True, but WLYF could even possibly "fill in the gap between Mainstream AC and Hot AC" as well since it has already nailed its Mainstream AC counterparts for more than a decade.
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Eventually, but you say that it's not doing Mainstream AC yet, but rather still leaning soft.True, but WLYF could even possibly "fill in the gap between Mainstream AC and Hot AC" as well since it has already nailed its Mainstream AC counterparts for more than a decade.
Sounds like Myrtle Beach before two competitors came along, except Myrtle Beach has easy listening (they call themselves soft AC but there's no way that description fits because it's too different from WDUV and WFEZ).KVIL/Dallas is another good example of a hybrid Mainstream AC/Hot AC since its format retool in May 2013. It switched from the AC panel to the Hot AC panel in May 2014. There's no other Soft AC or Mainstream AC in the Dallas-Ft. Worth market, so that leaves the DFW market with no AC. After KVIL retooled its AC format in May 2013, their listeners splitted to KVIL's sister stations Classic Hits KLUV and Adult Hits KJKK (Jack FM) to resume listening to the 80s music that was ditched by KVIL.
Eventually, but you say that it's not doing Mainstream AC yet, but rather still leaning soft.
Sounds like Myrtle Beach before two competitors came along, except Myrtle Beach has easy listening (they call themselves soft AC but there's no way that description fits because it's too different from WDUV and WFEZ).
Yes, even though Chicago had a failed "Fresh" WCFS-FM (KVIL's sister) years ago, its competitor WLIT wasn't doing to well as an AC either and it took similar approaches just as KVIL did after WCFS-FM had failed as a Fresh AC format. Chicago also had another AC at the time which was WILV at the time (now WSHE) owned by Hubbard and it was competing against iHeart's WLIT and CBS' WCFS-FM back then. WSHE as of now is still struggling real hard in 12+ PPM as an AC alone while its sister Hot AC WTMX is doing very well and their competitor Hot AC WLIT is not doing so well.
It's clearly that AC doesn't do so well in the four major markets of the midwest I.E. Dallas, Chicago, Kansas City, and Minneapolis. While two of the major markets in the midwest that does real well with AC are Houston and St. Louis. One of the smaller market in the midwest that doesn't do so well with AC is Tulsa while the two other smaller/medium markets in the midwest that does real well with AC are Oklahoma City and Memphis.
Somewhere in Spring 2013, WMGF adopted Clear Channel's Premium Choice again which had WMGF leaned towards an Adult Top 40 direction again like it did in early 2011.
We do see a pattern where some AC are leading the demo curve I.E. WBEB, KMGL, KODA, KRWM, etc. and some AC are lagging the demo curve I.E. WLYF, WRVR, WEAT, WLTW, etc.
Okay, this is the first I've heard about this. You would think it would be more mainstream than I thought it was, given that WFEZ is the competition and especially with what WFEZ is doing now.WLYF had been a Mainstream AC for well over a decade because of the amount and selections of recurrents and currents they focused on. WLYF has a soft-lean to it too because of the amount and selections of 70s, 80s, and 90s that they also focused on. You're right, I did implied that WLYF is halfway between Soft AC and Mainstream AC based on their overall presentation and that they're gradually going toward the Mainstream AC direction over the past two years by phasing-out 70s and a little bit of softer 80s and 90s too.
Okay, this is the first I've heard about this. You would think it would be more mainstream than I thought it was, given that WFEZ is the competition and especially with what WFEZ is doing now.
This is the first time I've ever heard anyone refer to Dallas, Houston and Memphis as being in the midwest! I suppose, if you can have a Northwestern University in the middle of the country then anything is possible.
Soft ACs back in the 80s played those last two. Love 97 in Charlotte NC played "Keep On Loving You" (which was currently popular at the time) which sounded really strange since it was advertised as such a soft station. However, I never heard "Take It on the Run" on any station that was soft. Those first two songs, believe it or not, were played on my America's Best Music station, but I think they were only part of the regular playlist when the station was Unforgettable Favorites. The owner's son didn't seem to understand consistency, but it was shortly after they switched to America's Best Music that the guy stopped doing an afternoon show and filled in sometimes on mornings, playing you-know-what.they started airing "Don't Stop Believing", "Take It On The Run", "Keep On Loving You", and "Can't Fight This Feeling" since 2013.".
K-104.7 in Charlotte NC was remarkably easygoing back when my barber retired. I tried another barber and "Do You Believe in Love" was the loudest song I heard when I was there. I now go to a different barber who I can walk to from my house. I mentioned REO Speedwagon above.This is questionable, maybe WLYF pull songs out and throw songs in. I remember when I used to listen to WLYF back in November 2011, they used to play "But It's Alright", "Do You Believe In Love", "If This Is It", "The Sign", "Don't Turn Around", and "Barely Breathing" that I believe is the most uptempo AC songs found on WLYF. Now, they're not playing those songs anymore. In fact, WLYF hadn't played a Huey Lewis & The News song since November 2011, they had been playing REO Speedwagon songs since Spring 2013.
"Lite" 102.9, a Clear Channel station in Charlotte, was playing the first one before it went Variety Hits. WLTW in New York City and pretty much every former "soft" station was playing the second one. The third I don't think I have ever heard on an AC, but I did on Star 92.1 in Myrtle Beach SC which was the de facto AC since, even though it was Hot AC, had no competition other than the easy listening station, which is currently slightly mellower than the old WDUV but was even softer than that at the time.The only day we can say WLYF had lost its soft-leaning AC approach is when they decide to add "Separate Ways", "Livin' On A Prayer", or "Pour Some Sugar On Me".
Soft ACs back in the 80s played those last two. Love 97 in Charlotte NC played "Keep On Loving You" (which was currently popular at the time) which sounded really strange since it was advertised as such a soft station. However, I never heard "Take It on the Run" on any station that was soft.
K-104.7 in Charlotte NC was remarkably easygoing back when my barber retired. I tried another barber and "Do You Believe in Love" was the loudest song I heard when I was there. I now go to a different barber who I can walk to from my house. I mentioned REO Speedwagon above.
"Lite" 102.9, a Clear Channel station in Charlotte, was playing the first one before it went Variety Hits. WLTW in New York City and pretty much every former "soft" station was playing the second one. The third I don't think I have ever heard on an AC, but I did on Star 92.1 in Myrtle Beach SC which was the de facto AC since, even though it was Hot AC, had no competition other than the easy listening station, which is currently slightly mellower than the old WDUV but was even softer than that at the time.
Interesting. As a 90s kid who started listening to AC in 2003 would never knew how exactly what AC sounded like in the 80s and 90s. Although I had listened to a quite number of airchecks from the late 90s and throughout 2k posted on Radio-Online.com. I also had listened to, but very few Soft AC, Mainstream AC, and Easy Listening/Adult Standards of the early 80s and late 80s that I found on YouTube. It's really cool to find out "Keep On Loving You" was a Soft AC/AC hit back in the 80s.
I forgot to add that WLYF also started playing "Always Something There To Remind Me" after their June 2015 playlist update. I never heard "Always Something There To Remind Me" ever before on WLYF ever since I started listening to WLYF in November 2011. It's a track that I know that had been stapled to AC since the early 00s or probably even the late 90s.
I'm still surprised that I had never heard "Down Under", "Who Can It Be Now?", "She Drives Me Crazy", or "Good Thing" on WLYF. Many of these songs had been AC staples since the late 90s, I believe.
Other things I also heard on WLYF between November 2011 and February 2012 included "Funkytown", "Keep Me Hangin' On", "Heaven Is A Place On Earth", and "Mad About You" which I found to be the edgiest tracks on WLYF at the time. Looking back in November 2011, WLYF had already played a lot of edgy tracks like "Don't You (Forget About Me)" which they're still playing now. So, maybe WLYF hadn't changed its tempo much since the last four years. I must had overthought it.
The only real change to WLYF over the past four year course is the elimination of 70s just as most AC has did. Yet they still play 1 70s every other hour and their 70s selection as of now still included "Too Much Heaven", "How Deep Is Your Love", "September", "Just The Way You Are" by Billy Joel, "Still", and a few more selected 70s tracks. They went from playing 2-3 70s an hour in 2011 to 1 70s every other hour as of now which is pretty much what most AC did three to four years ago. Most AC now are playing only 2-4 80s an hour and 1 90s every other hour. They focus much more on 2k, recurrents, and currents.
I know I saw "Pour Some Sugar On Me" on one or two AC station's log, I believe one of them was KODA in Houston which aired it. "Hysteria" was played regularly on KMGL after their playlist update in March 2014, but it died out of their March 2015 playlist update. It still comes up once in a while as of now, usually on their "Awesome's 80s Weekend".