Is there room for another great Atlanta FM?

[troone]

You look at frequencies like 97.1, 105.7 and 105.3 over the last 4-5 years founder and you can almost hear the execs saying before they launch , "Hey, there's no format left that can get us better than a mid-two share so lets voicetrack, take no musical chances, do crappy promotions and bring in a no-name morning show, because there's a ceiling on ratings and revenue." The River 97.1 is a classic example of this mentality, currently.

So, I'm wondering where is the next Praise or Kicks or even Star that can bust through with a consistent 5+ share and become the next 99x - a station that everyone sampled even if they didnt really like the music, just because it was so cool?

What would be the format and what current owner has the stones to do it?

[SquiggyFM]

I think there would have to be a next genera explosion.  Thats what got 99x to the legend level, Alt. Rock blew up, and X rode the wave.  Now that alternative isn’t really alternative…X is in a slump.

When it took the “hot new thing” of angry Limp Bizket rock back in 99-00…it rode the wave longer than “grunge” did.  They dropped that music, went back to their alternative roots, and lost some listeners.  But I'd be willing to bet, the listeners they have now are more dedicated today than 6 years ago.

Now, you have at least 2 stations per format, so whatever takes off, will be automatically split in half.  

I doubt you’re ever going to have a classic formatted station explode.  The audience has heard it all before.  By definition, its not new, nor is it fresh.  Its not what anyone is clawing down a door to hear.  People aren’t rioting in the streets because the record store is sold out of REO Speedwagon.  

So until a Nirvana-esque event happens in music…I don’t think you’ll see a station that everyone has on their pre-set.

[TheX]

> I think there would have to be a next genera explosion.
> Thats what got 99x to the legend level, Alt. Rock blew up,
> and X rode the wave.  Now that alternative isn’t really
> alternative…X is in a slump.
>
> When it took the “hot new thing” of angry Limp Bizket rock
> back in 99-00…it rode the wave longer than “grunge” did.
> They dropped that music, went back to their alternative
> roots, and lost some listeners.  But I'd be willing to bet,
> the listeners they have now are more dedicated today than 6
> years ago.
>
> Now, you have at least 2 stations per format, so whatever
> takes off, will be automatically split in half.  
>
> I doubt you’re ever going to have a classic formatted
> station explode.  The audience has heard it all before.  By
> definition, its not new, nor is it fresh.  Its not what
> anyone is clawing down a door to hear.  People aren’t
> rioting in the streets because the record store is sold out
> of REO Speedwagon.  
>
> So until a Nirvana-esque event happens in music…I don’t
> think you’ll see a station that everyone has on their
> pre-set.
>


If what you say ultimately comes true (and I think it will), it'll be quite interesting to see what this new music sounds like.  

______________
Let us live so that 100 years from now, someone may be proud of us.

[Surfer]

I think it's not just one thing but several things that keep good stations from springing up.  First is $$$.  If the station doesn't almost immediately make lots of it, nobody will risk anything.  Second, even if they do, radio is, by nature, designed to be a very high-maintenance vehicle.  For every $100 you make you must throw $95 back at the beast.  The only way to make money is to spend it.  That means live jocks, wider playlists, intensive promotional material and lots of marketing.  The idea of a station (on average) making a 3-5% profit is, in today's corporate culture, not an option.  Radio stations are no longer about programming but about property investment.  Unless you can find some multi-billionaire who's willing to pump obscene amounts of cash into a station to "do it right" from the start, no format has a chance of making it.  

The music's stale, the jocks are stale, the talkers are stale, the world is BORED!  Our entertainment now comes from "we the people" deciding who is worthy enough to be chosen to be the next "American Idol".  We've gone from a culture of listeners to one of producers.  I don't see how the medium of radio (or television, for that matter) can ever hope to keep up.  It will take a miracle and, frankly, people probably will miss it when it does come.

[trusty]

> I doubt you’re ever going to have a classic formatted
> station explode.  The audience has heard it all before.  By
> definition, its not new, nor is it fresh.  Its not what
> anyone is clawing down a door to hear.  People aren’t
> rioting in the streets because the record store is sold out
> of REO Speedwagon.

PDQ Bach - All the Time!!



OK, maybe some pre-'60s Elvis thrown in...

[MisterDaisy]

> > I doubt you’re ever going to have a classic formatted
> > station explode.  The audience has heard it all before.
> By
> > definition, its not new, nor is it fresh.  Its not what
> > anyone is clawing down a door to hear.  People aren’t
> > rioting in the streets because the record store is sold
> out
> > of REO Speedwagon.
>
> PDQ Bach - All the Time!!
>
>
>
> OK, maybe some pre-'60s Elvis thrown in...
>

I think PDQ Bach would be great - the ASO did a PDQ Bach concert on New Year's Eve with Prof. Peter Schickile conducting. Unfortunatly, I was not able to attend :-(

As far as the next big radio station goes.. its going to take a new trend of music and a well programmed station - I'm one of the 99x listeners from the 90's that lost interest when the Bizcuit era dawned, but I've come back over the past couple of years as they've gone back to their roots.