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Why did AC stop being soft?

TheBigA said:
It depends on if you program based on the age of the song, or its familiarity with the target audience. Aerosmith has done a good job at remaining current and keeping their music in the public eye, so even their oldest songs still resonate with younger audiences. That's not the case for a lot of 70s artists. Also I agree it's way too rock for mainstream AC 20 years ago, but in today's rhythmic environment, it works.
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It's also been in the soundtrack of a few recent movies, and made the news when the band asked Donald Trump to stop playing it at his rallies.
 
Same with "More Than a Feeling" by Boston. It was too aggressive for AC, even in the early 00s. By the end of the 00s when many AC start playing it, they are already starting to remove 70s in the early part of this decade. Therefore, the song didn't have that much of a life on AC. It's best played on Classic Hits, Classic Rock, and Adult Hits. I guess that will be the case for AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, ZZ Top, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Marcy Playground. They will never have a chance to get aired on AC. Too hard for AC back then, but too old for AC by now. They will get picked up by Classic Hits and Classic Rock after they got phased-out by Hot AC.
 
CurtisNEPA said:
That is because the three stations mentioned beforehand have Hot AC's as their sisters under the same company. Hot AC's tend to skew younger while mainstream AC shifts older. So when one company owns both Hot AC and Mainstream AC, you will be hearing much older stuff on a Mainstream AC than on a Hot AC, some dating as back as the early 70's.
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I agree. This is also true for the St. Louis market with AC KEZK and its sister Hot AC KYKY and the LA market with AC KOST and its sister Hot AC KBIG.

There's also an opposite effect when a Mainstream AC have a Classic Hits as their sister. The Mainstream AC tend to skew younger while the Classic Hits tend to shifts older. So, when one company owns both a Classic Hits and a Mainstream AC, the Mainstream AC tends to lean less on older music, less on 80s and 90s, and more on recurrents and currents.

A strong example of this is the Dallas-Ft. Worth market. AC KVIL, Classic Hits KLUV, and Adult Hits KJKK are all owned by CBS. KVIL tried to skew young over the early part of this decade and it was deemed unsuccessful. They retooled their format in 2013 and dropped 80s altogether and adopted a new slogan as "Best Variety 90s, 2k, and today", resembling CBS Fresh format. In 2014, KVIL was placed on the Hot AC add board according to Mediabase. Another possibility to the demise of the AC format on KVIL is that Dallas-Ft. Worth is in the Bible Belt. Unlike most markets around the nation, DFW has one of the most successful Christian Contemporary Music station in PPM 6+ A.K.A. KLTY. CCM can be a very competitive format against AC.

There are a few exceptions to this in certain markets.

When comparing the Oklahoma City market to the Houston market. In Oklahoma City, both AC KMGL and Classic Hits KOMA are owned by Tyler Media and in Houston, AC KODA is owned by iHM. Houston doesn't have a true Classic Hits, it's rather a Classic Hits and Classic Rock hybrid A.K.A. KGLK owned by Cox Radio. KMGL still plays a handful amount of 80s (3-4 80s an hour) and KODA also plays a handful amount of 80s (3-4 80s an hour). KMGL has a strong Classic Hits sister, but KODA doesn't have strong Classic Hits as its sister, nor the Houston market has a Classic Hits at all.

When comparing the New York market to the Houston market. In New York, AC WLTW is owned by iHM, Classic Hits WCBS-FM is owned by CBS, and Hot AC WPLJ is owned by Cumulus, much like Houston, except New York does have a true Classic Hits. WLTW still plays a lot of 80s (5-6 80s an hour), very few 70s (1 70s every 2-3 hours), few 90s (0-2 90s an hour), while KODA plays a handful of 80s (3-4 80s an hour), some 90s (1-3 90s an hour), and mostly recurrents and currents. I thought KODA could leaned a little bit older to fill the missing gap for a Classic Hits. KODA should at least play more 80s tracks like WLTW.

In Sacramento, CA, both AC KYMX and Hot AC KZZO are owned by CBS. Even KYMX has a Hot AC as its sister, it still skew younger. KYMX only plays 2-3 80s an hour which is less than KMGL and KODA. Even KMGL has a true and strong Classic Hits as its sister, it still play at least 3-4 80s an hour.

In Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, both AC WLYF and Classic Hits WMXJ are owned by Entercom. Even WLYF has a true Classic Hits as its sister, it still skew older with a lot of the slower tracks from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, with a few recurrents and currents. It plays about 1 70s every 4-5 hour, 3-6 80s an hour, 2-4 90s an hour.

There are other factors such as the demo in the market and how the PD decided to program their AC.
 
andrewduong77 said:
I
In Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, both AC WLYF and Classic Hits WMXJ are owned by Entercom. Even WLYF has a true Classic Hits as its sister, it still skew older with a lot of the slower tracks from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, with a few recurrents and currents. It plays about 1 70s every 4-5 hour, 3-6 80s an hour, 2-4 90s an hour.

There are other factors such as the demo in the market and how the PD decided to program their AC.
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In the case of Miami, the competition is the major force in the era structure of the WLYF music. Faced with WFEZ, WLYF is unable to abandon the older, softer stuff so that they don't drive listeners to the competitor.

In many markets, the traditional AC will have a blend that attracts the most listeners who are available for the format.
 
andrewduong77 said:
In Sacramento, CA, both AC KYMX and Hot AC KZZO are owned by CBS. Even KYMX has a Hot AC as its sister, it still skew younger. KYMX only plays 2-3 80s an hour which is less than KMGL and KODA. Even KMGL has a true and strong Classic Hits as its sister, it still play at least 3-4 80s an hour.
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You can only learn so much by looking at playlists online. I live in Sacramento. KYMX and KZZO are very different radio stations. They complement each other to some degree, but they don't really step on each other's toes.

Beyond that: The newest 1980s song would be 27 years old today. The oldest, 36. Do you really want to play more than two or three of those in an hour if your target is 37-year-old women?
 
michael hagerty said:
I live in Sacramento. KYMX and KZZO are very different radio stations. They complement each other to some degree, but they don't really step on each other's toes.
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I agree. I can see KZZO skewing towards CHR to compete with Entercom's CHR KDND while KYMX tailgates the older end of KZZO.
 
WEZV Myrtle Beach SC is still actually softer than a lot of mainstream ACs but it has obviously crossed the line. Most of these songs are new to the station (some are soft and some are not). There is no list of "last songs played" online. I either knew them or figured them out by doing a search for the lyrics (though a few of these might not be right, but if a song kept coming up over and over with different searches it was probably correct). Almost no 70s now, so no "More Than a Feeling" by Boston. And many of the more uptempo songs and a few of the soft ones are still there. In no particular order:

"Need You Tonight" INXS
"All Star" Smash Mouth
"Shake It Off" Taylor Swift
"I Wish I Was Your Lover" Sophie B. Hawkins
"Royals" Lorde
"Two Princes" Spin Doctors
"Uptown Funk" Bruno Mars
"Black or White" Michael Jackson (with rap)
"We Found Love" Rihanna
"All Summer Long" Kid Rock
"She's So High" Tai Bachman
"How to Save a Life" The Fray
"I Like Me Better" Lauv
"Over My Head" The Fray
"Tequila" Dan + Shay
"Stitches" Shawn Mendes
"Can't Stop the Feeling" Justin Timberlake
"Hand in My Pocket" Alanis Morissette
"Just Give Me a Reason" Pink
"Somebody That I Used to Know" Gotye
"Unsteady" X-Ambassadors (that one I'm not completely certain about)
"Chasing Cars" Snow Patrol
"Come On Get Higher" Matt Nathanson
"The Reason" Hoobastank
"I Don't Want to Be" Gavin McGraw
"Life Is a Highway" (don't know the artist, the DJs don't identify the songs and neither does the web site, but then if the web site did I wouldn't be searching for lyrics)
"Use Somebody" Kings of Leon
"This Town" Niall Horan
"The Glamorous Life" Sheila E
"24K Magic" Bruno Mars
"Dancing with a Stranger" Sam Smith and Normani
"Love Is a Battlefield" Pat Benatar
"Diamonds" Rihanna
"Ten Thousand Hours" Justin Bieber and Dan + Shay
"Moves Like Jagger" Maroon 5
"Two of Hearts" Stacey Q
"Walk Me Home" Pink
"Counting Stars" Sam Alves
"The Breakup" Greg Kihn Band
"The Middle" Maren Morris Zedd and Grey
"The Warrior" Patty Smyth
"Wrecking Ball" Miley Cyrus
"I Can't Feel My Face" The Weeknd
"Something Just Like This" Coldplay and The Chainsmokers
"Ho Hey" Nashville Cast
"Lights Down Low" Max
"You Learn" Alanis Morissette
"Señorita" Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes
"Take Me to Church" Hozier
"Mercy" Brett Young
"Get the Party Started" Pink
"Another One Down" Richard Marx
"She Drives Me Crazy" Fine Young Cannibals
"Meant to Be" Bebe Rexha
"Call Me Maybe" Carly Rae Jepsen
"Animals" Maroon 5
"Scars to Your Beautiful" Alessia Cara
"See You Again" Wiz Khalifa
"Use Somebody" Kings of Leon
"This Town" Niall Horan
"The Glamorous Life" Sheila E
"24K Magic" Bruno Mars
"Dancing with a Stranger" Sam Smith and Normani
"Love Is a Battlefield" Pat Benatar
"Diamonds" Rihanna
"Ten Thousand Hours" Justin Bieber and Dan + Shay
"Moves Like Jagger" Maroon 5
"Two of Hearts" Stacey Q
"Walk Me Home" Pink
"Counting Stars" Sam Alves
"The Breakup" Greg Kihn Band
"The Middle" Maren Morris Zedd and Grey
"The Warrior" Patty Smyth
"Wrecking Ball" Miley Cyrus
"I Can't Feel My Face" The Weeknd
"Something Just Like This" Coldplay and The Chainsmokers
"Ho Hey" Nashville Cast
"Lights Down Low" Max
"You Learn" Alanis Morissette
"Señorita" Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes
"Take Me to Church" Hozier
"Mercy" Brett Young
"Get the Party Started" Pink
"Another One Down" Richard Marx
"She Drives Me Crazy" Fine Young Cannibals
"Meant to Be" Bebe Rexha
"Call Me Maybe" Carly Rae Jepsen
"Animals" Maroon 5
"Scars to Your Beautiful" Alessia Cara
"See You Again" Wiz Khalifa
"Running with the Night" Lionel Richie
"I'll Be There for You" Bon Jovi
"The Right Stuff" New Kids on the Block
"Let the Music Play" Shannon
"Tonight Tonight Tonight" Genesis
"Stand Back" Stevie Nicks
"Love Someone" Lukas Graham
"How Long" Charlie Puth
"Locked Out of Heaven" Bruno Mars
"Africa" Weezer
"Closer" Chainsmokers
"I Don't Care" Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber
"Causing a Commotion" Madonna
"Say It Right" Nelly Furtado
"Material Girl" Madonna
"Catch Me I'm Falling" Pretty Poison
"Dancing with Myself" Billy Idol
"Maniac" Michael Sembello
"Bye Bye Bye" 'NSync
"Attention" Charlie Puth
"Treat You Better" Shawn Mendes
"Delicate" Taylor Swift
"Young Turks" Rod Stewart
"Say You Won't Let Go" James Arthur
"Someone You Loved" Lewis Capaldi
"Broken" Lovelytheband
"High Hopes" Panic at the Disco
"See You Again" Charlie Puth
"Imperfections" Celine Dion
"Try" Colbie Caillat
"Love Me Like You Do" Elle Goulding
"The Sweet Escape" Gwen Stefani
"Waiting for Tonight" Jennifer Lopez
"Makes Me Wonder" Maroon 5
"The Climb" Miley Cyrus
"Water Under the Bridge" Adele
"Ex's and Oh's" Elle King
"Memories" Maroon 5
"Mirrors" Justin Timberlake
"Sucker" Jonas Brothers
"Love Yourself" Justin Bieber
"Trampoline" Shaed
"Shallow" Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper
"Speechless" Dan + Shay
"Havana" Camila Cabello
"Wake Me Up" Avicii (there were several artists with those lyrics but this is the first one to come up)
"Style" Taylor Swift
"All That She Wants" Ace of Base
"Purple Rain" Prince
"Cuts Like a Knife" Bryan Adams
"Come Go with Me" Expose
"Escapade" Janet Jackson
"Come to My Window" Melissa Etheridge
"Eye of the Tiger" Survivor
"I Love Rock and Roll" Joan Jett
 
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Life Is A Highway was by one-hit wonder Tom Cochrane, a 1991 hit remade in 2000 by country band Rascal Flatts.
 
CTListener said:
Life Is A Highway was by one-hit wonder Tom Cochrane, a 1991 hit remade in 2000 by country band Rascal Flatts.
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Yeah, but I don't know which one.

Interesting. Five minutes later they played it. It could be country but the guy is screaming like a rocker. I'll vote for Tom Cochrane.
 
Weird. "Running with the Night" by Lionel Richie, "Steppin' Out" by Joe Jackson and "Forever Now" by Michael Buble should have been part of the old format. And yet I'm hearing these songs on WEZV for the first time AFTER the change.
 
AbrahamJSimpson said:
They fit fine.
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Yes. But I'm saying they also belonged with the old format.

They work with the new format too.

"Dancing on the Ceiling" by Lionel Richie and "Tonight Tonight Tonight" by Genesis are apparently new, but they too could have been part of the old format.

I did not hear Bon Jovi until yesterday, even though they seem to be a big part of any mainstream AC format. And yet that first song was "Runaway", which seems to be on the high end of the scale.

A list of more new songs will be coming tomorrow.
 
And the Bon Jovi songs just keep on coming. "Wanted Dead Or Alive". Also, I forgot that I had heard them before "Runaway". The song was "I'll Be There for You" and has nothing to do with Ross, Rachel and Monica.

And here is a list of songs I have heard which appear to be new to the station. Some are soft and some are not. Some are old and some are newer.

It was a shorter list than I expected.

"There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back" Shawn Mendes
"Woo Hoo" Newsboys
"I Gotta Feeling" Black Eyed Peas
"Here I Go Again" Whitesnake
"What About Us" Pink
"When I'm With You" Sheriff
"Ordinary World" Duran Duran
"A Million Dreams" Michelle Williams and Hugh Jackman
"Counting Stars" Christina Grimmie
"Time" Culture Club
"Don't Stop Believin' " Journey
"Hey Look Ma, I Made It" Panic At The Disco
"If I Can't Have You" Shawn Mendes
"I Could Never Be Happy" Emotions
"Girls Like You" Maroon 5
"Edge of Seventeen" Stevie Nicks
"Jar of Hearts" Christina Perri
"Lonely No More" Rob Thomas
"Feel It Still" Portugal the Man
"Walk Me Home" Pink
"It's Raining Men" Weather Girls
"Miss Independent" Kelly Clarkson
"Maybe" Lewis Capaldi
"Can't Help Falling in Love" UB-40
"What's Up" 4 Non Blondes
"Rock Your Body" Justin Timberlake
"Sweet but Psycho" Ava Max
 
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umfan said:
Bon Jovi would not be such a good fit for the softer format.
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Right, but all these songs have been added recently. There are a couple of songs of theirs that might have worked with the old format.

I made the discovery, now that it's too late to edit, that a bunch of songs in my first list were in there twice. I may need to find a new way to create a new master list.

I did list "Time" by Culture Club, but that's obviously one the old format could have included.
 
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"It's My Life" is apparently the title of one of the worst songs I have heard yet. I'm guessing Bon Jovi. There's that guitar style that seems so common in grunge.
 
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