KCTY (106.9 FM) is now "Power 106.9, Omaha's Hottest Jamz."The change was made Friday at 3 p.m., when NRG Media pulled the plug on its "BOB FM" format on 106.9 FM and rebranded the Hip-Hop/R&B format of KLBR (97.3 FM) and its translator station, 107.7 FM. As of Friday afternoon, 97.7 and 107.7 FM were simultcasting KCTY's signal.
Of the former "Hot 107.7/97.3" on-air lineup of personalities, only three are listed on Power 106.9's new website: "Hot Boy" (9-10 a.m.), "Bizzy B" (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) and "Mista Soull" (6 p.m.-10 p.m.) No mention is made of "Russ Parr," "P Minor," "Big Alo," "Big Tigger," "Houston," "Pappa Gattor," "Walt Baby Love" or "Marcey Projex."
The station's "411" section reads:
"It was almost four years ago to the day that Hot 107.7 and 97.3 was born. One thing that held us back was power. We didn't have the power for everyone in the metro to hear what we were doing. It is a new day in Omaha - and as of now - we've got the power. Today, Hot 107.7 and 97.3 moves to 106.9 in honor of this new found power, we're introducing you to the new Power 106.9."
The station's on-line playlist includes music from artists such as E-40, Yung Joc, Lloyd Banks, Chop Suey, Lionel Richie, Shareefa, Manish Man and Johnta Austin.
NRG Media Vice President of Programming Mark Todd could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon. On Thursday, Todd said the BOB format was not resonating well with listeners and that Connisseur Media had taken out a permit to "construct" a new radio station on 107.7 FM.
32 comments:
Power 106.9 made its debut at 3pm. I think the young and urban audience will listen. However, I'm not sure that "Power" is the best name for it. First, the station is only 25,000 watts (unless the FCC granted approval for an increase in power), which is on the low end of wattage of most FM stations in town. Second, "Power" is used by a lot of Clear Channel stations. I hope this doesn't become another "Kiss" incident where Clear Channel owns that name--like what happened to 94.1 a few years ago. Third, "Power" has been used as a moniker since the '80s and may be a little dated.
But what's in a name, right? If they play the right music, people will listen.
I wish the boyz @ Power 106.9 good luck...that frequency hasn't had the best of success here in the Big O.
Cool but why is no one asking what format 97.3 is going to have now. 107.7 will go slient but the other one is too big to just let go. details people
97.3 please not country. FM talk?
mabey it will be sold to someone who could use the smaller signal or be moved to omaha for the COL.
Maybe BOB will move from the city to the country
Satellite radio people... Only 13 bucks a month and you not only won't worry about all this bs...you won't have to worry about carrying CD's around either. If you can afford it, is the only way to go.
BOB was not resonating because nobody from NRG gave a crap about promoting it or staffing it with live personalities. They had their chances. They had a window of opportunity but chose not to invest. The ratings on that frequency have never reached or exceeded those of Nostalgia 106.9 in the 3 formats they've had since.
Satellite?? LMAO Hmmm....$13 a month versus FREE? I tried Sirius....poor audio quality, catalog of music is WAY too deep (i.e. I had never HEARD OF half the songs they play, and I KNOW my music), and the personalities were some of the weakest I heard...for chrissake, they raided the MTV VJ resthome for their 80s channel "air-talents", and you can tell they had virutally no radio experience. Plus, there's NO local element at all. Nice novelty, but once the free-trial period expired, so did my subscription. Save your money, honey.
There is nothing like the FM radio scene here in the "Big O" to prove just how little it really is.
Maybe 97.3 will return to being a "hometown" radio station for Blair? Unless NRG boosts the signal strength, I can't see it being much of a presence in Omaha. Has anyone had much luck listening to it south of I-80?
Has anyone heard details (signal power, format, etc.) about the new 107.7 being "constructed"?
Supreme Commander has a point about how little the Big O radio scene here is. Unfortunately, I think the same comment could be made for Nebraska FM radio in general. In travelling from Omaha to Colorado to visit family this holiday season, I was glad that at least in Omaha there are still *some* live DJs -- trying to get up-to-date (let alone *live*) weather or traffic information in the Kearney/Grand Island area was impossible.
>> Satellite?? LMAO Hmmm....$13 a month versus FREE?
Don't be so quick to diss Sirius. For alot of people FM radio has turned into nothing more than satellite-provided feeds with advertising. Don't believe me? Check out http://www.wrnonline.com/
Satellite radio (Sirius, XM) has it's place. For those of us who get tired of the overly repetitive playlists of most Omaha stations, satellite radio is a welcomed change of pace.
>> catalog of music is WAY too deep (i.e. I had never HEARD OF half the songs they play, and I KNOW my music)
Are you the person who programs 104.5's weekend playlist... er, uh, the person who programmed it years ago? I'll bet with little mental challenge most readers of this blog could list at least 20 songs that 104.5 plays more than once each weekend.
The fact that satellite radio offers such a deep playlist (including channels devoted to formats not found on the Omaha FM dial) is probably why most people subscribe to it -- that and the fact that Sirius offers tons of college football coverage.
BTW, Sirius can be cheaper than $13/month. When I subscribed to Sirius a few years back, they had a deal going that you could get a subscription good for the life of the radio for $400. As long as the radio you buy lasts for a few years, the cost is below $13/month.
the sirus option is obivious but back to the topic of 97.3 please. How about a active rock to compete with "non com" 89.7. Something like what the dam use to be.
>> For those of us who get tired of the overly repetitive playlists of most Omaha stations, satellite radio is a welcomed change of pace. The fact that satellite radio offers such a deep playlist (including channels devoted to formats not found on the Omaha FM dial) is probably why most people subscribe to it. <<
The only people who complain about "repetition" and not enough "depth" in playlists are A) "music geeks" who know every song ever made (i.e. 1% of the population) or B) "radio geeks" who listen to the radio 12 hours a day and thus hear the rotations come a round a few times (i.e. 2% of the population). Radio is not programmed to either of those tiny demos. Radio is programmed to the casual fan, who only knows a few songs, and can only listen an hour or so a day. Stations with "deep playlists" NEVER succeed (see also: 106-9 The City.....known in Omaha radio circles as "10-in-a-row you don't know"). Most people TURN THE CHANNEL when they hear an unfamiliar song. As far as repetition...if stations didn't repeat those songs, the casual listener (i.e. 98% of the population) would complain they're never getting to hear their favorites, because they're only getting played once a day, and the odds that they happen to be listening at that time are slim.
Point being......satellite is not an alternative for your average radio fan. It's for the "geek squad".
BTW, I see everyone complaining how "little" Big O radio is, but I don't see specifics or solutions. And not for nuttin', but when I recently when to Chicago and St. Louis, I heard radio that really wasn't any better than Omaha.......so I'd say we're hangin' in there with the "big boys" pretty nicely.
Having been a FORMER Sirius user let me add my 2 cents.
I honestly believe that Sat radio is taking away more from CD's, tapes, etc than radio. Radio is or at least should be more than music.
Bob changed format. Why? Because it was just music and not radio.
Radio is personality. Radio is local.
Take a look at the biggest stations in Omaha. The Kat has local live personalities for most of the day. KFAB has a strong local image. Z-92 ditto. ( at least it was it will be interesting to see if the "empire" continues to dominate in Omaha now that it's not so local.)
My point being to win you've got to give them something they can;'t find anywhere else. They can find liner readers anywhere.
Radio needs to develop more local talent in order to survive and thrive.
Halle-freakin'-lujah, former Sirius user! You nailed it....satellite radio is a glorified jukebox. The key to the prosperity of terrestrial radio has always been (and always will be) personalities, content and localism.
I never listened to the BOB format but if it didn't have live local radio personalities I can see why it failed. When I turn on my FM radio not only do I want to listen to music but equally important is the DJ personality. I wan't to to get a sense of the local flavor or local vibe so to speak. I want to know what the 411 is in the area. It is the DJ's who give a radio station its identity. If you don't have that you have anything. If I just wanted to listen to music without having any local identity I have many other options: I can get satilite radio, or listen to my 80 gigibite IPOD, or if worst comes to worst put my CD changer on random and just ride.
When ever some type of change occurs on Friday at 3pm it always seems kind of suspect to me. By the time people recieve the message the person bringing about that change is usually convieniently " gone for the weekend", (in this case holiday weekend),and not availible to answer questions and concerns. Kind of a chicken-$%@&, way of doing business. I was a regular listener of Hot 107/97.3 and I enjoyed the local personalities and flavor. The power upgrade was a definate plus but there are a lot of unaswered questions regarding the local personalities and format. Right now they are just playing continuous music off of their playlist,(3000 continuous jams with no commercials)with no DJ. Eventhough I like the selections in their rotation I am already tired of hearing repeated songs. If they don't begin utilizing local DJ's sometime real soon my interest will drop off dramatically.
Norf O
Couple of points here:
1. YOU dont have to be a music geek to appreciate a deeper playlist. The five thousandth time I hear a song is just to much.
2. BOB didn't have a chance because it had programming that was just a bad impersonation of an IPOD. And it was aimed at people already using an IPod with their own tunes on shuffle. Pure loser that one.
3. Anyone saying that people not hearing what they like tune to a different channel is all wet. The publics favorite tunes had to be NEW tunes to them at some point. If they tune away, it is because the music sucks, not because it is a B-side or album cut. IN fact, I would think anyone who says this never heard KQKQ in the 70's or Z-92 in the eighties when it was all AOR. Nobody turned it off, you wanted to know who it was playing. OR maybe this is all just an indictment of today's music industry cause they ain't got no talent with many good songs, and corporate programmers with no sense of history giving the public what corporate wants to give and not what the public wants. :)
>>The only people who complain about "repetition" and not enough "depth" in playlists are A) "music geeks" who know every song ever made (i.e. 1% of the population) or B) "radio geeks" who listen to the radio 12 hours a day and thus hear the rotations come a round a few times (i.e. 2% of the population). Radio is not programmed to either of those tiny demos.<<
Beleive it or not, you're actually agreeing with me on "radio is not programmed to either of those tiny demos". We disagree on the "music geek" slam, though.
If you have your radio on at work and the station you listen to has a 4-hour long playlist (that is, 4 hours before they start to repeat songs), you're stuck listening to that same playlist 10 times in one week. Too repetitive for me.
Sirius is programmed with over 100 channels. Much like with the presets on your car radio, the idea is to pick the channels that you like and ignore the rest. I don't think anyone expects you to learn the playlists of all the channels.
Don't forget that there are formats on satellite radio that aren't represented on local radio (such as all blues, bluegrass, all-Elvis, all dance) and popular genres are subdivided into several channels so you don't have to sit through as many songs you don't like. For instance, the dance genre on Sirius is divided into Electronic Rock, Smooth Electronic, Dance, and Disco. The rock and country genres have even more subdivisions.
Yes, it's true that one of the main jobs of local radio is to provide a local presence through the DJs. Unfortunately many radio stations seem to be ignoring this responsibility (BOB in point), so the distinction between FM and satellite is continuing to disappear -- other than the ads on local radio.
Supreme Commander makes three good points. One other thing I remember about the AOR format in the '70s and '80s was that it was usually played on "automated" FM stations -- the stations got a set of reel-to-reel tapes each month and the AM DJs recorded the local stuff (weather, ads, etc.) on 8-track tapes that went into a carousel. Someone pressed "play", and off the station went. By the end of the month, you could set your clock by what time the same song played each day. And you could tell what time of the month it was by how degraded the sound quality was (just like casettes, the reel-to-reel tapes wore out with wear).
There were times that the pre-taped local segments could be embarrasing to the station, though. Especailly the weather reports recorded well in advance. There would be times the radio station would play "this afternoon will be mostly sunny" while it was pouring out.
So the repeating playlist problem is nothing new. At least in the old days, there were AM station DJs to cut in on the FM side if there was breaking news (tornado, whatever).
I think that Sirius will take the market away from CD's and IPods as well as FM radio. It offers CONTENT, and a wide variety of it. The disadvantages it has at the moment come from having to get the technology into your car or for you to carry around. The Stiletto is the first product to move them in the right direction, and new cars feature satellite radios directly in the dashboard, so you don't have to link to an empty FM preset. But the key is content. The tone of the critical poster above seems to have the attitude of a local radio person...which explains why FM can't bring new listeners to the table. On satellite, the talent does not have to worry about what Clear Channel, Viacom or the FCC does or does not want them talking about. That results in fresh, entertaining content. Whether you like Howard Stern, Martha Stewart, Oprah, political talk, the wiseguy show, or standup comedians...all uncensored, you can find something much more interesting and entertaining. The few times I have switched over to terrestrial FM radio and listened in, I just marveled at how bland and unentertaining it is. Todd and Tyler? If that's the best you guys have to offer the public, then good riddance.
Yawn! Can't sleep, so sitting here reading the blog.
Let me try and tie a few themes together:
>>There is nothing like the FM radio scene here in the "Big O" to prove just how little it really is<<
>>[While out of town] I heard radio that really wasn't any better than Omaha.......so I'd say we're hangin' in there with the "big boys" pretty nicely<<
>>How about a active rock to compete with "non com" 89.7. Something like what the dam use to be.<<
>>It is the DJ's who give a radio station its identity. If you don't have that you have anything.<<
>>Bob changed format. Why? Because it was just music and not radio.<<
>>The publics favorite tunes had to be NEW tunes to them at some point.<<
>>I think that Sirius will take the market away from CD's and IPods as well as FM radio. It offers CONTENT, and a wide variety of it.<<
If you look at the timing of the demise of AOR/Top 40, it coincides well with the availability of CD ripping on home PCs, the birth of satellite radio and iPods, and the growing demise of live radio DJs. You could go to a grocery store, swimming pool, or go driving around and you'd hear the same radio stations pretty much everywhere you went.
In the '70s through the mid '90s people could tune into a Top 40 station and hear songs they liked mixed with songs they didn't like. Most of the time, they'd like more of the mix than they disliked. And, with new music being added in all the time, disliked songs would disappear within a few months.
With the arrival of the new technology mentioned above, local FM radio have responded by targeting smaller and smaller audience segments -- killing off the old formats by stealing their listeners.
It seems to me the problem now is that the local FM market is fragmented to the point that the current radio station programmers can't fragment it anymore and still make a profit... even when they cut costs by dropping as much of a station's local identity as they can.
Moving on, Omaha radio isn't as "small" as some people think. Try to find a station like 98.7 The River in another market.
One piece of The River's success comes from the fact that they haven't forgotten one of the successful ingredients of the old AOR/Top 40 formats: new music rotated in frequently. The River doesn't have the hugest playlist during the daytime hours, but it never really gets old because new songs are rotated in with frequency.
Because of The River's unique situation of being a non-commercial college radio station it can take more risks than commercial radio station owners are willing to take. Plus, all of the student DJs have every incentive to do the best job they can -- what they're broadcasting today is their future resume. Try to find paid DJs that have that kind of incentive to excel.
Proabably another reason The River succeeds is that the night time programming is substantially different than the daytime programming -- here again, we go back to the DJs. Each DJ is allowed to bring some personality to his/her shift.
Ever listen to the "sponsorships" on The River, a la "This hour of programming is brought to you by Hooters"? You know, kinda like Public TV. It's not like they're far and few between. This just goes to show that local businesses are more than willing to support a successful station (and it's probably a tax write off too).
And The River sponsors local events such as The River's Concert Series at the Sokol. When's the last time a local station put that level of investment on an ongoing project to promote -- guess what -- the music it plays. Sounds like a page right out of a business text book: the get 'em interested in what they hear on the air, get 'em to see the product in person, get 'em even more in listening to your station because they'll remember the good time they had at the concert. But, hey, doing this requires both time and monetary investments. Do you think a corporate guru watching the bottom line would drop this kind of cash these days? The River has the advantage of having students -- so the time investment (a la payroll investment) is less painful.
Given this situation, I think it would be pretty tough for a commercial radio station to compete (anyone remember the early alternative format on 103.7 when it moved to Omaha before becoming The KAT, or 101.9 The Edge before the Dam came along?)
And notice that after a month or so 98.5 usually starts playing the more successful songs on The River. (And shortly after The River rotates in new songs to replace the ones showing up on 98.5.)
So, given motivated DJs and a format that stays fresh, The River is proof that local radio stations can thrive... but it takes motivated DJs and a bit of risk. And commercial radio stations win too: The River weeds out songs that aren't as successful, plus they are able to hire fully trained DJs that are ready to go on their first day on the job.
Disclaimer: I too subscribe to Sirius. I see it as a supplement to, rather than a replacement for, local radio. Sometimes after a long day at work it's nice to just chill and forget about what's going on in the world.
'nuff said. Time to curl back up next to Snow White.
What do I use radio for?
In the car, news, weather, traffic, a little humor, some tunes.
In the house, ambient music of one genre or another.
Satellite works great in the house and on long trips, but really doesn't do that well around town (for me).
I would like to see 97.3 go to a melodic music format like Jazz. I am tired of skank-pop, and ghetto-glorifying hip-hop. Country is a notch better for grown adults, but for the average age of radio listeners, its like Guiness beer, or straight bourbon. Too harsh for uninitiated ears.
Repeating the River on the commercial side would be just as big of a failure as it was every time it was tried.
In the 70's, the old KQKQ station would play whole album sides of big release albums. This was GREAT, and its too bad that a lot of you are too young to remember it. It would go down in flames today as there are two changes. First, the market is fragmented and people who like one thing radically don't like another. Second, most albums today are $20 singles with 9-10 junk songs added to fill the space on the CD. Really, does anyone see an album in 2004-2006 that could have the shelf life of Fleetwood-Mac's Rumors? To say nothing of the sales of the Dark Side of the Moon.
A melodic music station that could run with some differences in programming between shifts could make a nice niche market here in Omaha. Aim for the 25-50 year old market from 0600 to 1900 each day and aim for the 14-30 year old market in the evenings.
I'm going to miss BOB. I thought it was a great station with the mix of oldies, classic rock, 80's, 90's and current hits without the crappy pop music. I enjoyed Chuck Denver, Emjay and Ethan. I heard Ethan on KGOR driving home from work and he sounded solid. Power 106.9 and it's crap hip-hop will be removed from my preset.
Omaha radio sucks. Way too many 80's themed stations. Way too much repetion. Way too much conservative talk. The River is the sole saving grace and it technically is just a college radio station in Iowa!
I lived in Dallas for five years and will say that the radio scene there was much better. A great variety of channels and you could find many things to enjoy. Not perfect, but you can tell the difference between Dallas and Omaha pretty easily. Big 'O' is a middle second tier market with the likes of Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Des Monies, etc. Dallas is a top tier market with the likes of L.A., New York, Chicago, Miami, D.C., etc.
Omaha radio will only get so good because of the market it is in. Right now it has a lot of work to do.
...Tulsa had a really good radio market up until about 5-10 years ago.
Also, some are saying they avoid satellite because of the lack of local content. However, upon listening to local radio...I'm still waiting for local content that isn't crap. Therefore, Satellite radio.
97.3 Format Christian rock??? lol
Omaha radio reminds me of Citizens Band which is a place for people to talk who have nothing to say! DJ's here spend too much time talking to people who don't care to listen. Denver and Emjay were clear, smart, brief and witty who talked to you instead of at you. The program change at 106.9 made it the easiest decsion to change radio stations I've made.
C. F.
Omaha radio reminds me of Citizens Band which is a place for people to talk who have nothing to say! DJ's here spend too much time talking to people who don't care to listen. Denver and Emjay were clear, smart, brief and witty who talked to you instead of at you. The program change at 106.9 made it the easiest decsion to change radio stations I've made.
C. F.
Omaha radio reminds me of Citizens Band which is a place for people to talk who have nothing to say! DJ's here spend too much time talking to people who don't care to listen. Denver and Emjay were clear, smart, brief and witty who talked to you instead of at you. The program change at 106.9 made it the easiest decsion to change radio stations I've made.
C. F.
Omaha radio reminds me of Citizens Band which is a place for people to talk who have nothing to say! DJ's here spend too much time talking to people who don't care to listen. Denver and Emjay were clear, smart, brief and witty who talked to you instead of at you. The program change at 106.9 made it the easiest decsion to change radio stations I've made.
C. F.
Omaha radio reminds me of Citizens Band which is a place for people to talk who have nothing to say! DJ's here spend too much time talking to people who don't care to listen. Denver and Emjay were clear, smart, brief and witty who talked to you instead of at you. The program change at 106.9 made it the easiest decsion to change radio stations I've made.
C. F.
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