Lots of 80s in the Lehigh Valley

[Route 222]

Not one but TWO stations are focusing more on the 80s in the past week. WGPA reportedly made a partial format change to all-80s during non-polka and non-brokered hours. Gone are the specialty oldies shows and Jerry Blavat.

Down the road in Kutztown, popular webstreaming and local cablecast station "KUR Kutztown University Radio" switched away from jazz music during the daytime to what they are describing as "fun oldies of the 70s and 80s with a dash of the 60s and today." 70s and 80s will play when student specialty shows are not on-the-air. From what I heard, it sounds like they're keeping jazz during the overnights.

Interesting move by WGPA and KUR both in practically the same week. Perhaps these small stations see a niche to fill with stations like WLEV and "The Hawk" playing newer music.

 

[John1]

Their website describes all the music blocks as "Music from the times of your life / 50′s – 80′s". Considering the older-skewing brokered talk shows & polka music blocks, it would seem wiser to concentrate on the 'oldies' era late 50's-early '70's since most people listening to 70's-80's music never listened to AM radio for music, especially a low power daytimer. Back in the 1960's the Lehigh Valley was a huge top 40 market - WAEB, WEEX AM-FM, WKAP, so if there is any music audience to capture it is those people who listened to AM back then. There are also website and on air promos for Steve Fox Oldies all night internet only - not sure what era that covers. I know why the polka music is there (I remember way back when it interrupted the flow of the only country station in town, daytimer WHOL, but there was a bigger polka audience back then) but if WGPA was any way serious about being a music station they would drop the talk shows and go to full service oldies all day.

 

[radiophiler]

FM radio didn't overtake AM radio in listening until 1978.
In the Lehigh Valley, it wasn't until the early 1980s until we had an FM top 40 station (the period of the WEEX simulcast on FM is an exception).
But there's another factor: much of the 80s music being played on Valley stations is rock, on the Hawk. WLEV plays 2 80s cuts per hour, it appears.
If you want pop music from the 1980s on a regular basis, there's no really good option in the LV.
Might a mostly 1980s station work on AM? It's a gamble.
But a 60s-70s-80s format like WOGL would probably get decent ratings on a LV AM station. Make the largest percentage of music the 70s, followed by the 80s and maybe just one or two 60s per hour. There's definitely a hole in the market for this music. WOGL's signal in the Valley is spotty at best.

 

[Macy93]

...WGPA reportedly made a partial format change to all-80s during non-polka and non-brokered hours. Gone are the specialty oldies shows and Jerry Blavat...

Sampling WGPA yesterday and today during the non-talk, non-polka hours does not bear this out. They are playing 60s, 70s with a smattering of 80s. I did hear the RAB promo “radio gets results” which I think is from the 80s. There are very few local spots airing, incidentally.

WGPA sustains itself on the polkas and brokered shows. It’s been this way for decades. Does it really matter what they put on the rest of the time?

 

[Route 222]

Sources say the 80s only lasted a few days before listeners demanded the 50s through 70s back on WGPA. Shortest format change in Lehigh Valley history.