RadioInsight

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Sarah Smerz Joins WNNS As Morning Host

Posted: 02 Apr 2021 12:33 PM PDT
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/2...-morning-host/



Mid-West Family Broadcasting AC 98.7 WNNS Springfield IL has tabbed Sarah
Smerz as its new morning host.

Smerz has spent her entire career in Springfield, most most recently as
midday host at Neuhoff Broadcasting Country 104.5 WFMB from 2015 until last
June. She began her career at Saga CHR 103.7 WDBR as a weekend host and
spent two years as morning co-host.




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Classic Rock Hog Rides Into Reno

Posted: 02 Apr 2021 11:15 AM PDT
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/2...des-into-reno/



Reno Media Group has flipped Oldies 92.5 1270 KBZZ Sparks/92.5 K223AL Reno
to Classic Rock 92.5 The Hog.

The new brand will also be heard on 106.5 K293CA Carson City and 97.3
KOLC-HD2. That translator had been rebroadcasting Classic Hits 103.7 The
River KODS. Launching with 10,000 songs commercial-free, the new brand will
focus on harder Rock bands with a 70s/80s focus. Core artists will include
AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, Bob Seger, David Bowie, Ozzy Osbourne, Foreigner, Van
Halen, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Def Leppard, Boston, Judas Priest, ZZ
Top, Jethro Tull, Rush, Lynyrd Skynyrd and U2. The Hog will create a format
competitor to Lotuss 105.7 KOZZ.

KBZZ had flipped to Oldies in September 2020.

Launching with 10,000 songs commercial-free, Reno Media Group’s KBZZ
changed from oldies to classic rock today with a new name, “The Hog�.

“The Hog plays real classic rock, something Reno hasn’t had for a long
time,� said program director Mike Bushey. “Key artists include AC/DC, Led
Zeppelin, Bob Seger, David Bowie, Ozzy Osbourne, Foreigner, Van Halen, Pink
Floyd, Black Sabbath, Def Leppard, Boston, Judas Priest, ZZ Top, Jethro
Tull, Rush, Lynyrd Skynyrd and U2.

Bushey explained that KBZZ/AM1270 also broadcasts on translators at 92.5 FM
serving the Reno-Sparks area and 106.5 FM in Carson City, and on KOLC-HD2.

Using the slogan “Reno’s real classic rock,� The Hog is running jockless
for the first month or so but plans to bring on some well-known Reno radio
personalities in the near future, according to Tom Quinn, president of Reno
Media Group.

“We’re starting with 10,000 songs in a row without interruption as a way to
introduce this new station to everyone in Northern Nevada who loves great
rock music,� Quinn said.

Bushey explained Northern Nevada has been without “a pure classic rocker
for a long, long time� and said “this is an obvious opportunity to serve
the community with a station that plays quality rock.�



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Domain Insight 4/2: A Hip Hop Launch Coming In Chicago & What's Next For
97.3 Play?

Posted: 02 Apr 2021 08:38 AM PDT
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/2...for-97-3-play/



On Thursday, the syndicated Ace TJ Show announced it would be moving in
Birmingham from iHeartMedia CHR 103.7 The Q WQEN to SummitMedia Hot AC 97.3
Play WPYA in Birmingham. We indicated a rebranding would likely be
accompanying the launch this coming Monday and now know what that will be.

We also teased on Wednesday about an upcoming Hip Hop launch in Chicago and
while it didnt launch as we had heard it might on April 1, we have more
details within.
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the site and log in/register to read.



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Lost Factors Top 10 Artists: 1970-94

Posted: 02 Apr 2021 07:00 AM PDT
https://radioinsight.com/ross/206164...f-the-70s-80s/





It’s probably no surprise to anybody who’s been following this last year of
articles on the Lost Factor that Donny Osmond is the artist who appeared in
its yearly top 15 measurements most often. Osmond had a wide variety of
hits that spanned nearly 20 years, thanks to a surprise comeback. Whether
they’re his gushy ballad hits, his best bubblegum and power-pop hits with
the Osmonds, his duets with sister Marie, or that late ‘80s Peter
Gabriel-soundalike comeback, they’re all songs that placed well in the
Billboard Top 100 of the year, but get almost no airplay now, according to
BDSradio.

We tallied the number of appearances artists made in our annual Lost Factor
rankings between 1970-94, a 25-year span. Osmond has four of his own, three
with the Osmonds, three with Donny & Marie Osmond. Those 10 songs touch on
a few of the recurring reasons songs don’t endure — being by teen idols
(with a few recent exceptions) or having sounded old at the time (such as
his solo remakes and Marie duets).

More startling are the artists who are tied for No. 2. Daryl Hall is
represented by seven songs, six of them as half of Daryl Hall & John Oates.
Madonna placed seven songs on the list all by herself.

We’ve devoted an entire column to why Hall & Oates had so many hits, but
also so many songs with high Lost Factors. Those range from a huge catalog,
from which not everything could endure, to a radio bias toward pop/rock.
Lost Factor isn’t just the province of the one-hit wonder or the artist who
becomes unhip; it’s also populated by superstar artists whose late-career
songs were carried up the charts by career momentum or industry hype, but
never went to stations’ gold libraries.

There’ve been a number of constants among the types of songs with high Lost
Factors — teen idols, female pop, instrumentals, even R&B titles that
didn’t entirely cross over at the time. Some of the artists who racked up
those songs won’t surprise anybody. But Lost Factor includes a lot of those
songs that weren’t quite really hits at the time, and those often came from
a superstar artist whose label nudged their hit to No. 8 or 9. Even the
illustrious often had two or three Lost Factor titles.

These are the top 14 Lost Factor artists (that seemingly random number is
the result of an eight-way tie for No. 7). Of those 14, six are artists
still represented at Classic Hits or AC radio, sometimes amply, by more
enduring songs. Readers may well have alternate ideas on calculating artist
rankings — should we be calculating spins against chart points for an
entire career, for instance? But the largest piece of the ranker belongs to
unsurprising artists who we’ve been writing about steadily for the last
year.

Here are the top 10 Lost Factor artists of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

1 – Donny Osmond/Osmonds/Donny & Marie Osmond – 10 titles, including the
breakthrough “One Bad Apple� and then a sampling of everything the three
different “acts� did from “Go Away Little Girl� to “Down by the Lazy River�
to “Deep Purple.� Osmond solo accounted for four songs; each of the other
entities for three.

2 – Hall & Oates/Daryl Hall – Seven titles, including Hall’s “Dreamtime�).
Their entries are a reminder that even successful acts have a second tier
(“Did It in a Minute,� “Adult Education,� “Family Man�) and third (“Wait
for Me,� “Everything Your Heart Desires�).

3 – Madonna – Seven titles, mostly from the early ‘90s period after “Vogue�
where she became more polarizing (“Justify My Love�) and CHR became weaker
overall (“Deeper and Deeper,� “Rain�). But the list also includes “Angel,�
part of her 1984-85 hot streak; that song has a relatively low Lost Factor,
but still made the 1985 top 15 because so many songs from that year are so
enduring.

4 – Helen Reddy – Six titles. Both female pop acts and super-soft pop are
often among our highest Lost Factor songs. Contains her entire distaff
story-song trio — “Delta Dawn,� “Angie Baby,� and “Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red
Dress)� — but not “I Am Woman.�

5T Barbara Streisand – Five titles. Her placing is driven by two of the
biggest disappearing songs: “Love Theme From A Star Is Born (Evergreen)�
and “The Way We Were.� The tally also includes her duets with Donna Summer
and Neil Diamond.

5T – George Michael/Wham – Five titles, including Wham’s “I’m Your Man.�
Also includes the pre-“Faith� solo single, “A Different Corner,� and the
1990s’ “Praying for Time� and “Too Funky.�

The following artists are tied for No. 7 with four songs each:

Alice Cooper – The rocker/radio host is here on the strength of his four
ballad hits that eventually got lost between two constituencies: “Only
Women,� “I Never Cry� “You and Me,� “How You Gonna See Me Now.�

Cher/Sonny & Cher – The duet hit is “A Cowboy’s Work Is Never Done.� The
solo hits are “Half Breed,� “Dark Lady,� and “Take Me Home.�

Dr. Hook – They had multiple chart peaks and valleys in the ‘70s and early
‘80s. The songs represented here include their moments of “yacht disco�
(“Sexy Eyes,� “Better Love Next Time�), but also the type of mid-’70s pop
you expect to see here (“A Little Bit More�) and the sort of
throwback/remake that often populates these articles (“Only Sixteen�).

Michael Jackson/Jacksons – Two of his four are celebrity duets, “The Girl
Is Mine� with Paul McCartney and “State of Shock,� which is credited to the
Jacksons, but is really a Jackson & Mick Jagger record. They’re bookended
by an early hit (“Ben�) and a later near-hit (“In the Closet�).

Olivia Newton-John – “Physical� isn’t represented among her four titles,
which include “Twist of Fate� and “Make a Move on Me.� The list does
include her duet with Cliff Richard, “Suddenly,� which certainly reads as
her record as well.

Paul Anka – He was a teen idol in the late ‘50s. He wrote “Puppy Love,�
which helped Donny Osmond cement his spot at the top. But Anka is included
here only on his ‘70s MOR hits with Odia Coates, including 1974’s “(You’re)
Having My Baby,� another huge, now-reviled record. Besides the MOR factor,
there’s also the throwback element which has been a constant in our
discussions.

Paul McCartney – In the ‘80s, his chart momentum was slowing down, but not
before he was able to score briefly with soundtrack hits “No More Lonely
Nights� and “Spies Like Us.� (“Take It Away� is better-regarded, but also
less-remembered.) The fourth hit is “The Girl Is Mine.�

Phil Collins/Genesis – Collins’ place in pop culture has gotten a boost
lately. On radio, his catalog, which was down to a few titles, has been
expanded, in part due to the new Soft AC stations. He’s here because of
Genesis’s “No Son of Mine,� the Marilyn Martin duet “Separate Lives,� and
his own “Do You Remember� and “Everyday.�

Other artists with three include Andy Gibb, Billy Ocean, Donna Summer
(including the Streisand duet), Janet Jackson, Kool & the Gang, Milli
Vanilli, New Kids on the Block, Ray Parker Jr./Raydio, and Sheena Easton.
Duran Duran has two, but Arcadia’s “Election Day� gives the group a third,
if you count it.

Three of our top 10 artists had Lost Factor entries in 1982, the first year
we looked at. Three other acts from that era are on our list of artists
with three top 15 Lost Factor entries, although none spanned two decades of
Lost Factor quite as spectacularly as the Osmond family.

Lost Factor has been one of the best-received series in the decade-plus
history of the Ross On Radio newsletter. We’re very glad that we were able
to provide a diversion in a year that most people will be far more eager to
forget than any song or artist. Look for a few more Lost Factor articles
coming — the rest of the ‘90s/early ‘00s and our 40-year tally of the top
Lost Factor songs of all time. So save just a little time in better times
for your forgotten faves as well.







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Station Sales Week Of 4/2

Posted: 02 Apr 2021 04:30 AM PDT
https://radioinsight.com/headlines/2...s-week-of-4-2/




Clifton Moors BGRS Enterprises purchases 1400 WNEX Macon GA from Creek
Media for $50,000. WNEX had served as the originating station of BGRS 100.5
W263CA Macon under the operation of Creek Media as Alternative 100.5 The X
until the agreement ended on March 1 and the translator went Silent.

Colonias Unidas agrees to transfer 88.3 KXJT Rio Grande City TX to Radio
Bilingue for the forgiveness of $260,587 contributed for the construction
and maintenance of the station since 2007.

Tamara Hunts Luna County Broadcasting Company sells AC 94.3 KDEM and
Country 1230 KOTS Deming NM to Bravo Mic Communications for $190,000. Bravo
Mic owns four stations in Las Cruces NM.
Translator Sales

Prairie Winds Broadcasting acquires 94.5 K233BN Aberdeen SD from VCY
America for $10,000. The translator will rebroadcast an HD subchannel of
Prairie Winds 94.1 KSDN-FM Aberdeen.