The American Radio - Part 41

R.a.n.t. of week 10/26/14

This week I decided to take another break and repost an article written by one of my contributing bloggers, Charles Winthrop. Mostly because this week his series touches on a local radio station.

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So far in this series, I've looked at the origin of the radio as well as the growing and changing evolution of the American radio station. As I continue the exploration this week, I move from information stations to the more mainstream, 'popular' music stations. For this article I'll be looking at a Milwaukee based station, 99.1 The Mix. Details of my findings have been listed below. When looking at this small slice of airplay, it illustrates some interesting data.

First: one needn't wait to long for their favourite song to be replayed. Chances are, when one tunes to the station, ones particular songs of choice will be played within the hour. Given, of course, they are popular, mainstream and modern.

Second: any tune from before 1995 and one will be waiting a while, though a few are still played. Additionally, often requests are taken, an excellent time to get your preferred song played.

For my findings, I took two random days from the week of 10/19/14 between the times of 7:00 and 17:00. Within this time frame, I came up with the following data.

296 song plays
(Averaging less than 15 songs per hour)

Songs most played.
8 - "Am I Wrong" - Nico & Vinz
8 - "Boom Clap" - Charlie XCX
8 - "Love Runs Out" - OneRepublic
7 - "All About That Bass" - Meghan Trainor
7 - "Girls Chase Boys" - Ingrid Michaelson
12% of total airplay

Artists most played.
14 - Katy Perry
(1)California Gurls
(3)Dark Horse
(2)Hot n Cold
(2)I Kissed a Girl
(1)Last Friday Night
(2)Roar
(2)Teenage Dream
(1)The One That Got Away

14 - P!nk
(2)Blow Me One Last Kiss,
(2)Don't Let Me Get Me,
(2)Just Give Me a Reason,
(1)Perfect,
(2)Raise Your Glass,
(1)So What,
(3)Try,
(1) Who Knew

12 - Maroon 5
(4)Animals,
(1)Daylight,
(1)Love Somebody,
(3)Maps,
(1)Moves Like Jagger,
(1)One More Night,
(1)Wake Up Call

12 - OneRepublic
(4)Counting Stars,
(8)Love Runs Out
17% of airplay

Artists having only one song played.
51 - Alex Clare, Anna Kendrick, Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas, Blink 182, Britney Spears, Capital Cities, Christina Aguilera, Christina Perri, D.H.T., Def Leppard, Ellie Goulding, Enrique Iglesias, Green Day, Gwen Stefani, Hoobastank, Imagine Dragons, Jason Mraz, Jessie J, John Mayer, John Mellencamp, Kei$ha, Lady AnteBellum, Marcy Playground, Matchbox 20, Michael Buble, Naked Eyes, Natasha Bedingfield, Nelly, No Doubt, Norah Jones, Oasis, Phillip Phillips, Pitbull, Poison, Police, Rick Springfield, Rixton, Robin Thicke, Ryan Cabrera, Selena Gomez, Sheryl Crow, Soft Cell, Sugarland, The Band Perry, The Fray, The Wanted, Third Eye Blind, U2, UB40, Whitesnake
17% of airplay

Artists having two songs played.
18
11 having the same song - Avril Lavigne, Echosmith, Fleetwood Mac, Florida Georgia Line, Fun, Hot Chelle Rae, John Legend, Magic, Passenger, Plain White T's, Taio Cruz
7 having different songs - Adele, Journey, Kid Rock, Madonna, Neon Trees, Nickleback, Rihanna
12% of airplay

Shortest wait for a replay in a single day.
2 Hours, 20 minutes / Charlie XCX "Boom Clap" (8:47am - 11:07am)

Longest wait for a replay in a single day.
8 hours, 42 minutes / P!nk "Try" (7:57am - 4:39pm)

Interesting to note how songs being played continually only six months ago, have now been relegated to being only single or double plays within a two day time frame. Certainly an indication of the evolution of an American radio station happening before ones very eyes.

Join me next week as I take a look at Indie Rock Stations
Featuring Boston's - 92.5 The River

This excerpt from - 'The Walla Walla Whistler',
used with permission.

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Charles Winthrop is a Washington
state writer & D.J. His interests
include music (both modern and
classical) and is a fine art connoisseur.
His articles have appeared in various
magazines including, 'Art Beautiful',
'Music of the Renaissance', and 'The Walla Walla Whistler'.