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What's the matter with Audacy? (Especially their legacy stations?)

V

victorres43

KROQ. B96. US99. Mix 96.5. V-103. Star 94. WOGL. Power 96. 107.7 the End. KMLE. KYXY. KS107.5. 103.7 Kiss FM.

All iconic brands. Under Audacy, they are either tumbling substantially after hovering around the top of the ratings for a long time (particularly with V-103), lagging well behind their competitors, and/or struggling to be within the Top 10 or even Top 15.

Audacy's programming philosophy, particularly for formats that aren't Classic Hits, News/Talk, or Sports, is neither intriguing, nor does it generate record ratings (or even record revenue) in most markets.
 
Plus, any of the stations that do not utilize the "two minute promise" have gone berserk with commercials. I really used to enjoy Mix 99.1 (personality & music-wise) when I lived in Wisconsin, but now you wonder if the commercial breaks are ever going to end. Nothing whatsoever endears the stations to the markets they are in.
 
Audacy station 99.5 The Mountain utilizes that Two-Minute Promise very well, and they advertise themselves fairly well. Other than that, I agree things are going downhill, but that is a can of worms that encompasses radio in general.
 
Each situation is different. In the case of V-103, the loss of Frank Ski to the competition can't be minimized. Some of the other stations on your list (such as KROQ) have been in the dumpster for years. Star 94 started to have problems not long after the sale to Entercom in 2014. KMLE has been struggling for years. US 99 hasn't had a consistent morning show for years. A lot of it seems attributable to bad talent decisions.
 
TheBigA said:
Each situation is different. In the case of V-103, the loss of Frank Ski to the competition can't be minimized. Some of the other stations on your list (such as KROQ) have been in the dumpster for years. Star 94 started to have problems not long after the sale to Entercom in 2014. KMLE has been struggling for years. US 99 hasn't had a consistent morning show for years. A lot of it seems attributable to bad talent decisions.
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I think it's a mixture of bad talent, bad implementation of the Two Minute Promise in some specific instances, mediocre or worse understanding of the markets (KVIL never should have been a pop-leaning Alt in Dallas as an example), some baffling programming decisions in some situations, and lastly firing some of the better talent they had across the board to cut costs without an adequate nationalization plan in place.

It's never just one thing. It's a bunch of little things that build up.
 
IMO a lot of it has to do with Audacy trying to cut costs and change programming strategies in a somewhat knee jerk way to a model similar to iHeart in 2-3 years vs the 10-15+ (and syndication and voice tracking before that) that iHeart has been doing with various things like Premium Choice, digital media, etc. iHeart has perfected the strategy over a decade plus, Audacy is trying to play catch up in just a few or less with the same expected result. They don’t have the brainpower, experience, or software/technology available to do such a thing. Will they in time? Likely yes, but I feel some moves were made too quickly.
 
The alternative format fragmenting (at least a couple of the stations I recognize on the list above are / were alternative rock) hasn't helped. In the case of the End 107.7 in Seattle, I think it's doing OK in the itarget demos. It's not a top station like it was in the 1990s and early 2000s because grunge and alt-rock are no longer leading formats or genres. Not sure what a radio company could do to fix a falling format.
 
The collapse of V103 is truly stunning. I agree that morning drive changes played a big role there. KMNB in Minneapolis is perhaps their biggest disaster at the moment. That station was successful when CBS owned it; now it is a complete disgrace.

The Cane and Corey morning show that airs on several major market alternative stations of theirs stinks. Lazlo in PM drive in Dallas and Detroit is unlistenable. Listeners to those stations want mostly music in afternoon drive, not inane ramblings from a marble mouthed guy old enough to be their father.

Mix 104.1 in Boston is yet another underachieving legacy station. Ditto Power 96 in Miami.

In fairness, most of the CBS all news and all sports stations are holding up well. Most of their adult hits and classic rock stations are also well programmed.
 
MarkW said:
KMNB in Minneapolis is perhaps their biggest disaster at the moment. That station was successful when CBS owned it; now it is a complete disgrace.
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Hmm, don't know that it was successful. It was always behind the heritage KEEY. It may have been closer then it is now. I was not a fan when they added the Twins baseball games. It hasn't helped ratings wise, although it probably helps financially.
 
MarkW said:
The collapse of V103 is truly stunning. I agree that morning drive changes played a big role there. KMNB in Minneapolis is perhaps their biggest disaster at the moment. That station was successful when CBS owned it; now it is a complete disgrace.

The Cane and Corey morning show that airs on several major market alternative stations of theirs stinks. Lazlo in PM drive in Dallas and Detroit is unlistenable. Listeners to those stations want mostly music in afternoon drive, not inane ramblings from a marble mouthed guy old enough to be their father.

Mix 104.1 in Boston is yet another underachieving legacy station. Ditto Power 96 in Miami.

In fairness, most of the CBS all news and all sports stations are holding up well. Most of their adult hits and classic rock stations are also well programmed.
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Audacy Alternative stations are not well-executed at all, given David Field's passion in the format. Sure they don't play Nickelback-type rock to death (looking at you, KTBZ....). But nevertheless, they aren't interesting to listen to.

Mix 104.1 is (dare I say) wicked close to WXLO in the Boston ratings.

Yep, classic hits remains Audacy's bacon. It's a good thing they didn't ruin WCBS-FM like they do other stations.
 
victorres43 said:
Audacy Alternative stations are not well-executed at all, given David Field's passion in the format.
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As I've said, the format itself is in disarray. Yes you can point to a few legacy stations from other companies that get good ratings. I think they're living off legacy.
 
TheBigA said:
As I've said, the format itself is in disarray. Yes you can point to a few legacy stations from other companies that get good ratings. I think they're living off legacy.
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One problem is that Audacy is trying to pump a lot of emo on their stations. Emo music hasn't been a viable genre for more than a decade. And no, advertisers will not prioritize a station playing My Chemical Romance and Paramore over a station playing Ed Sheeran and Phil Collins.
 
victorres43 said:
One problem is that Audacy is trying to pump a lot of emo on their stations. Emo music hasn't been a viable genre for more than a decade. And no, advertisers will not prioritize a station playing My Chemical Romance and Paramore over a station playing Ed Sheeran and Phil Collins.
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Advertisers make decisions based on numbers, not music. Audacy is looking for a core consensus. In alternative, there is none.

My view is they need to "invent" a format that plays some kind of music that will attract the right audience to sell.
 
victorres43 said:
One problem is that Audacy is trying to pump a lot of emo on their stations. Emo music hasn't been a viable genre for more than a decade. And no, advertisers will not prioritize a station playing My Chemical Romance and Paramore over a station playing Ed Sheeran and Phil Collins.
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Emo music I have not heard this since the 2000's. But I can see Emo get played as old school playlists for classic hits stations at some point as the 1980's start fading from oldies radio.
 
RadioPatrol said:
Emo music I have not heard this since the 2000's. But I can see Emo get played as old school playlists for classic hits stations at some point as the 1980's start fading from oldies radio.
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Considering that emo is all but absent from AC or Hot AC radio, I'm not sure how likely it will be. Can you imagine WCBS-FM, WOGL, or even WDUV playing Panic at the Disco?

Plus, wouldn't more rhythmic artists like Eminem, Rihanna, 50 Cent, Britney Spears, or Beyoncé be a better choice for 2000s-centric classic hits radio, anyway?
 
Your memory is somewhat faulty, I'm afraid, BigA. KMNB in the Buz'n era was very competitive with KEEY for some time in A25-54, and was even victorious at times. This was when Kevin Metheny programmed the station.

True, the numbers began sagging before the rebrand to The Wolf. However, the numbers then were far better than they are now.

You make a good point regarding the Twins broadcasts.
 
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MarkW said:
Your memory is somewhat faulty, I'm afraid, BigA. KMNB in the Buz'n era was very competitive with KEEY for some time in A25-54, and was even victorious at times.
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Actually it was when Kenny Jay was there in 2014. But after that, things started to drop, Kenny left for Seattle, and they haven't done well since. When Kenny moved to Chicago, he was again put in charge of the station, doing some long distance management. Then Kenny was let go from both stations.
 
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