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WXSS 'staff cuts'

N

nathannah

Just listened to KISS FM in the car tonight for the first time since WBMX in Chicago converted to WSCR-FM; I had assumed with all the changes down I-94, they'd still have Sonic voicetrack evenings and their feature, the 'top 8 at 8' countdown would remain.

That didn't happen. WXSS is now jockless with 'Simon' (their Jack/Hank/Bob ripoff brand) from 7pm-6am, when their obnoxious morning show starts and provides the only human pulse on the station. 'Top 8 at 8' is gone, and we all know Julia is gone with no replacement for that voicetrack slot.

They might as well just simulcast B-96 at this point and take out the voicetracking middlemen, because the station sounds pathetic with just the imaging voice having to do all the work. Such a sad decline for a station I grew up on, and it's not because of the music for once.
 
What you're hearing is probably the tip of the iceberg. Because Audacy is now a private company, they don't have to release quarterly reports. So we really don't know how they're doing. But nobody in radio is doing well right now. The recent announcement about Audacy regionalization says it all. They're moving from what was once a locally based company to something more regional:

www.insideradio.com

Audacy Shifts To Content-First Model, Realigns Regional Leadership.

Audacy is overhauling its structure, shifting from a market-based model to a content-first, format-driven organization to better leverage talent and scale in a digital, multi-market landscape. CEO Kelli Turner also
www.insideradio.com www.insideradio.com

Because we don't see daypart numbers, we don't know how bad the audience drop is after 7PM. If they're not spending money there, then there probably isn't much audience at that time. All of this is connected to the advertising depression radio has been going through since covid. It has accelerated the move from on-air to other platforms, because that's where the audience and the money is.
 
amos1001 said:
The stream is still CHR with103.7 Kiss FM. Are you saying on air has changed to Adult Hits Simon (Jack/Hank/Bob ripoff)? Or am I totally misunderstanding this?
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Just in the evenings and late night (same format), there is nobody on the air outside the imaging voice (which still asks for requests on the studio line but that's likely forwarded to Chicago after close of business to fulfill them). I assume Simon is merely a placeholder name.
 
nathannah said:
Just in the evenings and late night (same format), there is nobody on the air outside the imaging voice (which still asks for requests on the studio line but that's likely forwarded to Chicago after close of business to fulfill them). I assume Simon is merely a placeholder name.
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This may be temporary as they've just announced this change in focus. But I don't expect more local hosts. There just isn't money for it anymore.
 
nathannah said:
That didn't happen. WXSS is now jockless with 'Simon' (their Jack/Hank/Bob ripoff brand) from 7pm-6am, when their obnoxious morning show starts and provides the only human pulse on the station. 'Top 8 at 8' is gone, and we all know Julia is gone with no replacement for that voicetrack slot.
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Where is this use of Simon coming from? How is it being used on air on 103.7? You've confused everyone in this thread with the mentions of it.

If so it would have nothing to do with the one station in Greensboro, NC that is branded as such. One individual station does not make a knockoff brand.
 
lanceventa said:
Where is this use of Simon coming from? How is it being used on air on 103.7? You've confused everyone in this thread with the mentions of it.

If so it would have nothing to do with the one station in Greensboro, NC that is branded as such. One individual station does not make a knockoff brand.
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I didn't know that there was a Simon in WI. I'll be listening.
 
That's too bad. I grew up with WXSS too. It was such a powerhouse station. Great music, great programming, and great processing! The station just sounded good. They really leaned into the Urban Contemp side of Top 40, because they knew the market. Milwaukee/Racine is just urban in its own small-city way.

At some point, all these corporate top 40s will have to sell. The economics don't work in the traditional sense. And the format has become so diversified. I've seen better success when traditional top 40 stations throw in more AC. WXSS has a lot of promise - maybe it would do better with a different format and owner.
 


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