atlantaboy
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Post by atlantaboy on May 26, 2009 20:08:29 GMT -5
Hey can't remember the last time a major-market Hot AC was at the top of its market, but WTMX is now the #1 rated station (excluding News/Talk) in Chicago...Nice! (Esp. that it's beating out WKSC  ) |
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on May 26, 2009 22:19:03 GMT -5
Hey can't remember the last time a major-market Hot AC was at the top of its market, but WTMX is now the #1 rated station (excluding News/Talk) in Chicago...Nice! (Esp. that it's beating out WKSC ) Thanks for noticing atlantaboy! I'm definately happy to see them doing so well! Technically WTMX is fourth overall in the 12+ ratings, but like you said they are now the number one music station in Chicago. Their 4.5 rating and 4th place ranking are both all-time highs for this station. I believe they hit something like a 4.3 and 7th place ranking during the peak of the Lilith Fair "era" back in the late 90's when they were a more modern leaning Hot AC. Now, as the "pseudo" CHR station in town with WKSC being so rhythmic leaning, the Mix has shown that a mainstream Adult CHR can attract a mass-appeal audience if programmed correctly. It also helps that they have a strong morning show that has been around for over a decade as well, but it's the music that sets this station apart from the two rhythmic leaning CHR's, one of which passes itself as a "mainstream" CHR! I think the Mix will be a force for quite awhile to come. |
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blurple
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Post by blurple on May 26, 2009 22:37:54 GMT -5
Woohoo! My station pretty much rocks. |
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Post by Mike Schwartz on May 27, 2009 8:14:16 GMT -5
As far as major market Hot ACs go, don't overlook KBIG in LA. It was the fourth largest music station (fifth overall 12+) in the latest monthly PPM. This is an amazing turnaround from where they were just a year ago. The 104.3 My FM positioning, new morning show with Valentine along with shows from Billy Bush and Hollywood Hamiliton appear to resonate with the Southern Cal audience. This station has become a monster in just a short period of time!!
Between the success of TMX and KBIG, would you say that Hot AC is enjoying a modest renaissance?
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on May 27, 2009 10:14:52 GMT -5
As far as major market Hot ACs go, don't overlook KBIG in LA. It was the fourth largest music station (fifth overall 12+) in the latest monthly PPM. This is an amazing turnaround from where they were just a year ago. The 104.3 My FM positioning, new morning show with Valentine along with shows from Billy Bush and Hollywood Hamiliton appear to resonate with the Southern Cal audience. This station has become a monster in just a short period of time!! Between the success of TMX and KBIG, would you say that Hot AC is enjoying a modest renaissance? I would think this is a bit of a renaissance, especially in the big cities where these Hot AC's are competing against so-called "mainstream" CHR's that are in reality rhythmic CHR's. It goes to show that many people are looking for a mass-appeal type music station, and if these Hot AC's fill the bill, even better! Funny you should mention Valentine. When WKSC (Kiss 103.5, Chicago's so-called "mainstream CHR") signed on about five or six years ago, WKSC hired Valentine for their morning show via voice tracking. The problem was the station almost tanked because of him! It was not until they went live and local with Drex in the mornings that the station took off. So I'm sure Valentine does well in southern California, but Drex has taken root here, which goes to show that you have to tailor a particular station to a local audience. Back to the subject of Hot AC radio though, I hope both our respective stations continue to perform well. It's a viable format that is needed for those of us that don't like to sit through kids music all day. |
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atlantaboy
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Post by atlantaboy on May 27, 2009 11:45:15 GMT -5
As far as major market Hot ACs go, don't overlook KBIG in LA. It was the fourth largest music station (fifth overall 12+) in the latest monthly PPM. This is an amazing turnaround from where they were just a year ago. The 104.3 My FM positioning, new morning show with Valentine along with shows from Billy Bush and Hollywood Hamiliton appear to resonate with the Southern Cal audience. This station has become a monster in just a short period of time!! Between the success of TMX and KBIG, would you say that Hot AC is enjoying a modest renaissance? I would think this is a bit of a renaissance, especially in the big cities where these Hot AC's are competing against so-called "mainstream" CHR's that are in reality rhythmic CHR's. Yeah if there's realistically no CHR (just a Clear Channel pop/rhythmic thing), the Hot AC is gonna get a lot of the CHR audience + the HAC audience...WDVD/Detroit is doin really well for the same reason (not sure what their ranking is, but it's really high) |
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Post by Mike Schwartz on May 27, 2009 11:51:46 GMT -5
[Funny you should mention Valentine. When WKSC (Kiss 103.5, Chicago's so-called "mainstream CHR") signed on about five or six years ago, WKSC hired Valentine for their morning show via voice tracking. The problem was the station almost tanked because of him! It was not until they went live and local with Drex in the mornings that the station took off. So I'm sure Valentine does well in southern California, but Drex has taken root here, which goes to show that you have to tailor a particular station to a local audience.]
Valentine is no stranger to the LA audience from his long run at KIIS. Hollywood Hamilton was also a well received former KIIS jock from the late 80s and a brief stop at KGGI in Bakersfield in the early 90s. Having familiar voices, well known to the listeners, has to be a plus. I agree that many Hot ACs throughout the country are serving as proxy CHRs due to the rhythmic trend in today's music. For a CHR to truly succeed, it must be office friendly. Unfortunately, many listeners feel that too much of today's rhythmic music is simply a turn off.
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Post by Mike Schwartz on May 27, 2009 12:04:03 GMT -5
[WDVD/Detroit is doin really well for the same reason (not sure what their ranking is, but it's really high]
WDVD is thriving according to the latest Detroit book. It ranks a solid third, behind market leader WJLB and Q95.
When will Atlanta take the plunge and start up a quality Hot AC as was done in Philadelphia recently?
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on May 27, 2009 15:09:02 GMT -5
[WDVD/Detroit is doin really well for the same reason (not sure what their ranking is, but it's really high] WDVD is thriving according to the latest Detroit book. It ranks a solid third, behind market leader WJLB and Q95. When will Atlanta take the plunge and start up a quality Hot AC as was done in Philadelphia recently? Technically Atlanta has a Hot AC station in Star 94. If you look at their playlist, basicially every song they play is Hot AC friendly. It's just that their rotation mimics a CHR (most active currents over 90 spins a week), and they call themselves a CHR as they report to the CHR/mainstream panel on Mediabase and BDS. But in reality they are more Hot AC leaning than some so-called Hot AC's like WKRQ in Cincinnati which plays more hip-hop than Star 94 and most other Hot AC's. So technically, all Star 94 needs to do is cut their current plays in half and they would fit perfectly as a Hot AC. But I'll let atlantaboy respond further. |
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atlantaboy
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Post by atlantaboy on May 27, 2009 20:20:19 GMT -5
^It's kinda weird though - teens constantly call into Star 94 to request songs, but they're never rap (usually Britney, Jesse McCartney, Lady GaGa, Kelly, Pink, etc.)...but yeah they still haven't touched Right Round, Dead And Gone, or Boom Boom Pow - they just play somethin like 90% currents, with tracks like You Found Me, If Today Was Your Last Day, and Just Dance every hour - actually wonderin if the real reason they don't play rap is to prevent someone from startin up a Hot AC here...
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Marv
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Post by Marv on May 28, 2009 21:19:37 GMT -5
I've always referred to Sean Valentine as 'THE air personality who was most to blame for the skyrocketing use of voicetracking nationwide over the past decade'.
When he hit #1 in AM drive at a station in Ohio (either in Dayton or Cincinnati) several years ago while doing PM drive at KIIS-FM, in spite of some very furious competition from Ryan Seacrest at Hot AC KYSR and Bryan Simmons at legendary AC KOST, the folks at Clear Channel (and elsewhere) knew that voicetracking could be very successful and save tons of $$$$$ simultaneously.
Also, KGGI is in Riverside, Ca., and has always had extraordinary 25-54 numbers for what has been an 18-34 focused format for over twenty years.
I'm also very delighted about the success for WTMX as well; as a recent issue of R&R pointed out in a very compelling 'Hot AC Special' issue which was published on May 8th, one of Hot AC's biggest dilemnas remain how much longer can you play eighties music?
The replies were all over the place, depending on the targeted age bracket of the stations of the responding PDs who were interviewed.
A very interesting chart in that issue showed that 75.4% of the spins from R&Rs panel for the week ending April 26th were from song from this decade, as opposed to 14.3% of nineties music, 9.2% of eighties music, and 1.0% of pre-1980s music.
Insofar as the songs which were aired that week, 34% were from this decade, 23% were from the nineties, 30.0% were from the eighties, and 12.4% were pre-1980s tunes.
Another article in that same issue points out the fact that songs which have been hits at top 40 are also taking off at Hot AC much faster.
The following quotes from Jay Beau Jones, PD of WBMX (Mix 98.5/Boston) pretty much sums everything up regarding the current contrast between top 40 & Hot AC.
He notes that PPM really rewards mass-appeal radio, leading to new top 40 stations popping up in markets and creating a war for the product.
He states, 'But there's no denying that we sound totally different from sister station CHR/Pop Kiss 108', and continues, 'If they play The Fray, the song before and after are songs that you'd never hear on Mix in a million years.'
He goes on to say 'Kiss 108 is never one song away from who they really are, and it's the same with us', annd then states, 'If we play Lady Gaga, the songs in that quarter-hour or half-hour don't sound like anything on Kiss 108.'
He concludes 'Hot ACs are so far away from top 40s right now that I think that there's a lot of stuff we can own(my emphasis).
'It's a good time for us.'
He's right, and the ratings for WTMX certainly prove it.
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Post by The Party Captain on May 28, 2009 21:35:05 GMT -5
I wish this happened where I live. Instead, here in the Charlotte area, we have 2 Hot AC stations that split the pie.
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atlantaboy
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Post by atlantaboy on May 28, 2009 22:01:07 GMT -5
I wish this happened where I live. Instead, here in the Charlotte area, we have 2 Hot AC stations that split the pie. Hey I used to live there Thinkin you must live just North of Charlotte cause WKBC (satellite-simulcast Hot AC) gets ratings around Lake Norman and University Area but I think that's it - 107.9 The Link is Hot AC but assumin they still only play music on nights and weekends |
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Post by @DiegoMarcondes_ on May 28, 2009 23:02:19 GMT -5
So much betta than the "CHR-RHY" WKSC...
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on May 31, 2009 22:53:24 GMT -5
So much betta than the "CHR-RHY" WKSC... Oh heck yes! I can't stand that "other" station you just mentioned! |
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on May 31, 2009 23:00:54 GMT -5
Marv, my points exactly regarding Valentine. He may resonate well with the listeners of L.A., but voicetracking an unknown to another market is a backward way of doing business, and "Cheap" Channel should know better than that! I know the Howard Stern's and Rush Limbaugh's of the world do well with a nationwide audience, but I know it took them time to build their cume outside their respective home markets at the beginning. And they did it with live programming, not chopped up voicetracking!
And interesting facts tidbits regarding the Boston market (no pun intended). I think the Hot AC format is gaining a lot of listeners and realizing its potential, and will continue to do so with its great variety of music.
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atlantaboy
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Post by atlantaboy on May 31, 2009 23:59:45 GMT -5
^IMO kinda interesting though also that the guy from WBMX has to justify why he's not a CHR (by basically implying that WXKS is even MORE Rhythmic)...kinda shows that he might be in denial - it's fast paced, upbeat, powers 60-70x a week - basically CHR without much rap - but if he wants to call his stations HAC, power to him - just that these kinda stations reportin to CHR would really help people like Rob Thomas and Nickelback who are bein shafted mainly by Clear Channel
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Post by Mike Schwartz on Jun 1, 2009 18:32:29 GMT -5
Two near top of chart performances for some Hot ACs in the Arbitrends released today.
In Baltimore, a top 5 12+ showing for WWMX and a similar strong ranking in Hartford for WTIC-FM.
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musicfanpete
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Post by musicfanpete on Jun 1, 2009 21:59:25 GMT -5
Two near top of chart performances for some Hot ACs in the Arbitrends released today. In Baltimore, a top 5 12+ showing for WWMX and a similar strong ranking in Hartford for WTIC-FM. That's more good news for the Hot AC format, but in my opinion, any station that plays the likes of Soulja Boy, Kid Cudi and Jamie Foxx as WWMX does has no business being classified as a Hot AC. Even WTMX and KUDD don't go that far! |
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