4 Country Stations in Detroit-Windsor

[Deleted User 15506]

Now that we have 4 Country stations in the Detroit-Windsor Area, which one will eventually flip to something else? I can only guess that it wouldn’t be WYCD or Pure County 89. Now the two losers would be New Country 93.1 and Windsor’s Country 95.9. My guess would be 95.9, that station has got to be hurting for ratings and advertisers. The big question would be, what could 95.9 become? Possibly a Soft Adult Contemporary similar to what The Breeze 98.7 could have successfully achieved in time. Only time will tell, but 4 Country Stations in an area like Detroit and Windsor is way too many. In many markets the most Country stations are usually two that makes two too many Country stations in Market #13. What is your take on this subject?

[Deleted User 14896]

Personally, I hope you are wrong about 95.9 flipping. I actually care for their flavor of country over the other 3 stations.

To me, 93.1 sucks. It's just people with a southern accent playing whatever they want. It would not surprise me to hear an Alice Cooper cover on there.

[ftballfan]

95.9 would be a good stick for a Gold-based country station as it's by far the weakest of the four country stations in Detroit-Windsor

[Deleted User 9015]

i grew up on classic country. new country is horseshit compared to boxcar willie, ernest tubb, conway twitty, loretta lynn, etc. country music nowadays is probably just about as garbage as christian rock, and christian rock is some hardcore trash.

[MrTaterSalad]

I wish someone in country radio programming would grow some stones and have the guts to program an Alt-Country/Indie Country station. Essentially the country version of a AAA station. A music mix that still played modern and classic mainstream artists that sound discernably country but also throws in independent-label and off the mainstream radar artists. Most all of the bro-country, pop-country, and fake country-rap would be eliminated. So no Florida Georgia Line, Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, Jason Aldean, Rascal Flatts, etc. unless they release songs that are discernably country. I'd play a 10 song music block that was 4-5 mainstream artists that sound country from 2010 onward, 2-3 independent label artists from 2010 onward and 1-2 classic/gold artists from Johnny Cash/Willie Nelson/Waylon Jennings in the 1970's through the 2000's.

Most of the country stations today are using a CHR-based jingle package and imaging as well 99-5 YCD (BELCH) and New Country 93.1 are both doing it here locally. I'd like to hear station imaging that tells me from the moment I tune in that I'm listening to a country radio station. A branding that says Today's Real County and Your All Time Favorites or Real Country Variety. KOKE-FM in Austin Texas is the only mainstream FM radio station I've come across so far that has tried to do this kind of programming. Admittedly, KOKE-FM in the Austin market, a progressive, southern demographic, still does poorly in the ratings pulling in a 1.5 share.

Were I to get my wish a 2hour, 10 song music block might look something like this.

Hour #1:
Eric Church - Springsteen
Miranda Lambert - House That Built Me
Jason Isbell - We Were Vampires
Holly Williams - Highway
Easton Corbin - A Little More Country Than That
Sturgill Simpson - Life Ain't Fair and the World Is Mean
Johnny Cash - Folsom Prison Blues (Live From Folsom Prison)
Turnpike Trubadors - Long Hot Summer Day
Chris Stapleton -Tennessee Whiskey
Reba McEntire - Is There Life Out There

Hour #2:
Carly Pearce - Every Little Thing
Tim McGraw - I Called Mama
George Strait - Carried Away
Maren Morris - The Bones
Brooks & Dunn - Red Dirt Road
Josh Turner - Your Man
Wade Bowen - Who I Am
The Highwomen - Redesigning Women
Dolly Parton - My Tennessee Mountain Home
Colter Wall - Caroline

[Steve79]

I don't see Blackburn trying the soft AC again.... they seem very cookie cutter with their formats in every marked, HOT AC/ROCK/COUNTRY.
If they were smart they'd tweak CHYR (mix 96.7) to incorporate some "office friendly" music. sprinkle in some 70's, 80's, 90's Adult Contemporary music.... the perfect mix at work Mix 96.7.

95.9 will stay country.

93.1 WDRQ however I'd keep an eye on them to change. Not sure to what but they seem like the only possible candidate.

[windsor]

I don't see Blackburn trying the soft AC again.... they seem very cookie cutter with their formats in every marked, HOT AC/ROCK/COUNTRY.
If they were smart they'd tweak CHYR (mix 96.7) to incorporate some "office friendly" music. sprinkle in some 70's, 80's, 90's Adult Contemporary music.... the perfect mix at work Mix 96.7.

95.9 will stay country.

93.1 WDRQ however I'd keep an eye on them to change. Not sure to what but they seem like the only possible candidate.

Isnt CFCO630 a country format??? While not in the market, still a pretty good daytime signal coming our way.

But I agree with Steve79, Nash fm would be the next one to flip if you could pick a country to do it.Pure Country89, lame name btw and Country 95.9 Blackburn will be still with us as country 5 yrs from now.These owners are lazy and want just cookie cutter with little or no thinking involved.

Not a country topic...but if I was to tweak a Blackburn station it would be Cool FM which is a train wreck in its present form imo. Keep the moniker but flip to a Rockin 70's format with rock and pop of the 70's.....Guess Who, Neil Young, BTO etc... alot of cancon in that era along with the Seger's,America,Bowie,Benatar,Knack,Styx,CCR,Steely Dan,Fleetwood Mac etc etc.....the 70's probably Windsor's greatest era. What they have now is just white noise on a crowded classic rock dial.

[Mega Hertz]

I don't give a shit which one flips so long as one of them does it and soon.

[Deleted User 15502]

95.9 and 88.7, don't target The American side, so there not dependent on US side listenership . 99.5fm does quite well and 93.1 sort of has it's high's and low's. Also throw W-4 country in the mix, Q95 from Adrian and K-100 from Toledo can be pulled in, well up into SE MI. There again, it has no bearing on Detroit.

Back to Detroit, 93.1 would be the likely one to go but I don't see it at this point.

[ChrisWL1980]

Nash Icon (98.3 Monroe / 93.1 HD2 Detroit) plays a lot of the good stuff, but you have to sit through monstrosities like Niko Moon, Chase Rice and Jake Owen to hear them.
Thank God I'm within listening range of Duke FM.

[radioandtventhusiast]

Nash Icon (98.3 Monroe / 93.1 HD2 Detroit) plays a lot of the good stuff, but you have to sit through monstrosities like Niko Moon, Chase Rice and Jake Owen to hear them.
Thank God I'm within listening range of Duke FM.

I remember hearing Niko Moon for the first time. Didn't sound like one-bit country. He doesn't even have a country-sounding voice.

[ChrisWL1980]

WDRQ's HD exciter has been off for at least a few weeks. No HD = no Nash Icon on 93.1 HD2. The audio quality of their HD2 has long been poor.

Thanks for the update. I wasn't aware it was down. 93.1's HD signal is extremely poor where I live so I haven't been able to tell if it was down or just not decoding.
99.5 should flip one of its HD side channels to Classic Country. Both their current HD2/3 formats are a waste.

[ChrisWL1980]

Nash Icon (98.3 Monroe / 93.1 HD2 Detroit) plays a lot of the good stuff, but you have to sit through monstrosities like Niko Moon, Chase Rice and Jake Owen to hear them.
Thank God I'm within listening range of Duke FM.

I remember hearing Niko Moon for the first time. Didn't sound like one-bit country. He doesn't even have a country-sounding voice.

As of today, that abomination is at #1 on the Mediabase 24/7 Country chart, and the #1 most played song on WY- oops, I mean "99-5 YCD" (so says the autotuned Camila Cabello imitator who sings their piece of shite jingles). It makes Sam Hunt sound like Waylon Jennings. Almost.

[radioandtventhusiast]

Nash Icon (98.3 Monroe / 93.1 HD2 Detroit) plays a lot of the good stuff, but you have to sit through monstrosities like Niko Moon, Chase Rice and Jake Owen to hear them.
Thank God I'm within listening range of Duke FM.

I remember hearing Niko Moon for the first time. Didn't sound like one-bit country. He doesn't even have a country-sounding voice.

As of today, that abomination is at #1 on the Mediabase 24/7 Country chart, and the #1 most played song on WY- oops, I mean "99-5 YCD" (so says the autotuned Camila Cabello imitator who sings their piece of shite jingles). It makes Sam Hunt sound like Waylon Jennings. Almost.

Agreed. It makes Sam Hunt, Jake Owen, Chase Rice and FGL sound all like traditional country musicians.