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WOGL Rebrands at Big 98.1

I feel like Audacy basically gutted WOGL. I understand demographics needs to be updated, playlists adjusted, ect.

Those two things are related. I'm sure they looked at revenues and compared them to the other classic hits stations and asked "Why is this station underperforming the format?" You can't pay staff when revenues drop. Every few years the morning show gets a new contract and more money. If revenues are down, the money has to come from somewhere.
 
Audacy, as its predecessor name, was the one that brought back the B101 brand, good, bad or indifferent. Clearly there is not one pattern they employ. So all the over-the-top false analogies about “if they owned WPVI” is just silly.

Sometimes things need to be “gutted.” If your income doesn’t support the outflow, there needs to be a cost reckoning. If your audience is too dang old, you need to do something different, even if it’s more superficial than substantive at least out of the gate.

Nibbling around the edges works in some cases. Other times something bigger is required.
 
When I turn on a radio, 98.1 is usually the first station I try. I'm in it for the songs and as such, honestly, the station sounds no different to me than it did three months ago or six months ago. Audacy fired people, sure. But I don't know if one can say they "gutted" the station.

During a very short car ride today, they were playing "Take On Me" and when the song ended, some sort of imaging referred to the station's new name and I thought to myself "Oh, that's right. They have a name now." Naming the station (and sad to say, letting the jocks go) hasn't made one whit of difference to me!
 
It sure did make a difference to me.
Bob Charger was let go first. I believe he lasted longer than Rocken Ron Caid. I believe Angela Mason (the production director), is still there? She was good weekends when she was live.They at least let Harvy Holiday and Glen get to say goodbye.
It's not the same station, which ok sure time marches on. Maybe local jocks will come back and have personality. I do remember the article saying give it a couple of months. We'll see what that brings. Should be different if nothing else.
John


Then they put in VT jocks for the most part.
Now they're gone and we'll see what they do next.
 
When I turn on a radio, 98.1 is usually the first station I try. I'm in it for the songs and as such, honestly, the station sounds no different to me than it did three months ago or six months ago. Audacy fired people, sure. But I don't know if one can say they "gutted" the station.
Did they fire people? I thought all the WOGL jocks that are no longer on Big were out-of-town voice trackers?
 
Those two things are related. I'm sure they looked at revenues and compared them to the other classic hits stations and asked "Why is this station underperforming the format?" You can't pay staff when revenues drop. Every few years the morning show gets a new contract and more money. If revenues are down, the money has to come from somewhere.
Along with other formats, classic hits seems to be struggling for Audacy. Some blow every other station out of the water, like KRTH and WOMC, and normal top finishes by WCBS-FM, but as I have noted they have a handful of stations in the format that are struggling. WOGL was one, so they may not be done. I’m sure they’re not extremely pleased with how KOOL and KLUV are performing. Even their long time successful WOCL in Orlando is slightly off recently.

I don’t find the rebrand to be the biggest issue. Maybe listeners don’t care. But I’ve never heard imaging that was so minimal and thrown together. Considering this wasn’t a format change, I can’t believe Audacy didn’t put some kind of life in to how the station sounds outside of the music. I know Audacy isn’t a fan of jingles on classic hits stations, but they could have at least had some liners that read more than the station name and people shouting. It sounds extremely thrown together. If this is the sound they’re going for, I know my opinion doesn’t matter, but I’m not a fan.

Note: Entercom was able to help improve the long languishing numbers of WMXJ in Miami, which was a 30 year heritage brand. Still isn’t a top performer, but that rebrand did help the station’s ratings improve.
 
Next i Suppose it will simulcast WPHT because the Early years of 98.1 Simulcasting 1210 before it became the young sound and It out Q'd Q102 in oldies and its sister station 96.5 TDY is doing it Again to Out Q Q102 or maybe create the Screw the Q! Campaign like the Power Pig in Tampa did to Out Q Q105
 
Along with other formats, classic hits seems to be struggling for Audacy. Some blow every other station out of the water, like KRTH and WOMC, and normal top finishes by WCBS-FM, but as I have noted they have a handful of stations in the format that are struggling.

That's because it's a market thing not a company thing.
 
Next i Suppose it will simulcast WPHT because the Early years of 98.1 Simulcasting 1210 before it became the young sound and It out Q'd Q102 in oldies and its sister station 96.5 TDY is doing it Again to Out Q Q102 or maybe create the Screw the Q! Campaign like the Power Pig in Tampa did to Out Q Q105
Was…that supposed to make any sense whatsoever?
Run-on sentences rarely do.
 
Here are four hours of iHeart's WHCN Hartford. A few surprises here among the universal set of safe songs. Played outside the four hours shown (5-9 p.m.) were another Beatles song (Let It Be) and these tracks I don't see on any other classic hits playlist: Elton John's Rock and Roll Madonna, Nirvana's All Apologies, Mr. Big's To Be With You, Evanescence's Bring Me to Life, and Joan Jett's I Hate Myself for Loving You.

  • Under Pressure Queen
  • Heart Of Glass Blondie
  • Don't Stop Believin' Journey
  • Black Dog Led Zeppelin
  • Dreams The Cranberries
  • Hotel California Eagles
  • Dude (Looks Like A Lady) Aerosmith
  • Small Town John Mellencamp
  • Livin' On A Prayer Bon Jovi
  • Every Time You Go Away Paul Young
  • Love Is A Battlefield Pat Benatar
  • Should I Stay or Should I Go The Clash
  • (You Gotta ) Fight For Your Right (To Party) Beastie Boys
  • She's Always a Woman Billy Joel
  • Just A Girl No Doubt
  • Patience Guns N' Roses
  • Your Song Elton John
  • The Middle Jimmy Eat World
  • The Joker Steve Miller Band
  • Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now Starship
  • Nothin' But A Good Time Poison
  • All Summer Long Kid Rock
  • Heaven Bryan Adams
  • Photograph Def Leppard
  • Come Together The Beatles
  • Total Eclipse Of The Heart Bonnie Tyler
  • American Girl Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

  • American Woman The Guess Who
  • What's Up? 4 Non Blondes
  • Hungry Eyes Eric Carmen
  • Any Way You Want It Journey
  • These Dreams Heart
  • Bohemian Rhapsody Queen
  • I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For U2
  • American Pie Don McLean
  • Iris Goo Goo Dolls
  • Beat It Michael Jackson
  • More Than a Feeling Boston
  • In The Air Tonight Phil Collins
  • Bring Me To Life Evanescence
  • Take on Me a-ha
  • Give A Little Bit Supertramp
  • Paradise City Guns N' Roses
This is the standard playlist for iHeart Variety Hits stations. Look at stations like WQSR/Baltimore, WHLK/Cleveland, WLKO/Charlotte and WODC/Columbus and you'll see these exact songs in a different order, save for The Beatles and possibly Your Song, which may be added by local discretion.

Also of note, is for whatever reason many of the iHeart playlists will show Rock and Roll Madonna when they play Rocket Man. So chances are high that the spin you saw for Rock and Roll Madonna was actually for Rocket Man, which makes significantly more sense.
 
This is the standard playlist for iHeart Variety Hits stations. Look at stations like WQSR/Baltimore, WHLK/Cleveland, WLKO/Charlotte and WODC/Columbus and you'll see these exact songs in a different order, save for The Beatles and possibly Your Song, which may be added by local discretion.
I believe WODC is programmed locally now since they transitioned to classic hits last year, or they pull from iHeart’s Big Classic Hits feed.

 
Getting back into town for two weeks today, the two times I turned on WOGL I was pretty shocked- first, around late afternoon, was Weezer’s “Buddy Hollly”. Then, a few minutes ago, it was Green Day’s “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”. That’s 2004! I know, I know, “time marches on”, but the concept of the Dance Party being replaced by “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” feels like a big move (pardon that pun) and definitely evidence of major playlist shifting, not just a rebranding.
 
“Boulevard of Broken Dreams” is a song I can see becoming their next staple on classic hits, but it is on the newer end as of right now. I mean, we have WIAD playing Bruno Mars, and CBS-FM playing songs like “Bad Day” from 2005, so it’s not extreme. It’s just a bit jarring as WOGL hadn’t evolved to the level a station like CBS-FM has more in the 00s. So it was more noticeable.

“The Middle” by Jimmy Eat World I first heard on a classic hits station (CBS-FM?) in 2016, and it came out in 2002. So that’s a 14 year difference and a 18 year difference with ‘Boulevard’, so I guess it’s not that different.
 
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