How Often can HACs rotate Power Hits?

[atlantaboy]

Hey just noticed WKRQ/Cincinnati's new playlist, and they have Viva La Vida in power rotation 86 times a week! Just never seen a "Hot AC" station rotate its powers so frequently...I'd think that would make it a CHR by default (cause it must be playin at least 2/3 current hits)...it also just added American Boy by Estelle/Kanye and Cry For You by September, and still has Danity Kane in sign. rotation also

Guess it's a CHR/HAC hybrid, but just don't see how you can call a station Hot AC when it's so focused on current music IMO

[musicfanpete]

Yes, just based on rotation, I really think that station should be moved to the CHR/mainstream panel.

However, any station that plays September, CHR or not, is fine by me!

[tico]

Who knows what WKRQ is. KMXB Las Vegas is also playing Estelle, but without Kanye West.

Hot AC should rotate no more than 50-55 times a week. Heck, I'd say the same for CHR, but I know that will be a long time coming, if ever.

[Nostalgia Kills]

Why are we so obsessed with spins when determining formats? Hypothetically, what if a CHR played their heavies only 10 times a week? Would we then call it an AC station that played metro station, katy perry and ray j?

???

[atlantaboy]

Jul 31, 2008 21:50:27 GMT -5 Nostalgia Kills said:

Why are we so obsessed with spins when determining formats? Hypothetically, what if a CHR played their heavies only 10 times a week? Would we then call it an AC station that played metro station, katy perry and ray j?

???

Not sure if this is still true, but R&R (back when they used station playlists and there was no Mediabase/BDS) used to move stations in and out of the CHR panel based on the % of currents they played...I remember WPLJ bein disqualified from CHR at one point cause their % currents got too low (they didn't have a Hot AC category back then, but guessin that's what they would've been labeled)

[musicfanpete]

Jul 31, 2008 21:50:27 GMT -5 Nostalgia Kills said:

Why are we so obsessed with spins when determining formats? Hypothetically, what if a CHR played their heavies only 10 times a week? Would we then call it an AC station that played metro station, katy perry and ray j?

???

Well, I think whether we like it or not, with formats sounding more similar these days, it is coming down more to how many spins a station gives to current songs and how late they are added in determining what format they are classified as.

One of our mainstream AC's in Chicago, Fresh 105.9 plays the same songs as our Hot AC station WTMX plays, except the Fresh station adds them on much later, and plays far fewer currents than the Mix plays. Aside from some gold records that differ between the two, the rotation is really what designates Fresh 105.9 from the Mix. That's why more attention is paid these days to rotation, whether fair or not.

[KelownaGuy20]

If you ask me, 86 times a week is more than enough for a power rotation track. Here in Kelowna, we spin our powers every five hours, because that's how many songs we have in that rotation category. Once every five hours equates to to 4-5 spins a day, and upwards of 35 spins a week.

My station is a HotAC, even though we play Estelle, Danity Kane, Lady Gaga and the Jonas Brothers. We fall into this category because of the number of recurrents and golds we play within an hour, and because of the audience we target, that being 25-45 year old women.

[John77]

CHR by definition is "contemporary hit radio," so the emphasis is supposed to be on the contemporary (i.e: current) hits... Therefore, the stations are supposed to give the big hits more spins. The problem is that they spin them too much these days as their target age demo has gone down... CHR used to be more aimed at the 18-34 crowd... Even 6-7 years ago that was the case... Today, it's a lot more geared to the 12-24 crowd... younger people by definition have shorter attention spans, so they listen to the radio less. Therefore, the currents are played more as the people want to hear their song if they've got the radio on for a short time (i.e: an hour and a half or so)...

[Marv]

John.... nailed it (as usual); CHR/Pop's shift from the 18-34 to the 12-24 (or even 12-17) demo results in songs such as 'Bleeding Love' and 'Big Girls Don't Cry' being played 95+ times per week, and sometimes in excess of 120 spins per week.

Chr/Pop stations aren't really 'mass appeal' anymore, anyway, and that's been the case for years and year, although there are still some powerhouse CHR stations out there (with KHKS & WNCI leading the way) with exceptional 25-54 numbers.

Hot AC stations aimed at adults 25-54 (with women 25-44 as a key subcell) can play their powers once very 4-5 hours, since their libraries can be substantially larger, with gold tunes going back 20 years.

A female who was a senior in high school in 1988 when songs such as 'Roll With It' & 'Armageddon It' hit #1 would be 38 years old today, and comfortably within Hot AC's target audience.

[John77]

^^ Thanks, Marv... in excess of 120 spins a week would describe WIOQ in Philly... they've had their heavy currents get to 160 spins a week at times! This week they're not as bad as usual... nothing over 133 spins. :)

1 1 CHRIS BROWN Forever 133 142 -9 1.242
2 2 JESSE MCCARTNEY Leavin' 130 141 -11 1.233
7 3 LEONA LEWIS Better In Time 125 90 35 1.188

[Arson]

If a station played all the songs in the Top 50 of Hot AC at higher frequencies with the expense of little to no golds, then would that mean it's a CHR and its data would be included with CHR stations playing rap and harder rock?

[shocker]

Jul 31, 2008 9:48:28 GMT -5 atlantaboy said:

Hey just noticed WKRQ/Cincinnati's new playlist, and they have Viva La Vida in power rotation 86 times a week! Just never seen a "Hot AC" station rotate its powers so frequently...I'd think that would make it a CHR by default (cause it must be playin at least 2/3 current hits)...it also just added American Boy by Estelle/Kanye and Cry For You by September, and still has Danity Kane in sign. rotation also

Guess it's a CHR/HAC hybrid, but just don't see how you can call a station Hot AC when it's so focused on current music IMO

I was guessing that WKRQ is one of those Hot ACs that leans heavily CHR because perhaps Cincinnati doesn't have a CHR. But I checked the list, and Cincinnati does indeed have a CHR (WKFS). So scratch that theory.

Speaking of WKFS, it's interesting to note that station spins their top 5 songs more than 100 times per week. Even more interesting is every song in their top 5 is - or could be - played on many Hot AC stations.

So it looks like Cincinnati is a market with a Hot AC that leans CHR, and a CHR that leans slightly Hot AC.

[shocker]

Jul 31, 2008 20:27:17 GMT -5 @tico said:

Who knows what WKRQ is. KMXB Las Vegas is also playing Estelle, but without Kanye West.

KMXB leans a little in the CHR direction because of their emphasis on newer songs; but that station is a definite modern AC. Some of their heavier rotations tend to be the modern rock artists that cross over to Hot AC, such as Panic at the Disco, Linkin Park, and Spill Canvas.

Jul 31, 2008 20:27:17 GMT -5 @tico said:

Hot AC should rotate no more than 50-55 times a week. Heck, I'd say the same for CHR, but I know that will be a long time coming, if ever.

There used to be a Hot AC in San Diego that rotated their top songs 70, 80, and even 90 times a week. A lot of this really depends on the market and the audience.

CHRs have always been known for spinning current hits in very heavy rotation - and that's why the format is called CHR!

[atlantaboy]

Aug 2, 2008 14:33:13 GMT -5 Marv said:

John.... nailed it (as usual); CHR/Pop's shift from the 18-34 to the 12-24 (or even 12-17) demo results in songs such as 'Bleeding Love' and 'Big Girls Don't Cry' being played 95+ times per week, and sometimes in excess of 120 spins per week.

Chr/Pop stations aren't really 'mass appeal' anymore, anyway, and that's been the case for years and year, although there are still some powerhouse CHR stations out there (with KHKS & WNCI leading the way) with exceptional 25-54 numbers.

Actually think that situation has gotten better recently i. e. KRBE/Houston, KBKS/Seattle, both WSTR and WWWQ/Atlanta, even Z100/NYC to a point (esp. when they added Say by John Mayer) - also think it's important IMO that keep in mind that most medium-small market CHRs are still mass-appeal (unless they're "Kiss" stations added into the market to compete with a more mainstream CHR in that same market)

[atlantaboy]

Aug 2, 2008 14:53:27 GMT -5 John77 said:

^^ Thanks, Marv... in excess of 120 spins a week would describe WIOQ in Philly... they've had their heavy currents get to 160 spins a week at times! This week they're not as bad as usual... nothing over 133 spins. :)

Yeah that Philly station has pretty mediocre ratings (and there's no other CHR in the market they're "splitting" the ratings with, like in Atlanta)...I dunno what they're doin over there lol

[Slinky]

They're splitting the CHR ratings with WRDW, which is a pop-leaning Rhythmic, and to a lesser extent, WPST, which is a pop-leaning Hot AC.

[tico]

Aug 4, 2008 1:58:06 GMT -5 shocker said:

There used to be a Hot AC in San Diego that rotated their top songs 70, 80, and even 90 times a week. A lot of this really depends on the market and the audience.

The former Star 100.7?

[atlantaboy]

Aug 5, 2008 21:41:41 GMT -5 Slinky said:

They're splitting the CHR ratings with WRDW, which is a pop-leaning Rhythmic, and to a lesser extent, WPST, which is a pop-leaning Hot AC.

Still seems pretty bad though...PST just barely makes the Philly Arbitron ratings (in the 1.0s I think), and WRDW seems worlds away from a CHR - guess Philly is just a really rhythmic city lol