Ahhh, urban radio

I dedicate this post to what is wrong with WPGC 95.5 in Washington D.C.  If you don't know much about me is that I'm an avid listener of terrestrial radio (even in this day and age of  mostly corporate-owned radio).  Anyways, CBS Radio's former urban flagship is still suffering from the same problems plaguing it back in 2007 when the Portable People Meter (PPM) system was introduced to the Washington, D.C. radio market.  (PPM is a system of Arbitron ratings that records instantaneous measurements of how many, often, and how long people listen to a particular radio station.)

Apparently, there back to the same place they were some 4 years ago in the DC market overall 6+ Arbitron ratings.  As of December 2012, the station is currently 14th overall in the market.  It kind of embarrassing considering CBS hired Jason Kidd, a DMV local to be the station's program director and turn the tide of this wayward ship in 2011.  Prior to Kidd's tenure, WPGC began to reintroduce some pop songs only spun on rhythmic contemporary hits radio stations like Z100 in New York, B96 in Chicago, and Power 96 in Miami.

Although the station has officially moved from the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop panel to the Rhythmic panel in July, its ratings have remained stagnant with only occasional influx of marginally higher overall ratings.  The results display that their problems lay with playlist which is a mixture of contemporary hip-hop, R&B, and pop songs.  However, the station's mixture of contemporary hip-hop and R&B is mostly chart topper songs from either genre rather than a wider variety of such found on most other urban stations.  Although their promotional events like "For Sisters Only" and concerts of the hottest hip-hop and R&B artists mainly targets 25-40 year black particularly black females, but the all-over-the-place playlist is main deterrent.   Basically, they have given their core audience, 18-49 year old blacks, a reason to look elsewhere a significant portion of the time.

My solution, it's time WPGC goes back to its roots of being an urban contemporary radio station that occasionally spins pop or dance music but focuses primarily on R&B and hip-hop song titles.  However, the DC region hasn't changed to the point that it would warrant them to attempt to sound like Z100 in NYC because the region has a larger than average black population.  Also their numbers are abysmal and there needs to be some serious soul-searching on the station's core demographic group (which has always been 18-49 year old blacks).  It's bad when Radio One's WKYS is eating their lunch like it is going out of style in the 18-34 demographic group overall.

A post dedicated to urban radio

I haven't discussed on this blog in over year the affairs of urban radio, but I am dedicating this one post to it.  Right now, I'm going to dub this one the "State of Urban Radio" post.

Right now, urban radio is in a tizzy because of the recent changes and shifts due to the release of more analysis and summary profiles of 2010 US Census decennial count.  In Atlanta, V-103 (WVEE) is still dominating by a long shot as the #1 urban station and overall station in the Atlanta radio market.  As of the January 2012 Arbitron ratings, WVEE is pushing a 10-share with 9.8.  CBS Radio Atlanta management is doing a helluva job maintaining an equal balance of dayparting musical programming with major events and promotions for the station.  Although, Atlanta isn't considered the largest market for the urban division, the station is still the 'flagship'.

Washington DC, is other major urban radio market where things are still changing and shifting with the times.  After nearly 5 years of floating around and dealing with so many shift, CHRurban juggernaut, WPGC 95.5 has found its footing.  It is finally secured its place back into the overall 12+ top 10 of the Washington radio market.  However, it still hasn't found a way to take down the R&B-exclusive urban adult contemporary formatted stations of Howard University-owned WHUR 96.3 and WMMJ "Majic 102.3", which are still respectively #5 and #6 overall.  I'm a huge fan of CBS-owned urban/urban-leaning rhythmic CHR stations, so I'm rooting for WPGC because they have shown they can be a well-programmed station that competes with both UACs, Radio One-owned urban contemporary WKYS "93.9 WKYS", and Clear Channel-owned CHR/mainstream (top 40) WIHT "Hot 99.5".  Unfortunately, they have just had bad management over the past few years since long time program director/VP of urban/rhythmic programming for CBS Radio, Jay Stevens, jumped ship on them just in time for the arrive of the Portable People Monitoring (PPM) system of ratings allocation into the DC market in early 2007.    WPGC is now back to playing actual hip-hop and R&B, contemporary and old school, along with some crossover pop tracks, which works for them considering they aren't V-103, rather a crossover station that targets blacks, Latinos, and some suburban whites.

In San Francisco, Clear Channel-owned and long-time CHRurban, KMEL "106 KMEL", is still doing their thing.  Although they are the only urban station that targets 18-34 year olds, although they program towards the 18-49 year old crowd.  Regardless, they are still doing their damn thing with #5 overall in the 12+ ratings of the San Francisco-Oakland radio market.  It is surprising for a Clear Channel station, well programmed with throwbacks from the late 1980s through mid-2000s integrated into its playlist and mixshows.  Overall, they are doing a good job.  These days, KMEL is the best programmed urban station in the high ranked market in the nation.

In lower ranked but major markets, Orlando has turned into a complete and utter disaster for CBS Radio.  WJHM "102 Jamz" has shifted towards rhythmic category, essentially dropping all of its contemporary R&B from its playlist, not like DC sister station WPGC which maintained its urban-lean the entire time.  Sitting at the bottom of the heap in the Orlando radio market at #15. Now with a playlist consisting of mostly dance, electropop, and hip-pop tracks, and it sounds like garbage.  This is what happens chasing after Cox Radio-owned WPYO, "Power 95.3" and allowing their sister station UAC-formatted WCFB "Star 94.5" runamok in the Orlando market unchallenged. Their play is to chase after Clear Channel-owned WXXL "XL 106.7" and "Power 95.3" with this shift hoping to bounce back. CBS needs to get it together with WJHM because "102 Jamz" is the only true heritage station in the market that has carried urban music over-the-air, but they are too busy trying to experiment with the rhythmic (non-urban-leaning kind) format in a market with a growing black population (15% as of the 2010 Census).

Not very bright at all if you ask me.  CBS might just failed this market not because of it is trying, but because they are trying the wrong things with a station that actually has the best positioning from signal strength and penetration to reputation amongst urban music listeners in Orlando and Central Florida.  I expect this station to remain sitting below the top 10 for a long time to come because Orlando isn't Miami, where they only have one rhythmic "Power 96" WPOW, that had to constantly reformulate itself to deal with Latin rhythmic stations and a rhythmic AC.  Miami is way more ethnically diverse.

Other mentioning is the strength of black-owned and operated station, KPRS "Hot 103 Jamz", in Kansas City.  Carter Broadcasting Group is still going long and strong even in this corporate-owned radio era with a locally-owned and operated (and non-white owned) urban station.  It is another surprisingly well programmed urban station in this Great Plains metropolis.  Although most of the blacks in reside in the cities of Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City/Wyandotte County, Kansas in the bi-state metropolitan area.  The station has a flamethrower signal that can be hard nearly 70 miles in any direction from its tower site in the southside of Kansas City (MO).

Well, well, well, somebody made it big in urban music out of Pittsburgh

Well, if you know my blog track history then you would know I am an avid urban music fan.  Well, fellow blogger, Urban Radio Nation, did a story talking about how up-an-coming rapper, Wiz Khalifa, making it big in urban radio without a local station being in Pittsburgh.  The blog covers the history and closure of long time "heritage" urban station, WAMO, after nearly 5 decades of being on air in Pittsburgh.  Now it's a Catholic radio station airing religious services and programs.  The closest station to the urban format is Clear Channel-owned top 40, WKST, which plays it because of its charting status on the Billboard Top 100.  However, that station is just paying lip-service to the hip-hop song because its hits status, not because it is local per say.

However, Wiz Khalif has made it so big that he is getting spins with his hit, "Black and Yellow", which is based on the colors of the cities sports teams, like the Pittsburgh Pirates, major-league baseball team.  The single is now on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Song chart.  It celebrates the "Steel City" and its pride for hometown sport teams.  I personally love the song and play it while in the gym working out because the up-tempo beat.

It's just a damn shame that a city as large as Pittsburgh and with a 27% black in the city (about 10% metropolitan area), it doesn't even have an urban radio station serving its community.  Another time and depressing day for listeners of urban radio that want to see stations represent their hometown artists, whom are good and give their city some spotlight, has to use alternative ways of obtaining success.

Why Urban Radio sucks!

Ok, here's my rant on this topic.  As I said many months ago, local radio stations out of Birmingham suck like a Hoover vac since they are so skewed.  Well, here is part 2 of my rant along with the rest of the stations along with why I tolerate over the garbage.

When I do turn on the radio in the vehicle I drive, I cringe because if it isn't for the fact that 98.7 Kiss FM will play a song that should be played during a slow jams show in the middle of the day or Hot 107.7 plays all R&B and no hip-hop aside from Saturday mornings for whatever reason.  It is 95.7 Jamz and their lack of variety.  Now I will say I looked on YES (http://www.yes.com/) and saw that they have added the current Maxwell hit song "Pretty Wings" and Melanie Fiona song "It Kills Me" to their playlists, but only because they are urban hits.  However, they still play the same 25-30 songs over and over again and practically never play any true throwback songs from the 1990s, just those from early 2000s.  Hence, my dilemma.

The other reason why I deplore the local stations is the lack personality any on-air talent that is local has.  I can tolerate Tasha Simone on Hot 107.7 since she makes a good midday personality, but I can't stand country bumpkin wannabe Steve Harvey or Michael Baisden.  Anyone aside from Tom Joyner and his crew on the syndicated morning show puts me to sleep on 98.7.  However, what truly pisses me off is the ignorance that Cox Radio Birminngham allows on 95.7.  Buckwild, whose real name I do know, but refuse to post it because I'm respectful to his privacy, is 40 years old and he tries so damn hard to pretend like he is 'down' with his whackness.  If B-Money (another person whose name I know as well) doesn't stop with is lame self as well I will scream.  Nobody in their right mind would listen to any of the other ignorant, non-pronouncating personalities on that station who all talk like they don't even have a high school education at all.  I mean come on?

Cox acts as if the 18-34, nevermind, their target is 12-24 black demographic group suppose to be that damn dumb in Jefferson and Shelby counties.  They bores us in the 18-34 demographic group with 98.7, so they only chase after the 34-54 year olds instead.  Thus Citadel needs to be monkey stomped with their incompetence of programming an urban here because practically all their urbans in Little Rock and Charleston, SC were inherited along with their management from other companies.

Why is that urban stations can't have program a station these days?  I mean I work in the field of demographics and cultural aspects on a regular, but these stations are so over researched to the point that stations fear to play local or undiscovered artists anymore.  95.7 will play the ghetto ones locally that doesn't have any talent like Soulja Boy tell Em, but aside that nothing.

The stations I do love is KMEL '106 KMEL' in San Francisco that serves the Bay Area and Northern California.  It originally was a Mainstram Top 40 radio station when it first moved in the direction of what it is today in 1983 and evolved from that to Rhythmic Crossover like WPGC in DC to the Urban Contemporary format it has today.  They play quite a bit of Southern hip-hop music for a station in Northern California where the black population is less than 15% of the region's population.  I also love how they play quite a bit of R&B and soul songs along with a good slow jams show on Sundays through Thursdays from 10pm to 2am their time (midnight to 4am my time).  Also they play the music I remember when I was growing up which is perfect for somebody like me in the 18-34 demo.  Their personalites are quite entertaining as well with Chuy Gomez, Sana G, and Big Von on weekdays along with Box Kev on weekends.  I enjoy the station for their realness regardless of the fact that they are owned by corporate misfit Clear Channel, but they apparently bring in the big bucks for them thus the musical freedom. 

V-103 and WPGC "95.5 PGC" wins me over with their personalities and variety within their playlists is at least tolerable for a radio enthusiast such as myself.  I'm more of a balance of both R&B and hip-hop type of person that likes to hear old school, recurrents, and current songs of both genres.  In general, CBS Radio has the best radio stations in the nation hands down over any other group of stations in the urban and rhythmic crossover formats with WVEE, WPGC, WJHM, WZMX, and WMBX in the mix so they speak for themselves.