Steve We’re about to go into 2023 as I write this. A couple of weeks ago, I came across an article about record company efforts to manipulate the streaming charts. This is as old as music charts themselves. When I was a kid music director, I was just incensed at the idea a Payola. You know, … Read more
I’ve just seen this in my morning in-box (12.2.2022). Earlier this year, I began noticing some of the News and History YouTubes that I graze were being narrated by non-humans. I’ve been training, coaching and critiquing Disc Jockeys since the late ’60s children so believe me when I say I can always tell a ‘plastic’ … Read more
I like the title of the report: Understanding Your Brain on Sound. If you are deep into radio production, this article from Spotify will be of interest. In the hands of a smart ad salespeople the report (along with it’s authoritative-looking brain maps) will be a strong sales tool. It suggests that an audio ad … Read more
Youngsters probably won’t know the name. One of the original Rock ‘n Rollers, Anka recorded his first hit record in 1956. “Diana” went to #1 on the Billboard chart almost immediately after its release in ’57. He’s written hits for Tom Jones, He wrote “My Way” for Sinatra. Over the years, his royalties for “The … Read more
Music radio as we have now sprouted in America which alone among nations in the 1920s and 30s allowed independently owned, commercialized radio licenses. Before television, all radio station programming was a mishmash of mostly locally produced programming and syndicated national shows; soap operas, audio plays, daily and weekly comedy and variety series. It was … Read more
I first wrote about my scorn for call-out research in a 1979 article for Radio & Records, then the industry’s primary weekly trade sheet. Even as it went to print, I knew my points wouldn’t count for much. There is just too much comfort in a stack of numbers next to a song list. Looking … Read more
The research report is posted here. Spotify commissioned a world-wide sample of 9000 podcast listeners under 35. I don’t know the value of including people in Banghladesh with people in Brooklyn, but it ain’t my money. Big finding? (Fanfare/ TA-Dahh): Audio advertising works! This report was about podcast ads, yes. But what are those but … Read more
Back in the last century for most of the top PD’s in the biz it was a given that Consistency was one of the most important factors in ratings success. Good ratings came from 1) keeping listeners tuned in for at least another quarter hour and 2) giving them a reason to come back again … Read more
It’s all over the radio trades in the USA this month. AdsWizz has released a research study that tries to measure what they call Cost Per Action, or CPA. That means, how much it costs to get an action from a listener. The action is either a click on a website link or make a … Read more
Variety is not what you think it is. In almost every competitive music radio ratings battle, the station playing the fewest songs has been the one that came out on top. Why is that? Because when the listener stops on the ‘tight list’ station, he or she are more likely to hit on a hit … Read more