bunch of listeners who are either new to country music or are listening to it for the first time in at least two years don't like them.

I had long suspected those "I love this ststion!" Or "It's my favorite station!" drop-ins were fake and on January 1st,2024 I was proven correct on at least one ststion.

On that day WACM 100.1/1270 in Springfield, Mass flipped from Classic Hits Kool Radio to Hip-hop Jammin' 100.1 and before the first "Jammin' 100.1" song even played they played a "It's my favorite station!" drop-in. It was after the legal ID and after the introduction of the new format, but before the first song.

I heard it via an online aircheck as they had to nueter the 1270-AM signal to just 800ish watts day and something real low power at night and I can no longer receive it OTA in Connecticut.

 

[Barry]

While it would sound insincere for this brand new station to play calls from people claiming it was their favorite, or something similar, it would seem quite reasonable to air calls from listeners expressing happiness that most of Long Island has a Country station once again.
I'm surprised that WJVC MyCountry 96.1, which can only be heard in eastern LI, never tried to utilize translators to bring a signal to more populated areas of Suffolk and Nassau Counties.

 

[Radi0411]

While it would sound insincere for this brand new station to play calls from people claiming it was their favorite, or something similar, it would seem quite reasonable to air calls from listeners expressing happiness that most of Long Island has a Country station once again.
I'm surprised that WJVC MyCountry 96.1, which can only be heard in eastern LI, never tried to utilize translators to bring a signal to more populated areas of Suffolk and Nassau Counties.

How exactly do you "know" that they have not? Would it be conceivable that perhaps they did and it wasn't possible for one reason or another? Space on the FM spectrum is becoming less and less available and even more so as of the latest round of LPFM filings in late 2023... using the word "never" is an absolute statement and unless you "know" for sure, it's probably not the best verbiage to use.

 

[Barry]

How exactly do you "know" that they have not? Would it be conceivable that perhaps they did and it wasn't possible for one reason or another? Space on the FM spectrum is becoming less and less available and even more so as of the latest round of LPFM filings in late 2023... using the word "never" is an absolute statement and unless you "know" for sure, it's probably not the best verbiage to use.

My previous post could have been worded better,
But my point is that JVC Broadcasting, owner of My Country 96.1 does have translators on Long Island, and uses them for other formats, instead of providing wider coverage for the Country station.

 

[Steve Green NEPA]

Raised / schooled in Queens and Long Island (as well as being old!) and remember some C&W and Country stations from 'back then'. Perhaps others here can add a few?
First I recall was around the time Countrypolitan WJRZ Hackensack was at its peak of popularity. Allow for the memory here if you will, but I do remember listening to (either) WFYI or WTHE Mineola -- the daytimer on 1520 -- which was playing C&W as well. That would have been in the late 60's. I don't know if 1520 was 'full-time' C&W. as a format. I'd only tune them in on occasion if WJRZ was playing a stiff.
Around 1969, WPAC 1580 Patchogue had a C&W show on Sunday mornings. Gene Pfeiffer (sp?) hosted it, doing a weekly countdown. That show also would have been on 106.1 -- WPAC-FM -- before the facility was sold and became WBLI.
That Patchogue 1580, at the time a daytimer, went Country as a format in the 70's for a while, as WSUF.
Memory suggests that the next full-time Country station would've been 94.3. A gal I dated at the time -- she a Led Zeppelin fan -- said she kinda liked the stuff she heard there. All the info I can find says that 94.3 simulcast WGSM 740, but I really can't remember WGSM 740 being 'Country' because I hardly listened to AM in that era ; once more, someone else here might have more info.
Of course, now there is WJVC. A few years back they and their Country fare showed up in one metro NYC book. WJVC might hold the modern-day record for being the most East station ever to make book.
And well, even closer to 'now' is 103.1. Different people and cultures now populate a lot of the 103.1 coverage area than did those of decades ago. It remains, among other factors, to see (hear?) how 'country' the area is in 2024 and beyond.

 

[dcowboy7]

While it would sound insincere for this brand new station to play calls from people claiming it was their favorite, or something similar, it would seem quite reasonable to air calls from listeners expressing happiness that most of Long Island has a Country station once again.
I'm surprised that WJVC MyCountry 96.1, which can only be heard in eastern LI, never tried to utilize translators to bring a signal to more populated areas of Suffolk and Nassau Counties.

They should basically be the Z100 of country.
Play all the current hits - mix in some 90s/00s/10s - but play all the current hits !!
Mentioned this before that what i dont like about siriusxm the highway is they focus too much on posssible future hits & not enough current hits & have read others complain the same.

 

[Barry]

Does The Wolf 103.1 reach parts of New York City?

 

[djl]

Does The Wolf 103.1 reach parts of New York City?

Not really because there is a 103.1 in Fort Lee, NJ. I also wondered why JVC didn’t try to use a Nassau station’s HD2 to get country further west.

Does anyone think this might be the catalyst to put 94.7 HD2 back onto an analog station in NYC (such as 98.7) to compete with 103.1

 

[TheBigA]

Does anyone think this might be the catalyst to put 94.7 HD2 back onto an analog station in NYC (such as 98.7) to compete with 103.1

No. Audacy can't buy any more FMs in NY, and they were pretty emphatic about no money for country in NY.

Country will make more money in Nassau than it could in NYC.

 

[davideduardo]

Does The Wolf 103.1 reach parts of New York City?

Why would they even want to? Look at the demographics of Manhattan and the boroughs and the potential for any significant country listening is non-existent.

 

[davideduardo]

Of course, now there is WJVC. A few years back they and their Country fare showed up in one metro NYC book. WJVC might hold the modern-day record for being the most East station ever to make book.

Remember, all of Long Island is part of the New York Metro Survey Area. Long Island (Nassau and Suffolk counties) are also an "embedded market" that is a separately published extract from the "whole book". And, before the PPM, the "embedded market" of Nassau/Suffolk had a subset of its own: the East End. A separate Egg Harbor and nearby area book was issued, based only on diaries from that far eastern area of LA.

Sort of like a Russian egg in an egg in an egg...

And well, even closer to 'now' is 103.1. Different people and cultures now populate a lot of the 103.1 coverage area than did those of decades ago. It remains, among other factors, to see (hear?) how 'country' the area is in 2024 and beyond.

Ain't that thee truth. How has the neighborhood you grew up in changed? Every time I talk with a "real" New Yorker who grew up there in the 50's and 60's, they tell me that their "old neighborhood" is substantially changed. Heck, even the Puerto Ricans of the 50's and 60's migration find that their 'hoods are now filled with Russians or Dominicans or Haitians or other groups!

 

[Jeffrey]

You can hear it in parts of Queens but it gets ripped apart by W276A2 103.1 Ft. Lee so it'd come in much better were it not for that. In Manhattan in midtown east W276A2 doesn't bleed into them but there is more or less dead air with a faint traces here and there but not enough that you can hear it or actually listen. In the rest of Manhattan there is no trace. Not sure about Brooklyn or the Bronx

 

[TheBigA]

Here's an industry analysis of The Wolf done by the sister publication of Inside Radio:

‘The Wolf’ Is On The Prowl In Long Island.

Last Wednesday morning, Connoisseur Media announced the arrival of its Long Island country station, “103.1 The Wolf,” with the same song “New York’s Country 94.7” WNSH used to introduce itself

www.countryinsider.com

 

[Jeffrey]

Here's an industry analysis of The Wolf done by the sister publication of Inside Radio:

‘The Wolf’ Is On The Prowl In Long Island.

Last Wednesday morning, Connoisseur Media announced the arrival of its Long Island country station, “103.1 The Wolf,” with the same song “New York’s Country 94.7” WNSH used to introduce itself

www.countryinsider.com

It doesn't cover all of Nassau County. It's unlistenable east of Calverton and gets eaten up in western Nassau and Queens. He's exaggerating how much of Long Island they cover. All said, I wish them luck.

 

[Xale57]

You can hear it in parts of Queens but it gets ripped apart by W276A2 103.1 Ft. Lee so it'd come in much better were it not for that. In Manhattan in midtown east W276A2 doesn't bleed into them but there is more or less dead air with a faint traces here and there but not enough that you can hear it or actually listen. In the rest of Manhattan there is no trace. Not sure about Brooklyn or the Bronx

I'd say in the Bronx, it's dominant by the Fort Lee translator being in close proximity. Southern Brooklyn/Queens is likely the best of the 5 boroughs to receive 103.1, if no pirates

 

[Barry]

Here's an industry analysis of The Wolf done by the sister publication of Inside Radio:

‘The Wolf’ Is On The Prowl In Long Island.

Last Wednesday morning, Connoisseur Media announced the arrival of its Long Island country station, “103.1 The Wolf,” with the same song “New York’s Country 94.7” WNSH used to introduce itself

www.countryinsider.com

The interesting article mentions that Connoisseur had been planning for about a year to bring Country to 103.1. That may account for the former classic rock format running without any on-air personalities for the past few months leading to the format flip.
The article also indicates the new station may be influenced by the programming of sister Country station WFRE in Frederick, MD. Hopefully that would include having live and local personalities during most of the dayparts.

 

[dcowboy7]

Beyonce off her "texas holdem" success plans to cover Dollys "Jolene" thatd be an interesting single.