Commercial Alternative

10/6/1995 

Long, long ago in a land far, far way, I was a program director.  Okay, it wasn’t that long ago and it wasn’t that far away in distance, though an argument could be made that Sacramento is as long ago and far away as you can get.

The last station I programmed was KWOD.  For many reasons, KWOD wasn’t competing well in the Mainstream Top 40 arena.  Maybe it was because the station had been buried long before I got there; maybe it was because promotional budgetary constraints made the playing field uneven; maybe it was because I did a poor job programming in the face of outstanding competition.  (No, that couldn’t have been it!)  Maybe I was out of my mind.  (A strong case could be made for this…after all, I did pose for a Hitmakers cover!)

Whatever the reasons, we had to find another way to increase our audience.  After much soul-searching and a lot of research, we decided to adjust the format.

Live 105 reached into the outlying areas of the Sacramento metro and was exposing Alternative music to an increasingly loyal audience.  On my many trips to Los Angeles, I heard more and more people listening to KROQ.  It was hard to ignore KROQ’s success since KWOD’s owner also owned KROQ-AM, even though it was off the air

Based on all these factors and more, KWOD became one of the first Top 40 stations to weave Alternative music into the mix.  (Hey, I invented that format!)  It was easy to decide that KWOD should take a more Alternative approach.  It wasn’t nearly so easy to define the parameters that would establish the music inclusions and rotations.

The same is true today…maybe even more so. 

If you program a strictly Alternative station, it isn’t difficult to determine the music mix.  Alternative promotion people keep you aware of what music is available and what is hot.  There are many other radio stations with which you can compare your playlist.  The main decisions faced by most Alternative programmers are: (A) How Alternative do you want to go, and (B) how deep into the catalogue do you want to delve?

The Alternative format is basically artist driven.  Those programming in this format can define the music without a lot of effort.  This is not to say that it is easy to find the Alternative hits, but within the definition of the format, choosing the right music mix is more a matter of selecting the right songs from the Alternative pile rather than making distinctions about what is and what isn’t Alternative.

The task facing Mainstream Top 40 programmers is not so easy.

As Alternative music has gained more and more support from the Mainstream, Top 40 stations have reacted. Many have no choice.

Alternative music isn’t a fad (at least not today…maybe tomorrow).  It is a fact that a large percentage of the Mainstream audience wants to hear a certain percentage of the Alternative pie.

How much and which cuts?  Those are the big questions.

An increasing amount of my time, and that of the rest of the staff at Network 40, has been taken up with this discussion.  Programmers across the country are searching for the right answers…and the right questions.  How Alternative should we lean?  What Alternative songs will cross all the way into the Mainstream?  How many Alternative songs should I include in my music mix?  Is this song the right one?

Programming a Mainstream Top 40 station with an Alternative lean is one of the toughest jobs in the business.  There is no consensus with which you can compare your station.  Each situation is different.  Is your market already served by a successful Alternative station?  Do market demographics offer you a broad or restrictive target?  Are you the only Mainstream Top 40 game in town?  Does an advertising base exist to mirror programming performance?  Do you have the expertise?

In the final outcome, it is the music that matters.  That is why Network 40 has debuted the only chart exclusive to Mainstream Top 40 stations that lean Alternative.  We call it “Commercial Alternative.”  Why?  Because that’s what it is.  The CA chart lists the cream of the Alternative music crop.  Those songs high on the CA chart have the best chance of advancing and doing well in the Mainstream.

Our data base for this chart is small.  We took the most aggressive Alternative stations and those Top 40’s with an alternative stations and those Top 40’s with an Alternative lean and made them a part of the mix.  Market size wasn’t considered, only a station’s musical stance and commitment.

If you are a cutting edge Alternative programmer, this chart will serve as a guide to let you know what “smash” Alternative songs you might be missing.  If you’re Alternative programmer with a Top 40 lean or presentation, the CA chart will show you the right songs to play.  It will give you a great comparison.

If you’re a Mainstream Top 40 programmer with an Alternative lean, say “Hallelujah!”  Help has arrived.  The CA chart will give you a clear picture of Alternative songs with a track record and potential to cross into the Mainstream.

It took Network 40 a long time to compile the data and produce a Commercial Alternative chart.  It was no easy decision.  Our industry doesn’t need another chart just to satisfy the needs and wants of a trade magazine.  And although my experience with KWOD made me sympathetic to the plights of programmers, this was by no means my idea.  The CA chart is truly a reflection of the needs of our industry.  After just one week, it’s already a success.  Nothing Network 40 did before has stimulated such positive response.

Record companies and radio programmers were instrumental in helping to determine the stations included in the data base and with the definition of the chart.  Record companies now have a concise chart with which to prove which records are really crossing into the Mainstream.  Programmers can compare their selections with those of other stations in similar formats.

My thanks to those of you in both radio and records for helping to make Commercial Alternative a reality.

It’s about time