To support the launch of the new Barrett Media, we’ve created a special series titled “20 Brands In 20 Days”. We are highlighting successful stations across the country in various formats by conducting conversations with their brand leaders. Today, the spotlight shines on Hubbard’s Alternative KPNT (105.7 The Point)/St. Louis.
Tommy Mattern is the cluster Operations Manager and Brand Content Director for 105.7 The Point. He is in his 24th year of programming the station. Tommy discussed his passion for Alternative Radio and the keys to The Point’s success.
Jeff Lynn: I found Alternative the most challenging format in my programming career. How do you approach the format, knowing that the audience is constantly looking at new things? TikTok, YouTube, all the social media—it’s a moving target.
Tommy Mattern: We look to find music in all the different places, whether it’s the labels or streaming, any of the new music discovery platforms out there. We look at everything. The thing that sets us apart is we’ve got a group of people here at the station that have been together for a good 15-plus years, and I would say that the biggest thing is to know the market and the taste of the market and then consistently serving that. I think that is why we’ve been so successful. Also, we’ve never pigeonholed ourselves into being one type of station.
The reason that we went with the “Everything Alternative” moniker decades ago was because we truly wanted to play every different style that was out there. The Point, which was started in 1993, really signed on with that attitude, and I think over the years, we’ve done a really good job staying true to that.
We’re not afraid to play the guitar-driven side of the format, and we’re also not afraid to play the Billie Eilish-type pop side of the format. I think it’s about finding good music that connects with the audience and making sure you play it.
JL: You talked about the discovery platforms. If you find something consuming in St. Louis that is not on a chart, can you and will you play it?
TM: I will tell you that I might look at the Alternative Chart maybe once a month. I don’t care. I’ve got a great Music Director that’s been with me a long time and I rely on him for a lot of discovery. I don’t care if a record is charting or not. If it’s good, we play it. I think that is one thing the labels love about The Point is we’re going to play something that’s not on the radar, something that a lot of people might not know about, but if we think it’s good, we are going to take that chance and play it.
On the other hand, there could be some high charting records in the top 20 on the Alternative Chart that we are probably not going to play just because we feel like it doesn’t fit St. Louis for whatever reason. On one hand, the labels love us; on the other, they get a little aggravated with us.
I’m looking at the Alternative Chart right now, and I’m not playing the number one song, Hozier. I’m not playing four, five, six, eight, twelve, thirteen. I’m not playing a lot of this stuff because I don’t feel like it fits St. Louis or it doesn’t fit the expectation of what listeners want to hear on The Point. Not that those songs aren’t great songs from great artists, but just not for our audience, what they’ve come to know about The Point, and what they expect to hear when they tune in. I feel like we do a great job of nailing it. That means not playing a lot of these songs that are on the chart.
I think a lot of stations have gone to that streaming philosophy, and they’re going to play the big artists that stream. It’s a lot of one-hit wonders and artists that stream and artist development. We’ve stayed true to bands that we have started playing over the years, whether it’s been Breaking Benjamin, which we broke, or Shinedown, which we were early on, Cage The Elephant, which we were one of the first. We stay with those bands. We made those hits, and we’re along for the artist’s development with the labels.
JL: I think radio overall is missing out on an appetite for music discovery, and you prove that at The Point.
BM: For sure. We do “New At Nine” Monday through Friday which is an hour of new music, we’ve done “New Music Sunday,” on the station since its inception and Donnie does a great job with it. Those things are important, and I think people still listen to radio for that new music discovery. We know we make hits because I play these songs, I play these bands, and I see them grow in venues and selling concert tickets, and we know that it works.
JL: On the other side of the coin, you’re doing the “Wayback Weekend Feature.”
TM: We do. I think the 90s are so important. It is the glue for this radio station. We do “Way Back Weekends,” and we do the “Wayback At 6,” which is an hour of the 90s Monday through Friday. I’ve turned that into “Wayback Pointfests,” where we’ve done shows with 90s artists. It’s a big brand for us under The Point umbrella for sure.
JL: Let’s talk about mornings and “The Rizzuto Show.”
TM: The Point has always had a big personality morning shows, even before I took over in 2000. We had Howard Stern syndicated and enjoyed many years of Howard, which was great. Then we had Woody, who is now in LA at ALT. We had “Woody and Rizzuto” in the morning drive, and it was a great show: high ratings and high revenue. Woody left us in 2014, and we had to start from scratch.
We had his number two, which was great in Rizzuto, who is fantastic, and we built a team around him and have not looked back. The station has been number one, I believe, every quarter since 2014. It’s just a monster morning show. It has evolved over the years. Some people have left the show, and most recently, we’ve added two new people, and it just keeps on going. I’m very thankful. These guys work so hard, and they put in the effort daily. We play no music in morning drive it’s really a stream of conscience type show with a lot of great benchmarks and a lot of fun.
JL: I’ve worked with big morning shows that have had the attitude we’ve paid our dues, we’re big, and we’re done going out anymore. Send the intern or a cast member out to events, etc. Your guys are very active, so that appears not to be an issue.
TM: It starts with Rizzuto. I think that the way that he has always thought about this is that he really understands how to cultivate an audience and those relationships. He knows that part of the deal with that is not just being on the air; it’s going out and meeting these people. He has never shied away from a remote, an appearance, or an event.
These are the guys at Pointfest who do a meet-and-greet every year. The line is hundreds of people who shake hands and take pictures with them. When the leader of the show has that attitude, it is really easy for the rest of the people on the show to fall in line with that. They look at what he has done, how successful he is, and how he has gotten there.
He treats the audience and our advertisers well. He personally calls anyone he endorses to see how it is going and how he can help. I look at him and see him out doing a remote at night. Does he really want to be out eight to ten or nine to 11 and then get up and do a morning show the next day? No, but he does it. The effort they put in is tremendous.
JL: For listeners, what is The Point’s FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out?
TM: I think it starts with “The Rizzuto Show.” It is a must-listen to the morning show. If you listen to the radio in St. Louis, it is a must-listen. We see that not only in the ratings but also in the Social Media engagement.
JL: Speaking of Social Media. Is Facebook still relevant to your audience?
TM: We look at the Jacobs Survey each year, and Facebook and Instagram are still numbers one and two. YouTube and TikTok are growing but still haven’t got to that level yet. It’s smaller, but it is still number one. We’re very active on all the platforms with both the station and “The Rizzuto Show.”
JL: Last thought?
TM: We love success. We enjoy success, but I think the biggest thing is to be constantly innovating and not getting complacent. That is the biggest thing, and it has worked so far.
Listen to 105.7 The Point here. Find them on Facebook, Instagram, and X. Connect with Tommy Mattern by email here.
Jeff Lynn serves as Editor of Barrett Media’s Music Radio coverage. Prior to joining Barrett Media, Jeff spent time programming in Milwaukee, Omaha, Cleveland, Des Moines, and Madison for multiple radio groups, including iHeartMedia, Townsquare Media, NRG Media, and Entercom (now Audacy). He also worked as a Country Format Editor for All Access until the outlet shut down in August 2023.
To get in touch with Jeff by email, reach him at Jeff@BarrettMedia.com.
