Winter 2008 Arbitrons: 18-34 Winners Our next installment of “you can’t judge a book by its cover” or “you can’t judge a station by its 12+ share” features stations doing gangbuster business in younger demos that can’t be seen in information published in the trades. Speaking of that, our 12+ overview of the Winter book continues on page 5. Nashville: It’s not often you find a Country outlet with 18-34 shares higher than its 12+ figure, but that’s what you find in Music City, where Citadel’s WKDF is the leading Country outlet 18-34. Overall, it ranks an amazing fourth in that demo. And, this isn’t a fluke. WKDF has consistently done well in this cell. The 12+ figures show WSIX at 5.9 (4), WSM-FM at 4.8 (6t), WKDF at 4.3 (8) and WSM-AM at 2.4 (14). And 25-54 is also a different story. Looking at the mainstream Country outlets, Clear Channel’s WSIX, programmed by Keith Kaufman, is the leading Country outlet and ranks fourth overall among adults. Bud Ford’s WKDF is No. 2 Country, .9 shares behind WSIX and ranks eighth overall. WSM-FM is next, .3 shares behind WKDF and 1.2 shares behind WSIX. (WSM-FM PD Kevin King left last January; Charley Connolly was named PD in late April.) It gets really interesting among 18-34s, however. WKDF outpaces its 12+ figure by more than one-and-a-half shares. WSIX is No. 2 Country and seventh overall 18-34, trailing WKDF by a share and a half. WSM-FM is the third Country in this demo and ninth overall. It’s two full shares behind WKDF. And, for those of who wondering how the venerable Gerry House at ‘SIX is doing among young folks in the morning,
Prom Team: Big Machine’s Taylor Swift celebrated triple platinum album sales and a pile of other assorted airplay and sales milestones during a prom-themed party held in Nashville tonight (5/12). Pictured at the event are (l-r) Big Machine’s Scott Borchetta, Sony/ATV’s Troy Tomlinson, Swift and BMI’s Jody Williams.
NYC Country: Six Years Later Country’s last dance with terrestrial radio in New York City came to a close six years ago last week. Garth Brooks’ “The Dance” was the final song played as Big City Radio flipped trimulcast WYNY/New York to a contemporary Spanish format on May 7, 2002. Country Aircheck enlisted the help of the sales pros at UMG/Nashville for a read on how the genre has fared at the cash register since its Big Apple demise. In 2001 -- the last full year WYNY was on the air, NYC accounted for approximately 3% of country sales or 2.04 million albums. Last year (2007), the market accounted for 2.65% of country album sales or 1.66 million units. And the
city remains one of the nation’s poorest for country sales when indexing sales to population, actually rising a tick from 38 to 39 over that span. The decline over that six year span isn’t particularly glaring, but as UMGN EVP/Sales, Marketing & New Media
Ben Kline notes, “There are a lot more ways for people to hear country music now -- internet, cable, satellite radio.” So the question may not be how much the loss of Country radio has hurt NYC album sales, but how much better the market’s sales might be if terrestrial radio were combined with the effects of other burgeoning media.
Live Nation Goes Country The airplay campaign for the Zac Brown Band commenced today (5/12) with the Play MPE delivery of ZBB’s single “Chicken Fried.” As reported Friday (CAT 5/9), ZBB is the only country artist signed to Live Nation Artists, putting him on a roster that as of this writing only contains Madonna, U2 and Jay Z. Not bad company. For promotion exec Michael Powers, who’s leading the charge at radio with Jeff Solima, visiting radio and making the requisite introductions must be worked around the Atlanta-based band’s already heavy touring schedule. And that busy itinerary is a product of ZBB’s regional success, which may also explain Live Nation’s decision to make the band it’s first new artist signing. “When you look at his 1.3 million MySpace hits, 150,000 song listens, combined with the fact that he’s sold 20,000 CDs from the trunk of his car and played 200 dates a year on his own, he’s got more going as a new artist than I can ever remember starting out of the gate with,” Powers says. “He’s got Sugarland dates this year, Willie Nelson dates. They’re really big in that area of the country.” The promotion team, all contracted rather than a singular staff, won’t work traditional regions. “Solima’s stations are spread out all over,” Powers says. “Dave Kirth is more of a West Coast specialist, but he has relationships everywhere, too. Tony Morreale is certainly strong in the Midwest and Southeast, but that won’t be his sole focus.” Between the four veteran promoters and an artist who already has a story to tell, Powers is optimistic. “Zac’s been
My Tunes: Music ThaT shaped My Life
WKLB/Boston PD Mike Brophey discusses his most meaningful songs, albums or concerts:1. Mountain, Fillmore East, 1971: Great venue, great band, five encores -- killer! Felix Pappalardi’s bass solo made the plaster fall from the ceiling. “Mississippi Queen!” It was the whole Greenwich Village thing, and I lived upstate so I would bus it down to NYC.2. Rolling Stones, Veterans Stadium: Really, has there ever been a bad Stones concert? I’ll never forget the stage that
went from one side of the outfield to the other. Jagger owned the night. I couldn’t hear for two days! That and radio are why I can’t hear anything above 10khz now.3. Kenny Chesney, Gillette Stadium: Year after year, intense memories and music. Simply HUGE.4. Brad Paisley’s Songwriting: They’re relatable, sing-able, killer tunes, and all brilliant.5. Keith Whitley, Valley Forge Music Fair: We talked a long time in the tunnel before the show. Two weeks later, he was dead. • A highly regarded song or album you’ve never heard: I’ve never listenedto Springsteen the way people feel you should. I like the music and respect the act, but short of “Born in the USA” I can’t name another tune. • An “important” piece of music you just don’t get: Every single that Nashville works me on! Actually, “MacArthur Park,” “Bye Bye Miss American Pie,” “Hey Jude.” All that deep, long stuff. Give me “Little Bitty” by Alan. I want to be entertained, not have to put together another puzzle. • An album or song you played or listened to incessantly: “Two People Fell in Love” by Paisley was like that. The genealogical aspect reminded me of my dad. And I’ll do that with an occasional bluegrass tune, too. Especially stuff from the ‘30s like Charlie Poole.
Zac Brown
doing it already and I’ve already heard from fans of his at radio,” he says. “Plus, it doesn’t hurt that people are familiar with this song.”
Cramer On Radio: Dialing Down The end of the Cumulus merger and a proposed deal in the Clear Channel stalemate had TheStreet.com’s Jim Cramer discussing radio today. Some excerpts:
On the Cumulus deal: “It was always looked at as being the one that had the most leap of faith to get closed. So it was [just] a matter of time, I felt, before the deal broke down. Still, the stock is just down horribly today, so obviously some people still felt a deal could happen. On radio: “One of the things that is amazing to me is that there are certain industries where managements just refuse to believe things are in secular decline. They think it’s just cyclical, and radio is one of those industries... The advertising is slowly going away... I find the same lack of realism in newspapers... This is a business that is showing all the signs of a long term decline. On satellite radio: “The terrestrial radio guys are fairly much certain that they can block the XM/Sirius merger, which would then put those companies into bankruptcy if they don’t get it, so they’re not worried about that. The FCC seems to be siding with terrestrials, which is rather amazing...”
Radio NewsWeather: Community Radio’s Classic Country KBTN/Joplin, MO is back on the air, just short of two days after the loss of their transmitter Saturday evening when a tornado hit the area. They aren’t at full power yet but expect to be at 100% soon.
Gig Alert: KBWF/San Francisco Ken & Corey morning show is looking for a producer to assist with program preparation, production of the weekly Top 30 countdown program and live show broadcast. Understanding of Pro Tools is a plus. Send airchecks and resumes to Morning Show Producer, 201 3rd Street, Suite 1200, San Francisco, CA 94103 or [email protected].
Internet: Clear Channel Radio has partnered with Gracenote, Inc. to provide the song lyrics that will adorn each station’s site as part of online programming, streaming players and the USA Today charts.
Education: JRN’s Lia Knight, recently named ACM National Personality, will speak at the 2008 Conclave.
Production: As we told you last week, KBWF/San Francisco morning producer Jake Ray has moved into a consulting
producer position for the station with the forming of his own company Morning Producer On Call. He has just added KKWF/Seattle to his roster, while continuing to work remotely from New York. For more information check out www.morningproduceroncall.com or contact him at [email protected].
Eddy Arnold: A Tribute The airplay tribute RCA is promoting for the late Eddy Arnold (CAT 5/12) has already garnered big league support. Stations committed include: WUBL/Atlanta, WPOC/Baltimore, WKLB/Boston, WUSN/Chicago, WGAR/Cleveland, KYGO/Denver, KILT/Houston, KFKF/Kansas City, WDAF/Kansas City, KKGO/Los Angeles, WMIL/Milwaukee, KEEY/Minneapolis, WSIX/Nashville, WXTU/Philadelphia, KMPS/Seattle and WMZQ/Washington. Regent VP/Programming Bob Moody writes in his weekly newsletter: “My policy has always been not to recommend songs I haven’t heard, but if any artist has earned the right to an exception, Mr. Arnold would be one.” Amen. Get on board. Be part of history. Call your RCA rep if you need the song.
Artist News Dierks Bentley has been named one of Men’s Fitness magazine’s 25 Fittest Guys In America along with Tiger Woods, Brady Quinn, Daniel Craig and Barack Obama. The mag deems Bentley the “road warrior” for sticking to his workout while touring. The issue hits stands May 19.
Tuesday 5/13 - Lady Antebellum, Introducing... (GAC).
Wednesday 5/14 - Jason Michael Carroll, Drafting Partners (GAC).
Thursday 5/15- Dierks Bentley, Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC); Dwight Yoakam, Tonight Show with Jay Leno (NBC).
Friday 5/16 - Reba McEntire, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson (CBS).
Saturday 5/17 - Martina McBride, Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, Taylor Swift, Brad Paisley, Jack Ingram, Little Big Town, Lady Antebellum, Rodney Atkins, Sugarland, Opry Live (GAC).
Sunday 5/18 - Various Artists, 43rd Annual ACM Awards (CBS).
Monday 5/19 - Kenny Chesney, Luke Bryan, Jack Ingram, LeAnn Rimes, Taylor Swift, People Magazine On CMT.
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May 13 - 10th Annual Grammy Block Party - Nashville, TN - grammy.com
May 15- SOLID’s 11th Annual Music Row Crawfish Boil - SESAC - www.solidnashville.com
May 17 - 5th Annual ACM Music Celebrity Golf Classic - Las Vegas, NV www.acmcountry.com
May 18 - The 43rd Annual ACM Awards - MGM Grand Las Vegas, NV - www.acmcountry.com
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Chris Cagle escorted Danielle “Bella” Romeo, who suffers from a rare seizure disorder, to her prom May 3 in Victoria, TX. Romeo is a patient at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN where treatments left her unable to drive or attend public school. The high school made a special exception for her to attend. Taylor Swift’s “Our Song” ringtone has been certified gold by the RIAA.
Life Notes Congrats to Hallmark Direction’s Amy Willis, who gave birth to her first child Ava Bren Friday (5/9) at 9:40pm.
The Week’s Top Stories Full coverage of the week’s news is available in the archives at www.countryaircheck.com. • Country Music Hall of Fame member Eddy Arnold passed Thursday morning (5/8) at a Nashville area healthcare facility. A public viewing at the Country Music Hall of Fame rotunda is scheduled for Tuesday (5/13) from 5-9pm and Wednesday (5/14) from 9am-noon. The funeral service is scheduled for Wednesday at 2pm at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, and is open to the public as well. The burial will be private. (CAT 5/8)• Former Clear Channel/Chattanooga OM and Country/Classic Country combo WUSY/WLND PD Kris Van Dyke was named OM for Magic Broadcasting’s five-station Dothan, AL cluster,
which includes Country WTVY. Amy Pollard remains as WTVY’s PD, as Van Dyke will not be programming any of the cluster’s stations. (CAT 5/7)• RCA/Atlanta Associate Dir./Southeast Regional Promotion Tyler Waugh joined Arista/Nashville as Mgr./Regional Promotion working a South/Midwest area. (CAT 5/7)• Off camera winners for the 43rd Annual ACM Awards can be viewed here.
Winter 2008 Arbitrons (continued from page 1) ol’ Ger is fourth in the market among 18-34s. He leads WKDF by more than a share and is about two shares ahead of the WSM-FM wake-up show. Charlotte: OK. I said before it’s not often you find a Country station with higher 18-34 shares than 21+ shares. I didn’t say “never.” We see it happening here, too. And, again, it’s from the station that is not leading 12+ or 25-54. CBS Radio’s WSOC is second in the market 12+ with a 5.6. It’s closely followed by Clear Channel’s WKKT with a 5.2 share, which is good for third. In the 25-54 demo, the DJ Stout-programmed WSOC ranks second in the market, more than a share ahead of WKKT, which ranks seventh. Among 18-34s, however, Bruce Logan’s WKKT shines with a fourth place ranking and shares almost a point-and-a-half ahead of its 12+ number. WSOC is in a respectable sixth place tie, about one-and-a-half shares behind WKKT. San Antonio: OK, OK. So maybe I’m wrong about the whole 18-34 shares don’t outpace the 12+ shares thing. Not only do we find the same thing here, but we also see two stations with 18-34 shares higher than their 25-54 shares! Now that is rare. It’s also interesting to see that the demo finishes for the two mainstream Country outlets looks better that the 12+ “beauty contest.” Clear Channel’s KAJA ranks fifth 12+ with a 5.4. Cox’ KCYY is sixth with a 5.2. However, KAJA is fourth 18-34 and second 25-54 while KCYY is fifth 18-34 and fourth 25-54. Amazingly, George King’s KAJA 18-34 share is more than a point ahead of its 12+ figure while its 25-54 share is almost a point ahead of its 12+ share. KJ’s 18-34 share is almost a half-point more than its 25-54 figure. Randy Chase’s KCYY’s 18-34 share is more than a point above its 12+ share while its 25-54 share is almost a half point more than its 12+ figure. And, KCYY’s 18-34 share is almost a point ahead of its 25-54 share.
Jeremy McComb My Side Of Town (Parallel/CO5) The eastern Washington state native was MD/afternoon jock at KIXZ/Spokane when he met Larry The Cable Guy and became his tour manager at the age of 23. His songwriting talent impressed Larry’s manager J.P. Williams (Parallel Entertainment), who signed McComb. In addition to single “This Town Needs A Bar,” cuts include
“Wagon Wheel,” “We Were Something” and “Next Time I Leave.”
Upcoming Releases:
May 27 Steve Azar Indianola (Dang/Ride) One Flew South Last Of The Good Guys (Decca/Universal)
Winter No. 1s: WGNA, KASE, WUSY, WFLS, WOGK, WRNS, WDRM, WXBQAll of the Winter Arbitrons have been released. Our overview of Country stations began last week (May 5 CA Weekly.) This week and next we’ll present the remaining markets in alphabetical order, with a few exceptions. As part of our weekly market-by-market offerings, with a few exceptions, only stations achieving at least a 1.0 share are included. Legend: A “+” indicates a Classic Country outlet, a “^” designates Country stations in the same market owned by a single operator and an “*” indicates a tie.
Each week we’ll have a running tally of the Winter 2008 Arbitron ratings and rankings for all Country stations printed in Country Aircheck Weekly. The ratings/rankings in these box scores are only those from the station’s home market.
Aircheck Top Point GainersBROOKS & DUNN/Put A Girl In It (Arista) 1369 4ALAN JACKSON/Good Time (Arista) 1267 4LADY ANTEBELLUM/Love Don't Live Here (Capitol) 1164 4BRAD PAISLEY/I'm Still A Guy (Arista) 803 4BLAKE SHELTON/Home (Warner Bros.) 796 4TIM MCGRAW/Kristofferson (Curb) 551REBA MCENTIRE/Every Other Weekend (MCA) 534PHIL VASSAR/Love Is A Beautiful Thing (Universal South) 515KENNY CHESNEY/Better As A Memory (BNA) 451TOBY KEITH/She's A Hottie (Show Dog) 432
Aircheck Top Spin GainersBROOKS & DUNN/Put A Girl In It (Arista) 467ALAN JACKSON/Good Time (Arista) 400LADY ANTEBELLUM/Love Don't Live Here (Capitol) 307BLAKE SHELTON/Home (Warner Bros.) 249KENNY CHESNEY/Better As A Memory (BNA) 212BRAD PAISLEY/I'm Still A Guy (Arista) 205REBA MCENTIRE/Every Other Weekend (MCA) 191TIM MCGRAW/Kristofferson (Curb) 144PHIL VASSAR/Love Is A Beautiful Thing (Universal South) 130SUGARLAND/Life In A Northern Town (Mercury) 125
Activator Top Point GainersBROOKS & DUNN/Put A Girl In It (Arista) 576 4KENNY CHESNEY/Better As A Memory (BNA) 487 4ALAN JACKSON/Good Time (Arista) 373 4KEITH ANDERSON/I Still Miss You (Columbia) 333 4REBA MCENTIRE/Every Other Weekend (MCA) 262 4GARY ALLAN/Learning How To Bend (MCA) 231CARRIE UNDERWOOD/Last Name (19/Arista) 202JASON MICHAEL CARROLL/I Can Sleep When I'm... (Arista) 193MONTGOMERY GENTRY/Back When I Knew... (Columbia) 186JASON ALDEAN/Relentless (BBR) 171
Activator Top Spin GainersBROOKS & DUNN/Put A Girl In It (Arista) 380KENNY CHESNEY/Better As A Memory (BNA) 258ALAN JACKSON/Good Time (Arista) 258KEITH ANDERSON/I Still Miss You (Columbia) 189REBA MCENTIRE/Every Other Weekend (MCA) 148GARY ALLAN/Learning How To Bend (MCA) 131BLAKE SHELTON/Home (Warner Bros.) 128MONTGOMERY GENTRY/Back When I Knew It... (Columbia) 121CARRIE UNDERWOOD/Last Name (19/Arista) 108JASON MICHAEL CARROLL/I Can Sleep When I'm... (Arista) 108
Aircheck Add LeadersBROOKS & DUNN/Put A Girl In It (Arista) 27CRAIG MORGAN/Love Remembers (BNA) 18JASON ALDEAN/Relentless (BBR) 13REBA MCENTIRE/Every Other Weekend (MCA) 13BUCKY COVINGTON/I'll Walk (Lyric Street) 12CHRIS YOUNG/Voices (RCA) 11DARIUS RUCKER/Don't Think I Don't Think... (Capitol) 10LOST TRAILERS/Holler Back (BNA) 9JIMMY WAYNE/Do You Believe Me Now (Valory 8ALAN JACKSON/Good Time (Arista) 7CHUCK WICKS/All I Ever Wanted (RCA) 7CRYSTAL SHAWANDA/You Can Let Go (RCA) 7FISHER STEVENSON/No Tomorrow Here Tonight (Big Machine) 7
CMTBRAD PAISLEY f/HANK WILLIAMS, JR./I’m Still A Guy (from ‘08 CMT Music Awards) (Arista) RHONDA VINCENT/I Gotta Start Somewhere (Rounder)
CMT PURETHE BOXMASTERS/Poor House (Sawmill/Vanguard)BRAD PAISLEY f/HANK WILLIAMS, JR./I’m Still A Guy (from ‘08 CMT Music Awards) (Arista)
GAC ONE FLEW SOUTH/My Kind Of Beautiful (Decca)BRAD PAISLEY/I’m Still A Guy (Arista)THE ROAD HAMMERS/Girl On The Billboard (Montage)
VideO adds
Chart Page 2 May 12, 2008 Country Aircheck Chart Info Chart Page 3
MAY 19CRAIG MORGAN/Love Remembers (BNA)SHAWNA RUSSELL/Goddess (Way Out West/Nine North)ASHTON SHEPHERD/Sounds So Good (MCA)SUGARLAND/All I Want To Do (Mercury)TAYLOR SWIFT/Should’ve Said No (Big Machine)
MAY 27COWBOY CRUSH/Tougher Than A Man (Curb/Asylum)
JUNE 2LAURA BRYNA/Life Is Good (Equity)STEVE HOLY/Might Have Been (Curb)RANDY HOUSER/Anything Goes (Universal South)ONE FLEW SOUTH/My Kind Of Beautiful (Decca/Universal)DARIUS RUCKER/Don’t Think I Don’t Think ABout It (Capitol)
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CHRIS CAGLE/No Love Songs (Capitol) 350 points, 131 spins 1 ADD: WDAF
Aircheck Activity includes the top 15 songs that rank 45-50 on this week’s chart or are those that are not charted and have a minimum of 300 airplay points and have shown growth in two of the past three weeks. (* indicates auto adds)
May 12, 2008 Country Aircheck Chart Info Chart Page 4
