rlr (01/10/83)
(In a more rational vein...) There was an article in Rolling Stone a few weeks back describing the mentality of the music programmers at AOR (album-oriented rock) radio stations and their listeners. AOR, for those of you unfamiliar with the acronym, refers to a musical classification consisting mostly of hard rock (???) and heavy metal, with the intended market of the 12 to 24 year old white male, which is thought to be the main population group involved in purchases of music-related items (records, posters, jackets, ...). This is where the big money is thought to be in radio today. The programmers at these stations consistently play the same brand of music (heavy metal, sprinkled with 'acceptable' oldies like the Doors, Stones, Beatles) and refuse to open the airwaves up to new artists. Since up until recently these were the only "rock" stations around, new artists with new styles (read "new wave" if you like) could not receive airplay because the programmers felt the audience wouldn't accept it. This, despite the fact that the records were making a dent in AOR sales (or perhaps because of that fact). What would happen if some adventurous programmer played some "new wave" or (God forbid) black music on an AOR station? Those in charge were afraid that their audience would call in and say "Stop playing that junk" or "Get that nigger music off the air" <-- not my words, the words of HM listeners who *did* call in to such stations! I speak not just as a listener but as a musician as well. The monopoly that AOR music has in radio today hinders the creative musician and his/her ability to gain a following in the be-all-and-end-all, the marketplace. No airplay, no sales. It is the hope of such people that the dinosaur known as AOR radio will collapse of its own weight (it is, after all, *heavy* metal). Perhaps I speak *more* as a musician than as a listener when I complain about how the proliferation of AOR and HM hurts those who really want to make new and different *popular* music. It won't get popular if you don't give people a chance to hear it. What are they afraid of when they keep this music off the air? Rich
burris (01/10/83)
#R:pyuxjj:-38800:ihlpb:6900017: 0:726 ihlpb!burris Jan 10 0:23:00 1983 If your favorite radio station is a local call, call in your requests! If you and enough of your friends do it, IT WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!! The station is operated to obtain a PROFIT. It obtains it's profits from being able to prove it has listeners. The absolute best way for a station to know people are listening and what the listeners want to hear is if they are being reminded CONSTANTLY. Many stations will ask your age when you call, or if you are a student, etc. This information helps them to know what kind of programming to air. Remember it takes SEVERAL listeners to make a difference, but sitting and complaining will not change anything. What have you got to lose? Dave Burris ihlpb!burris BTL - Naperville
mes (01/10/83)
#R:pyuxjj:-38800:harpo:9700002:000:967
harpo!mes Jan 10 09:58:00 1983
After being closely associated with a mechanized monster type station
(i.e., DrakeChenault automation) for several years, I can verify that
requests do make a difference! After about six years and many,many
phone requests to get that machine the #$%^%&&% out, (listeners words,
not mine), the ivory tower management looked down and saw the almighty
arbitron ratings disappearing (tragedy, in a very real sense, for a radio
station). In a matter of minutes (seemingly), tabulations were ordered
for all listeners calls, and based on a few months of this, the machine
made way for real live human type disc jockeys. But, the material that
those jocks play was (and is) primarily dictated by listeners calls (which,
unfortunately, seem to come only from the 12-19 age group and run heavily
top-40, so that's pretty much what the station is nowadays).
Keep Calling! It just might help!
Michael Sajor, harpo!mes, BTL-Whippany NJ