Not to mention the World Famous KROQ Weenie Roast
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Fresh FM Drives Away
- Thread starter Radio Radio Listener
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Not to mention the World Famous KROQ Weenie Roast
I think you will see a classic hits station pop up in Boston soon. Just like with DC, the format is doing so well hammering the 80s hits in so many different markets that it is down right silly for someone not to do the format in cities without it. 92.9 or 103.3 could not do any worse with a fun 80s pop focused classic hits station than what they got right now. I'd say in the next 3 months, probably sooner though.
Of course Boston HAD a classic hits station with WODS before it flipped to AMP. Entercom has a lower rated rock station with WAAF, so they might flip that one. Cumulus is running a classic hits station in nearby Worcester, but it isn't a full market signal. Might Beasley give up alternative on WBOS? Lots of options.
Cumulus’ classic hits 100.1 The Pike in Worcester is the same as WROR, only plays rock hits.
Boston's heritage is rock, not rhythmic. WRKO back in the day was slow to add soul hits to its playlist, didn't even play many of the James Brown songs that showed up on other markets' Top 40 stations. Research probably shows that Boston baby boomers and Gen X'ers prefer a rock-based classic hits format over one with too much pop and R&B. WROR's ratings certainly don't indicate that their listeners are hungering for more Stylistics and Spinners, and less Seger and Springsteen.
Time marches on and classic hits is now centered in the 80s. The 80s in Boston...yeah I give ya WBCN but just as dominant with a more rhythmic lean than most any chr's at the time was Sunny Joe White's Kiss 108. Sure, it was gravy to add to the hits in the fact that the market didn't have an fm urban outlet, but there is no reason for Boston to be the only city without an 80s pop focused classic hits station when in so many different markets, 80s pop (adjusted for competitors and market history/conditions) gets very nice 25-54s.
Kiss's numbers got a huge boost largely because the market's young black listeners had nowhere on FM to go for R&B or funk. In fact, the absence of an FM station with a Hispanic pop or tropical format -- an absence that continues today -- likely sent a good number of Latino listeners over to Kiss for a dose of the more rhythmic music they largely prefer over rock, even if that music was sung in English.
By the way, Hartford has also been without a pop-oriented classic hits station since WDRC-FM was sold and flipped first to rock classic hits, then to straight-ahead classic rock. WHCN plays some pop, but nothing even remotely rhythmic. In the last couple of hours "Come On Eileen," "You Can't Hurry Love" (Phil Collins, not Supremes) and "Crocodile Rock" have been played, but the rest of the playlist consists of new wave/post-new wave hits ("99 Red Balloons," "Only the Lonely," "You Turn Me Round," "The Break Up Song") and a heavy dose of rock, rock and more rock -- "Crazy Train," "Smells Like Teen Spirit," "Love Bites," "Nothin' But a Good Time," "Peace of Mind," "Caught Up In You," "Another One Bites the Dust," on and on and on. No America, no Michael Jackson, no Cyndi Lauper, no Gloria Estefan. So apparently the research has shown a resistance to the pop and rhythmic hits of the '70s and '80s in this secondary New England market, too.
The KYSR / KROQ battle is, in fact, one that is decided in favor of the station that gets the best Hispanic numbers. It's a certainty that both stations include Hispanics in their research and know how to get them.
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Well in terms of active rock, yes. In terms of classic rock, you'd be surprised. Classic rock generally attracts a younger audience than classic hits. The reason these stations are incorporating rock songs in their playlist is to bring the average age down. Meantime, the classic hits demo is pretty solid as over 45.
What I notice is younger audiences don't listen to classic rock because it's the music of their youth, but because they prefer it to current rock. Classic rock to them isn't burdened by 40 years of airplay, because they weren't alive for it. But when Lynyrd Skynyrd or Led Zepplin gets played, young audiences respond as though it's current music. I see this over and over at concerts where cover bands or DJs play classic rock, but not classic hits. You're also seeing this on alternative stations, where 25-30 year old songs are being included because 20-somethings love to hear them.
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There, for a minute, I thought I was talking to Oldies!
Well, that's surprising! Now, if we can just get them to respond that way to the Beach Boys and Supremes, we'll be all set. Does this apply to radio in that Classic Rock stations actually do well in 18-34?Depends on the market. In Philadelphia, classic rock WMGK is #1 18-34, tied with WBEB. Meanwhile, classic hits WOGL isn't even in the Top 10. It's #7 if you add 34-49.
Anecdotally, when WDRC-FM was still classic hits, I'd never hear it playing in auto repair shops where 20- and 30-somethings were at work, or in cabs driven by younger, non-ethnic white guys. Some would have a CHR or a hot AC playing, but for the most part either WPLR New Haven or WAQY Springfield was the soundtrack I'd encounter. It's a far shorter leap from Skynyrd to System of a Down than from Beach Boys to Post Malone.
It's an interesting musicological discussion, but I've often said that what hurts a lot of today's rock bands is they're so derivative of the bands from the 70s, whereas pop music has evolved and changed a lot since the 60s and 70s. That's what makes it popular.
I also find it interesting that today's country fans also prefer classic rock to a lot of classic country. While they love the classic songs by outlaws such as Waylon or Willie, the more pop-oriented artists of that same era, such as Charlie Rich or Charley Pride, have not worn well. Songs by The Eagles and Lynyrd Skynyrd are accepted as country now, while they weren't when they were currents.
Wonder if Guitar Hero had something to do with that?
That's a great question...I think a lot of people overlook the importance of video games and their role in shaping the tastes and lives of millennials. When I go to music conferences, the guy from EA is more revered than the guy from Pandora, because people in the music industry know that the songs included in video games get paid a higher royalty than just about any other user of music. AND the play of those songs create a stronger impression than traditional streaming. AFAIK classic hits songs don't get used in video games, but you'll see Joan Jett, Queen, Boston, and others on Guitar Hero. People wonder why radio TSL started going on a downward track in the late 80s, and the answer could be video games.
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