WLLZ isn't going to change, WIDL is where it's at

[bobhuge]

Bob - your subject line made me think of a song...

Do you guys play "Where It's At" by Beck?

We do! LOL.

We play a lot of tunes that people will ask "why" about. The song made the alternate rock charts. Additionally, we'll use those charts to disqualify a song. For instance, did it hit #1 in the Hot 100? If so, is it "rock" anymore or is it "chr"? For instance, we don't play "You Give Love a Bad Name" - It charted #1 on the hot 100 and only 9 in the album rock charts. But, "Livin' on a prayer" hit #1 on both.

That's our thought process, anyway.

[Mega Hertz]

Interesting post, which brought to mind "crossovers". Whatever happened to crossovers on CHR radio? There's always been tailor-made Top 40 pop product, but I can vividly remember DRQ playing Fuel, Aerosmith, Blink 182, Green Day, and Faith Hill crossovers, amongst others. Rock, Alternative Rock, Active Rock (possibly classic rock...Aerosmith was 30 years into their career when Jaded hit DRQ in 2001) and Country songs all crossing over into CHR territory. I might be wrong (due to my lack of listening) but I don't hear much in the way of crossover anymore on CHR. Any insight?

[syntheticexctasy]

I have heard previous iterations of this station in the past, but have never really tried for it since moving to pontiac. Will have to swing the antenna around today and see if I can find it.

[bobhuge]

Interesting post, which brought to mind "crossovers". Whatever happened to crossovers on CHR radio? There's always been tailor-made Top 40 pop product, but I can vividly remember DRQ playing Fuel, Aerosmith, Blink 182, Green Day, and Faith Hill crossovers, amongst others. Rock, Alternative Rock, Active Rock (possibly classic rock...Aerosmith was 30 years into their career when Jaded hit DRQ in 2001) and Country songs all crossing over into CHR territory. I might be wrong (due to my lack of listening) but I don't hear much in the way of crossover anymore on CHR. Any insight?

Great question. Honestly I don't listen to much CHR anymore. However, I think that the appetite from the CHR crowd or consumer has changed and leans more toward r&b and country, hence you see more crossovers in those genres. Every now and then you might hear a softer classic rock band sneaking into CHR, but pretty rare anymore like you said.

[The Constant Browser]

Bob - your subject line made me think of a song...

Do you guys play "Where It's At" by Beck?

Everyone knows what the first video was on MTV, but "Where it's At"" by Beck was the first video to air on MTV2, August 1, 1996.

[MWmetalhead]

That's a great piece of trivia!

[The Constant Browser]

I checked out WIDL stream, was planning to have it on for a short period of time to sample it, and ended up listening for over three hours straight before I had to turn it off to get other things done. It's a nice mix of classic rock and alternative rock. I heard everything from Jimi Hendrix, to Stone Temple Pilots.

Back in the 1990's WTBB serving Panama City, FL had a format called Pirate Radio, had a similar mix, that I listened to a lot. They were totally automated and had a quirky non-professional style to reflect the stations name. I still remember one of the ID's "From the top of a tall tower, in the middle of a really big field, Pirate Radio."

[bobhuge]

I checked out WIDL stream, was planning to have it on for a short period of time to sample it, and ended up listening for over three hours straight before I had to turn it off to get other things done. It's a nice mix of classic rock and alternative rock. I heard everything from Jimi Hendrix, to Stone Temple Pilots.

Back in the 1990's WTBB serving Panama City, FL had a format called Pirate Radio, had a similar mix, that I listened to a lot. They were totally automated and had a quirky non-professional style to reflect the stations name. I still remember one of the ID's "From the top of a tall tower, in the middle of a really big field, Pirate Radio."

Glad you dug it! I like to think of it as an "oh, yeah" format....

Pirate radio would have been cool to check out then.

[bmw]

Sounds like you guys FINALLY fixed your signal problems that have been plaguing the station for years now. The signal strength here in Tawas City isn't QUITE what it was immediately after the tower move, but it is pretty close. Coming in much better here now for the past few weeks. I assume that also means an improved signal on the southwest edge of your coverage area - too bad that LPFM went on the air in 2016 just north of Flint.

[Colonel Flagg]

Interesting post, which brought to mind "crossovers". Whatever happened to crossovers on CHR radio? There's always been tailor-made Top 40 pop product, but I can vividly remember DRQ playing Fuel, Aerosmith, Blink 182, Green Day, and Faith Hill crossovers, amongst others. Rock, Alternative Rock, Active Rock (possibly classic rock...Aerosmith was 30 years into their career when Jaded hit DRQ in 2001) and Country songs all crossing over into CHR territory. I might be wrong (due to my lack of listening) but I don't hear much in the way of crossover anymore on CHR. Any insight?

Lack of decent crossover product, and the perceived propensity to stay in your own lane programming wise, contributes to this. One can almost link this trend to the timeframe when the Gavin Report, and R&R, ceased to exist, along with increased consolidation and homogenization of corporate radio.

A wild example of a crossover song (to the extreme) would be "Don't Dream It's Over" by Crowded House, from 1987. In the Toledo market, WIOT was the first station to debut the Crowded House record. That song started at AOR, crossed over to CHR, AC, and still stands today as an AC gold staple. That's a long trip across several charts, and it's something you certainly don't see today. I worked mainly in AOR and AC, but not CHR. There are a couple former CHR programmers on the board who can probably pin this down a little better.

[ChrisWL1980]

Interesting post, which brought to mind "crossovers". Whatever happened to crossovers on CHR radio? There's always been tailor-made Top 40 pop product, but I can vividly remember DRQ playing Fuel, Aerosmith, Blink 182, Green Day, and Faith Hill crossovers, amongst others. Rock, Alternative Rock, Active Rock (possibly classic rock...Aerosmith was 30 years into their career when Jaded hit DRQ in 2001) and Country songs all crossing over into CHR territory. I might be wrong (due to my lack of listening) but I don't hear much in the way of crossover anymore on CHR. Any insight?

Crossovers from Country still happen, but they're generally the songs that are already very pop-oriented. Back in the days when Shania Twain and Faith Hill were having pop hits, AC and CHR stations would get a pop mix of the song which eliminated or downplayed steel guitar and other country touches, and sometimes even vocals by guest performers (pop radio got Shania's "From This Moment On" without Bryan White, and Lee Ann Womack's "I Hope You Dance" without Sons of the Desert). Nowadays country songs are so pop/hip hop-oriented (see "Body Like a Back Road" and pretty much anything by Dan + Shay) that they can get on pop radio with little or no remixing. That said, they usually don't make power rotation and typically get spun on more pop- or adult-oriented CHR's the most. Not that remixing doesn't still happen. Gabby Barrett's "I Hope" is probably the biggest country crossover CHR has seen in years, but it took a remix featuring Charlie Puth for it to catch crossover fire.

[ThunderTheatre]

WIDL is the best classic rock station i have heard! Thanks Bob. I have been streaming all day long for a week now. I swear i hadn't heard a repeated song in 4 plus days. Unheard of!

[matt1]

Is that the former "Ideal Radio" in Caro, MI (104.9 FM which changed to 92.1 FM)??? Heard WIDL for the first time back in December of 1980!! That station had to let go at 1:15 AM to conclude the programming in 1981 & 1982. The Stooges (with Iggy Pop) song "We Will Fall" (from their 1969 debut) has Iggy saying "Goodbye" while the men are singing "rah ja ja rah"!!! Former DJ Harry Tripp closed that song!!!

[bobhuge]

WIDL is the best classic rock station i have heard! Thanks Bob. I have been streaming all day long for a week now. I swear i hadn't heard a repeated song in 4 plus days. Unheard of!

Thanks! We try. It'll take about 5-7 days before you hear a repeat. I wish it were longer. Plus, you're probably hearing a lot of songs you haven't heard in a while. That's really the most fun part.

Bob

[bobhuge]

Is that the former "Ideal Radio" in Caro, MI (104.9 FM which changed to 92.1 FM)??? Heard WIDL for the first time back in December of 1980!! That station had to let go at 1:15 AM to conclude the programming in 1981 & 1982. The Stooges (with Iggy Pop) song "We Will Fall" (from their 1969 debut) has Iggy saying "Goodbye" while the men are singing "rah ja ja rah"!!! Former DJ Harry Tripp closed that song!!!

Hi, Matt. It is that station. Comically enough, I grew up Omer...which is comical enough, as it is....and the only thing we could get that had decent AOR at the time was WHNN. Well, when it switched to soft rock in 1981/82 ish, WIDL was the only thing we could get that had rock, and I'm pretty sure only in the evening. It seems like somehow it was tied to WKYO at the time, maybe a simulcast or something. I'd have to dig through archives to be sure.

bh