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WNUW - "Now?"

C

carolinaradio

I was looking around online at some larger market ACs and came across NOW 97.5 -- how is this considered to be a "younger approach to today's soft rock?" It looks like the same songs we get on the traditional ACs here in Greenville, SC. With a name and positioner like that, I would expect something more along the lines of a Hot AC. I'm seeing the typical 2000s traditional/soft AC (if you will) songs....then "Go Your Own Way" by Fleetwood Mac, "December 1963", "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", among others. Those are all great songs, but how can this station position themselves and use a moniker like that? There's nothing 'now' about it. It's a typical 70s-2000s mainstream AC.
 
Simple--they can call themselves anything they want. The listeners will decide the outcome.

A name is just a name--and if you can convince the audience, mission accomplished. Normal listeners aren't going to analyze whether a certain song, or set of songs, is in conflict to the name.
 
After the fiasco with the "Smooth Jazz" moniker and playing almost anything NOT "Smooth Jazz", they need to be careful. They don't have that much credibilty to begin with.
 
The name 'soft rock' for the adult contemporary format has always been misleading anyway, but unlike most other formats where the name defines the music for the listener - rock, country, classical, R&B, etc., the average listener is unaware of the 'AC' name given to the format. The only real 'soft rock' station here was the early years of Magic 103 WMGK (1975-77, before they added disco/pop) when it was really softer folk-rock songs.
 
What happened in a prior life has no bearing on, er, "now."

Besides the relatively small number of people who ever tried listening to WJJZ on 97.5, think through this: do you really think everyday listeners are going to invest the effort to ponder whether a few hardcore listeners not being happy with the attempt at smooth jazz somehow translates into a 'credibility' gap now?

No.

Names are just names. It's not like they picked something restrictive to an average listener. Whatever the ultimate success or failure is, it won't be because people felt the name "Now" shouldn't be used on a station that happens to play some less "now"-ish music in addition to the current tunes.
 
Another question about "Now"......did they start out with 'a younger approach' hot-AC type (like they are still claiming to be) and later just fall in to a traditional AC, or has it always been this way? Personally, I think "Now" is sorry branding for anything except a CHR.
 
I remember on day 1, Now 97.5 was sounding older than B101. During the Christmas season, its music was close to what Sunny 104.5 used to play, B101 played Christmas music from this decade. A name is just a name. On the other end of the NJ Turnpike, there's a station called "Now" that's a rhythmic CHR. Now 97.5 sounds "younger" than their sister AC station Magic 98.3.
 
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