As Ionosphere said, ALL of the Cox stations have TREMENDOUS talent. I think it's a shame most of them are being so under-utilized... I've wondered what that team could do if let loose to do what they have done so well in the past... the mind boggles...
Now, K95.5FM is just a fantastic station. Jocks might argue it's "liner card radio," and in some dayparts it certainly is, but you cannot argue with that mix of music... I can't tell you exactly how they're doing it, but it's just a darn enjoyable mix of music. Add in friendly personalities, a fun morning show, enough liners to let you know who they are without you feeling beaten over the head by it, and liners from listeners... no wonder they stay at the top of the ratings.
Star 103.3 is doing what is likely the only logical thing for a station that wants to stay with the money demo CAN do: moving forward. I try to remind myself that the 70s are as far away from today as the 40s were in the 80s.
I'll agree their branding has always sounded a little silly to me, but I can listen past it. I'm more bugged by their gritty compression than I am by their music mix.
Mix 96... *sigh*. I'm SO torn about them.
On the one hand, their liners are genuinely TEDIOUS. "TheBestMixOfThe80s90s&TodayAndVotedNumberOnceAgainAsTulsa'sAtWorkStationWithAnother50Minutes..."
!!!AARGH!!! SHUT! UP!
They have sweepers that I swear to you are 30 second promos. You think you're into a stopset.
Then there's the music. A handful of 80s songs burned to a crisp, to be replaced in 3 months with another handful of 80s songs to be burned to a crisp... and while they were all huge hits, there seems to be a randomness to the 80s songs chosen to be burned. Perhaps (or obviously?) their research indicates these are the 80s songs to burn this quarter.
Next, throw in a larger handful of 90s alterna-pop... those oh-so-cool male artists who were trying so hard to be hip... and another handful of 90s pop from dance divas.
Finally, top it all off with a recurrent from K-Hits or The Edge that's "adult safe."
Tie it all up with "The New," and viola! Instant Mix 96.
On the flip-side, Mix 96 is VERY safe for the money demo. It's the station I hear mostly in businesses these days. There's nothing too much to get excited about, you've heard all these songs over and over, the content in-between songs is generally dull... but the music is FAMILIAR. They're like a favorite pair of jeans, or an old pair of sneakers... when you hear them in a business, you feel at home, safe, in a comfortable place. You know this song; you're OK.
Mix 96 won't say anything offensive, they won't play anything offensive, and for your typical 30-something, they sound reasonably contemporary. Kids will put up with it in the cars while Mom feels comfortable listening. They give away money; who doesn't like money? And they have a morning show team doing something different every day, so they could be interesting if people remembered to tune in (or forgot to tune away).
Mix 96 is kind of the path of least resistance. They're picking up listeners by not driving people away. Especially with Bob annoying many in-office listeners, Mix is the next logical choice. If you're only hearing them in snippets, you're not likely to be bothered by the repetition which also is what makes their music mix consistently familiar.
Stuck in a business tuned to Mix 96, I can tell you that if I never hear Girls Just Want To Have Fun or Into The Groove again it will be too soon. (And
I'm an 80s music fan!)
I can also tell you today in the midday they played Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer... after yesterday in the midday playing Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer...
In other words, the station drives ME crazy, but I bet they've got a money-maker on their hands.
