Since my last stint at a station, I’ve been listening to radio — especially urban radio — simply as a listener. I found it easier than I thought not to critique anything — I just wanted to be entertained and informed. But I can say with complete honesty that I wasn’t consistently entertained or informed.
Once I started writing this article for Barrett Media, I had to put my programmer’s hat back on, albeit with a content creator’s eye. Listening last week, I heard some things that made me wonder what we should expect from radio—specifically, urban radio.
Back in the “olden days,” we used to talk about the three-song sweep. When you listened, you got a sense of the station’s essence. Those three songs—paired with the branding and imaging—gave you a clear idea of what the station represented.
During a recent listen to a couple of stations, one presented a sweep of Mariah the Scientist (still not sure what that’s all about), Ella Mai, and Mariah Carey. And before you ask — no, it was not a new Mariah Carey song. Not to be outdone, another urban station in the same market played Usher (a great song, by the way), Ne-Yo, followed by one minute and 30 seconds of dead air, and Babyface in its sweep.
Some may think this is no big deal; however, hearing three female artists and three male artists back to back was a big deal to me. For me, this signaled that someone was asleep at the keyboard or that it wasn’t a big deal to them.
When programming a station and editing a log, I was always mindful of that three-song sweep. I’m not saying I was some kind of super-PD and that every sweep was perfect. There were plenty of times — listening in my office or in my car — when I knew I could have made a better choice for a song or an imaging element. But “great” should never get in the way of “good,” and even as you always strive for excellence, no one is perfect.
All of this got me thinking about listeners and what they expect from a station. Now, I’m a research guy, so maybe I need a perceptual study or a focus group to answer that question. But there’s a prevailing thought that radio users are essentially the same ones who have always used radio—that radio is not attracting a high percentage of new users.
In line with this thinking, if the songs that are considered classics still on the radio are from the last 20 years, and if I limit my query to adult listeners, I should be good, right? At least, that’s the logic. And let’s be honest: there are plenty of people in this country who use far less information to form their opinions.
Since I was active in radio 20 years ago — and for some time after — I’m comfortable making an educated guess about what listeners want from their adult urban station. But what they expect and what they deserve are not necessarily the same thing. Listeners expect quality. They expect accurate information. They expect to be entertained and informed.
Once upon a time, how a station served its community was one of its defining measures. I remember every time we launched a new station, research showed exactly where the current urban options were falling short. Heritage brands were once so strong they could be deficient in certain areas and still withstand an attack from a new challenger.
Listening today, I’m not so sure that’s still the case.
If mediocrity becomes the standard, then the listeners—and the community—lose.
I’d love to hear your thoughts. You can email me at ken@kenjohnsonmedia.com.
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Ken Johnson is an Urban/Hip-Hop columnist for Barrett Media. Born and raised in Washington DC, his career experiences include serving as VP of Urban formats for Cumulus Media, holding the Director of Urban Programming post at ABC Radio Networks, and programming stations in Birmingham, Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City. He has also managed affiliate relations for the Nick Cannon show, and worked as the Executive Producer of The Hughley Truth Podcast hosted by comedian DL Hughley. Ken currently runs Mean Ole Lion Media, a content creation company and podcast network. He can be reached by email at ken@kenjohnsonmedia.com.
