Where Do You See The Oldies Format and Oldies 103.3 Ten Years From Now?

[chitchatjf]

Jamn is AHEAD of Oldies in 25-54.

SOME tweaking mya be in the cards.

 

[BoscoGoldBear]

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday around this time: in order for 103.3 (whatever its calls will be) to focus on the (very) late 1960s through the 1980s, Mix 98-5 will have to dump everything before 1988. You see, in 10 years, the prime birth dates of the 25-54 set (those between 30 and 49) will be between 1967 and 1987. Eagle simply did the 1970s and 1980s too early, plus they only focused on the rock, which is why it was mostly a train wreck - except of course for Barry's Lost 45s (an intentional train wreck) and the late Vinnie Peruzzi's 70s and 80s disco show (I always blared the disco classics all the way up). The people Eagle was trying to focus on (for that) had birth dates between 1947 and 1967 back then, which is the other reason why it was a train wreck.

Anyway, that's why "Back To The 80s Friday Night" on 103.3 will absolutely make sense (again Cortese is already at 103.3) in about 3 to 5 years, but only if he adds more classic disco from the Disco Vinnie list (i.e. "Too Turned On," "Diamond Girl" and all the Madonna/Prince/Michael Jackson/Kool and the Gang tunes which he currently avoids like a tooth pulling - does anyone currently hear anything besides WCOZ-type rock on that show on Mix?

BTW, WODS, it's beyond time to start adding "Rapper's Delight" to the rotation! ;D

 

[Retro]

One thing I forgot to mention yesterday around this time: in order for 103.3 (whatever its calls will be) to focus on the (very) late 1960s through the 1980s, Mix 98-5 will have to dump everything before 1988. You see, in 10 years, the prime birth dates of the 25-54 set (those between 30 and 49) will be between 1967 and 1987. Eagle simply did the 1970s and 1980s too early, plus they only focused on the rock, which is why it was mostly a train wreck - except of course for Barry's Lost 45s (an intentional train wreck) and the late Vinnie Peruzzi's 70s and 80s disco show (I always blared the disco classics all the way up). The people Eagle was trying to focus on (for that) had birth dates between 1947 and 1967 back then, which is the other reason why it was a train wreck.

Anyway, that's why "Back To The 80s Friday Night" on 103.3 will absolutely make sense (again Cortese is already at 103.3) in about 3 to 5 years, but only if he adds more classic disco from the Disco Vinnie list (i.e. "Too Turned On," "Diamond Girl" and all the Madonna/Prince/Michael Jackson/Kool and the Gang tunes which he currently avoids like a tooth pulling - does anyone currently hear anything besides WCOZ-type rock on that show on Mix?

BTW, WODS, it's beyond time to start adding "Rapper's Delight" to the rotation! ;D

OK, I have given myself some time to think about your post and respond. I suppose it is entirely possible for Back To The 80's Friday Night to be on Oldies 10 years from now. However to do that would mean a massive shift in WODS's programming, not merely a format tweak, but a mass overhaul instead! It is my thinking that WBMX will add more early to mid 90's to their line up before making such a move though.

The reason why WEGQ failed was because they started playing 70's rock top 40 with 80's pop/new wave. Think Boston up against Wang Chung? ???

As the next few years progress, I see Oldies adding more 80's "pop music" to their mix, while shying away from the heavier stuff. Think Cyndie Lauper, Naked Eyes, Soft Cell, Billy Joel, John Cafferty, just to name a few.

Those are my thoughts anyway. Comments?

 

[Keith321]

Odlies continues to be one of the highest rated stations in the city! Why mess with perfection?

WODS is one of the highest rated stations in the city for 2 months at Christmas!

The rest of the year they are top heavy demo wise, often not even making the top 10 in morning drive.

While they are limping along, the future doesn't look bright.

They would love to find a way to play Christmas music all year round.

 

[diamondj]

It's one of the few stations left whose audience doesn't listen to iPods instead of the radio.

 

[RADIOGM]

Time moves on as people move thru the radio demographics. Yes, in 10 years WODS will play lots of 80's hits. Those songs will be 30 years old by then. My buddies at CBS are smart enough to probably make sure that the songs still have that "TOP 40" pop sound appeal to them. Even Donna Summer was a huge hit. Probably in 10 years WODS won't play the Beastie Boys from the 80's, but you know they will play "Uptown Girl" and not lots of Van Halen.

RGM

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Probably in 10 years WODS won't play the Beastie Boys from the 80's, but you know they will play "Uptown Girl"...

"Uptown Girl" is already in rotation.

 

[chitchatjf]

Why wait?
I would toss them in NOW! I would do pop hits all the way to the present!

OTOH I'm the type of guy who would play Elvis and Eminem back to back. Or other combinations like Rose Royce into Led Zeppelin (Starway to Heaven should ALSO be on the ODS playlist!)

 

[Retro]

I am sure that Oldies will eventually be playing the staples of radio that have been around after all these years:

(Don't You) Forget About Me-Simple Minds
In Your Eyes-Peter Gabriel
Always Something There To Remind Me-Naked Eyes
I Just Died In Your Arms-Cutting Crew
Hurts So Good-John Mellencamp

And the list goes on and on...

 

[Keith321]

Time moves on as people move thru the radio demographics. Yes, in 10 years WODS will play lots of 80's hits.

WODS might not survive long enough to see if your prediction comes true.....

 

[Retro]

Now that could be said about most stations in this city. About the only station guaranteed to be doing the same 10 years from now would be WBZ.

 

[Keith321]

Now that could be said about most stations in this city.

Yeah, but for WODS, the clock is ticking....

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Yeah, but for WODS, the clock is ticking...

It's still doing quite well right now. It slipped a little in the last book, but it's still beating both other "retro" stations WROR, and co-owned WZLX (as well as WMKK). It's still the second highest rated music station aimed at the older adult audience in the market, behind WMJX.

The music they play nowadays is just about the same era as WROR, and WZLX. The music WZLX plays is more guitar-driven rock and no R&B, but still from just about the same era. Only a few years newer on either end of the scale. Formatically, if the clock is "ticking" for WODS, it's also just as much for those two stations, maybe even more so for WZLX.

There's always more successful pop music of the 80's and 90's that WODS can move into as time keeps marching on, but what will Classic Rock stations like WZLX do when the guitar heroes and warhorse rock groups of the 60's and 70's finally become too old, and even U2 becomes an aging memory? Will they go into playing the kind of commercial mainstream "alt-rock" from the 90's and 2000's that helped sink stations like WBCN and drove them back to adding older Classic Rock to their playlists? That wouldn't work... or would it?

 

[cheapman]

As much as anyone hates to see their favorite music disappear into oblivion, the reality is that's what inevitably happens. You can only struggle to keep a music format alive for so long before the generation that grew up on that music is just plain... for lack of a better term... dead and gone. So in twenty years I think we should maybe sound the death toll for oldies. But for now I believe both the oldies and classic rock formats have some good miles left on them. In fact I think the industry in general is giving up on oldies just because it's tired of doing the same old thing. Oldies playlists have become bland and predictable. Same goes for classic rock. If just once in awhile I could hear a song that would really make me jump up out of my seat and say "Wow! I haven't heard this song in YEARS!" I might actually keep listening. Unfortunately that doesn't fit the industry model.

 

[sp113]

It's still the second highest rated music station aimed at the older adult audience in the market, behind WMJX.

I'm not sure where you get that...

They are currently in 7th place 25-54.

'MJX is in first place.

ODS is battling it out with WMKK and WAAF.

But most of WODS's 25-54 #'s are 50-54....and the same 25-54 rating from WMKK and WAAF has a much more favorable demo spread.

They are not even a top 10 station when it comes to cume.
They have a smaller cume that listens all day...and never changes the station. ( a high TSL)

Thats what gives them whatever ratings they currently have.