Before you read this article, do yourself a favor and take a few minutes to go down a YouTube rabbit hole with the best — and possibly the only — Russian Chicago cover band in the world, Leonid and Friends. I’ll get you started with a taste.
I wasn’t familiar with them until I came across a Hypebot article about the band. The focus of the piece by Jeremy Young is their touring strategy, which I’ll get to in a minute. But the more I thought about the band while I grooved to their cover of “Make Me Smile,” the more I realized there are a couple of interesting takeaways for Classic Rock stations here.
Don’t Underestimate Cover Bands
The first: Don’t underestimate the power of cover bands. I still come across some stations and Program Directors who turn their noses up at these acts. But the fact is, they are doing great business. According to a 2024 article, tribute acts are booking more than $1.7 million in ticket sales annually. More importantly, their shows are a gathering point for existing and potential listeners. If they care enough to come out and see a cover band play Classic Rock songs, your station needs to find a way to shake their hand.
I realize that for a lot of stations that are shorthanded, this is a tall ask. And that’s exactly why I think cover band shows are so valuable. It’s efficient marketing. There aren’t many places where you’ll find a higher concentration of people who are highly likely to appreciate the music on your station. Take advantage of it.
Bring the Show to the Fans
Now, while I’m on to their cover of “I’m a Man,” let’s consider the second takeaway from Leonid and Friends. In his column, Young points out that the band’s touring strategy is unique and may be rewriting the book on how to effectively route artists.
He notes that when the band hits the road, it pays a lot of attention to secondary and tertiary markets. They believe that not every music fan lives in a major metropolis. So instead of making everyone drive to the big city, they are bringing the tour to smaller cities like Red Bank, NJ; Shipshewana, IN; Immokalee, FL; and other similar spots. And for the record, those dates are selling out.
It doesn’t mean they don’t play major markets; they just aren’t the only dates on the schedule — and hopefully the back of the T-shirt. And while the Hypebot article doesn’t explicitly state it, I’m assuming that some of these booking decisions are based on their viewing statistics. Since several viral videos have driven their popularity, I’m confident they are using that data to plan tours.
Your Data Shows Where Your Fans Are
Your station, of course, has similar data available. Nielsen reports will tell you where your diaries or meters tend to fall over time. Then consider how long it’s been since your station made an appearance in some of the areas where it’s most popular.
It seems like I frequently hear about parts of town the station just “never gets to,” yet you have fans there. It’s those ZIP codes, much like the smaller markets Leonid and Friends are scheduling on their tour, that are the most appreciative when you come to town.
Before the typical refrain starts — yes, I know, it’s hard to get to ZIP codes that are off the beaten track when the station is shorthanded. I will once again submit that, much like with cover band shows, that’s exactly what makes this worthwhile. It’s efficient marketing.
Promoting an event or remote in an area you rarely go to will bring out the station’s biggest fans, giving you a chance to interact with a lot of core listeners in one concentrated effort. That means you don’t have to do a lot of these. Commit to just one appearance a month. Over the course of a year, you’ll be surprised how many people you’ve gotten to meet and how much they’ve spread the word to their friends.
And now I’m off to groove to their version of “Saturday in the Park,” which is where your station should definitely be if it’s in a hot ZIP code.
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