Radio has a revenue problem. It also has a relevance problem.
Relevance is what earns listening. Listening is what earns revenue.
Which is why every station’s programming department needs a new type of CRO. Not a Chief Revenue Officer. A Chief Relevance Officer.
A Relevant Moment Radio Missed
Between January 1–16, user-generated playlists featuring songs from 2016 increased by 790%, driven by the viral “2026 is the new 2016” trend.
At the same time, songs from 2016 jumped 150% on Spotify’s Global Top 50.
This happened during a long holiday weekend—a valuable radio sampling window—most stations didn’t respond.
Instead of adjusting playlists, reframing imaging, or reflecting the moment on air, many stations stayed locked into their normal schedules and posted photos on social. Outside of Candy 95.1, I didn’t see many stations actually responding in real time.
If I were still hiring or looking to upgrade PDs across a group, Candy 95.1 PD Rob Mack would already be on my watch list.
(Sung to the cadence of the “Candy Man”)
Who can take a playlist
And sprinkle it with songs?
Who can hear the moment
And move before it’s gone?
Robby Mack can. Yes, Robby Mack can.
The 2016 is the new 2026 trend was a playlist moment the audience handed to radio programmers. And they watched it pass so they didn’t have to remerge the log or get some new voicetracks.
That is so 2016.
What’s alarming isn’t just that radio missed this moment. It’s how obvious it was. The songs were already in automation. No adds. No files to dub in. And no asking your corporate PD for approval to play songs you already had. Scheduling and context were the only requirements.
This is basic programming.
For years, program directors have insisted that familiarity wins ratings (I’m not sure I agree). But when the clearest, audience-driven, familiar song moment of the last decade arrived, most stations did little more than post old artist meet-and-greet photos.
Instead of making it about the listener, they made it about their backstage passes.
The Hits & Misses Keep On Comin’
The 2016 song whiff wasn’t an anomaly. It’s just this week’s example of missed marketing moments.
When Stranger Things made radio cool again through WSQK The Squawk, the opportunities for radio were obvious. Radio station conversation was everywhere and up and down every aisle at Target. Yet across thousands of stations, there was little to no acknowledgment.
Shoutout to KBFF for at least hitting the mark by playing “Purple Rain” after the show’s finale.
Other missed connections (this is getting Craigslist real fast):
- On New Year’s Day, Taylor Swift’s “New Year’s Day” went largely unplayed or posted.
- Last week, Harry Styles confirmed a new album is on the way, but very few pulled out those older Harry and One Direction records.
- When the new Bruno Mars song dropped, his catalog should resurface in a meaningful way but most stations settle with resharing the Live Nation tour post. ● The fan-made TikTok for Dr. Peeper was handed to radio fully formed, ready to be interpolated straight into your jingles. (Call Dave Bethell. He can make you one.)
- Becker helped IU win the championship last night. That should have been in your Barrett Media article the very next day. (I’m aware)
These are the gaps the Chief Relevance Officer is designed to close. Plus, bonus points for the fun headline options when a new one is hired: C.R.Oh my!
Why Your Stations Need a Chief Relevance Officer
The Chief Relevance Officer exists for one reason: To ensure the station responds to cultural moments while they are happening—not after they’ve passed.
The CRO’s daily focus is simple: What is the audience thinking, feeling, and doing right now—and how should the station respond today?
Core Responsibilities
- Track real-time cultural moments across music, media, and audience behavior
- Translate those moments into immediate on-air action
- Adjust playlists on the fly
- Align on-air programming with digital and social output, all in unison
- Give talent context, framing, and permission to respond in the moment
- Reduce the delay between idea and execution
The goal is fewer moments where everyone says, “We should’ve done something with that.”
What This Role Is Not
The Chief Relevance Officer is not:
- Necessarily even from radio or working in radio
- A rebranded Program Director
- A social media manager
- A research position
- Another layer of meetings
- An email from an SVP, EVP, or someone whose name starts with “P” telling everyone what to do
Job Description: Chief Relevance Officer
Title: Chief Relevance Officer (CRO) Department: Programming Reports To: The Audience / Head of Content / Program Director / Operations Manager
Qualifications
- Strong programming instincts
- Deep cultural and viral fluency
- Clear understanding of how audiences move between platforms
- Comfortable making fast decisions without waiting for consensus or Phil’s Barrett Media articles
- Ability to collaborate across departments without slowing execution
- Confidence to break routine when relevance demands it
- Relevant (obvie)
Why This Role Can’t Sit in Sales (A Note for GMs)
Some stations would instinctively place the Chief Relevance Officer under sales. CRO reports to CRO.
That would be a mistake.
The new CRO’s responsibility is not to ask, “Can we monetize this?” It’s to ask, “Is this happening right now—and are we responding?”
If the role sits in sales, relevance gets evaluated on if it helps a station hit budget. Marketing moments get slowed down by sponsorship logic and approval chains. By the time a moment is “sellable,” it’s often already gone.
Sales will absolutely benefit from this role.
When relevance leads, ratings and revenue follow.
(P.S. That line, when dropped in an interview, has gotten me a lot of gigs. You’re welcome to use it.™ Phil-Osophy)
Stations often lose for what they don’t do, as opposed to what they do do (Yes, I said “do do.” The irony is not lost on me.)
The Choice in Front of You and Your Company
Magic and topicality doesn’t wait. It doesn’t care when you do your music meetings. It has no regard for how things have always been done.
Stations can either:
- React after the moment has passed and reinforce the perception that we’re legacy (aka old)
Or
- Respond while it’s happening and actually do what you say every time you claim to be “live and local” in a press release.
Hire yours today or become irrelevant.
-Phil Becker
CEO (Chief Entertainment Officer)
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. Sign up for our newsletters to stay updated and get the latest information right in your inbox.
Phil Becker is a weekly music columnist for Barrett Media who has built his career at the intersection of creativity, strategy, and operations leading brands, marketing, and content teams across more than 200 radio stations worldwide.
Known for being ahead of the curve, he was the first to integrate social influencers into broadcast brands, launch station apps years before his peers, and pioneer AI air personalities before anyone else in the world.
With leadership roles at Clear Channel, Citadel, Cox Media Group, Alpha Media, and international ventures—as well as owning and operating stations—Phil blends entrepreneurial vision with operational discipline in the messaging and marketing space. He also hosts the Phil-Osophy podcast.
