An Open Letter...

[TheLaffer]

An open letter to all General Managers thinking of switching to the “Movin” format:


Many of the “Movin” formats are being consulted by Guy Zapoleon who is fairly knowledgeable about the format. However be warned ahead of time!!!!

MARK ST.JOHN doesn’t know squat about dance music.

He’s a lily white programmer who only understands top 40 rock and mainstream white bred music usually aimed at men. His only claim to fame is discovering Mark and Brian which he will remind you of every 10 minutes. What has he done in the past decade? Well he couldn’t find a job in programming after a series of disaster programming stints in the 90’s and so like most FAILED programmers became a consultant and hooked up with his pal Guy Zapoleon.

While MARK ST.JOHN was playing his rock stiffs in the late 80’s and 90’s the Hot Rhythmic sound passed him by. Now with his little understanding of Dance/R&B/POP do you really want to take a chance with MARK ST.JOHN of Guy Zapoleon Media Consulting?

If you want programmers who understand and know the music, and understand the people who listen to it and can assemble and utilize research properly, please permit me to suggest:

Don Kelly (Power 106)
Jeff Wyatt (Power 106)
Steve Smith (Hot977)
Jerry Clifton
Bill Tanner

And a few select others who pioneered the dance format in the 80’s and 90’s who shamefully have been forgotten.

 

[radiofriend1]

as if **the dance format** is some revolutionary and industry-changing format

geez....................throw somebody under the bus cuz U don't like the music he has knowledge of?

 

[jcolletta275]

Two problems: Movin' is Dance, and Movin' isn't Dance.

Yes, gold tracks from the Dance format are part of the Movin' formula, but Movin' is not a dance format. It's basically a redress of the old Jammin' Oldies format.

What difference does it make when it comes to Mark St. John? Absolutely none. He may not have experience in the Dance format, but he doesn't have to. Movin' is an all golds-based format. He doesn't have to know the currents because he's not going to be airing them.

We've discussed this on and on on the Dance board. While it's nice to have a format that recognizes Dance as an integral part of the playlist, Movin' is not strictly a Dance format and doesn't play Dance currents. That means whoever programs a station running the format needs only to look at Dance hits of the past, not necessarily a knowledge of the format.