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From All Access: Global digital marketing agency WMA has named CRYSTINA CINTI the new Global VP for the company. CINTI previously served as UK Managing Dir. and Global Creative & Partnerships lead. CINTI … more

From All Access: The winners of the regional RADIO TELEVISION DIGITAL NEWS ASSOCIATION's EDWARD R. MURROW AWARDS for excellence in electronic journalism have been announced for Region 14.Radio category … more

From All Access: EPIC RECORDS has promoted AYANNA WILKS to VP/Publicity and hired NATALIE GEDAY as VP/Publicity. SVP/Head of Publicity MELISSA VICTOR made the announcement TODAY (5/27).WILKS became Sr. … more

From All Access: Three more artists have dropped out of their planned performances at this weekend's NRA Convention in HOUSTON in the wake of TUESDAY's school shooting at ROBB ELEMENTARY SCHOOL in … more

From Radio Insight: They are three of the most inescapable songs in the Classic Hits format: “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Eye of the Tiger,” and “Livin’ on a Prayer.” I don’t need to hear them again. When they come on while I’m working, I need to be very busy to let them play through. (Or else it’s a station I really need to hear for work.) But as a programmer, I understand their power. And I wish we had something new like them in today’s pop music. It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot recently while working on a project for the Classic Hits format, but also because of looking at our Song of the Summer 2022 prospects in yet another year that makes even thinking about Song of the Summer difficult.* In doing so, I’ve come to realize that those three songs in particular represent a category that doesn’t exist in contemporary pop music: uptempo songs of encouragement and determination; songs that are brooding and propulsive at once. Those songs are undoubtedly part of the reason for the all-ages potency of Classic Hits and Classic Rock now. (“Positive and encouraging” has, of course, been the positioner for years for K-Love, and Contemporary Christian is one of the only current-driven formats that has grown.) Eighties pop was known for songs that acknowledged the darkness at the edge of town in a much-less-optimistic way. Classic Hits is also the format of “Every Breath You Take,” “Tainted Love,” “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” and “In the Air Tonight.” “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “Livin’ on a Prayer” are not the only songs that set the tone at Classic Hits, but they are certainly part of its success, and they are the ones without a current equivalent. In 2020, we had a Song of the Year in “Blinding Lights” that channeled ‘80s pop, but its edgier side. Our Song of the Summer, “Watermelon Sugar,” was the comfort food, but came with the footnote of both the song and its video having been written before COVID and George Floyd. In 2021, the Song of the Year, “Levitating,” was the diversion. The Song of the Summer was “Good 4 U” and it captured an anger — couched as personal, not societal — still being reflected in songs a year later. With Harry Styles’s return in 2022, ’80s pop is again the motor, but the feel is melancholy and the message is “nothing is the same/as it was.” Its closest competitors include Lizzo’s “About Damn Time,” the emerging-into-the-sunlight song that artists have been reluctant to release until now. Between those songs and Jack Harlow’s “First Class,” what you see as the summer song may come down to how you’re feeling in August. The song that lands most squarely between the regretful and the aspirational is Lady Gaga’s “Hold My Hand.” Being a ballad from a Top Gun movie immediately prompts comparison to “Take My Breath Away,” but “Lean on Me” is a better comparison. (So is the 1994 Hootie & the Blowfish song that shares a title with Gaga, and is also a product of hard times.) * I would normally be publishing the “Handicapping the Song of Summer” article this week. I’m holding that one until May 31.*I’ve been encouraged in the past to write the column about hit music and the national mood. I’ve also been warned not to assume there was a national mood in our divided times. CHR’s 2006-2013 rebound carried through the Gulf War, Hurricane Katrina, and the 2008 collapse, but it was when it became clear a year later that we had not descended into a second great depression that the party-rock anthems really took hold. By the mid-decade, it was “Don’t Let Me Down” — morose, repetitive, desperate — that set the tone. (I’ve also noted recently how true love ballads are in short supply.) It’s hard to ask artists to write what they are not feeling right now. But it’s worth noting that “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “Eye of the Tiger” were both written in the depths of a recession. “Livin’ on a Prayer” was arguably the product of happier times, but the 1987 stock market crash followed not far behind. I’ve commented before how a lot of the songs that were rock-radio hits in WLLZ Detroit (and other Midwestern cities) in the early ’80s — “No Time to Lose,” “Last Chance,” “Got to Rock On” — spoke to recession-era despair. In 1981, even somebody unfamiliar enough with the city to write about “South Detroit” would see it as emblematic. And in 1981, Detroiters made “Don’t Stop Believin’” a hit almost immediately as an album cut, and nobody was particularly hung up on the geography. I’m not unrealistic about what a change in our musical fortunes can do even for radio at this moment. That sounds naïve enough, so I know how suggesting music as a unifier or even a conduit for understanding reads at this moment.* But if you’re reading this column in the first place, we probably do agree about the role that music plays in our lives, and that if the music isn’t right, not much else is going to be either. In 1981, my generation didn’t turn to “Happy Days Are Here Again.” It didn’t have to. If listeners are now turning to songs older than they are for encouragement, it says something about what’s missing now. * more

From Radio Insight: Withers Broadcasting flipped Country “B97.9” KBXB Sikeston/Cape Girardeau MO to Classic Country “Freedom 97.9” at noon today. The brand is repositioned as “Missouri’s Country Legends”, the move takes KBXB out of competition with the multiple current based Country stations in the region including Max Media’s “K103” 102.9 KEZS-FM Cape Girardeau and Dockins Communications’ “C106” 106.1 KWKZ Charleston. The station will retain its current on-air lineup of the syndicated Bud & Broadway in mornings, George Davis in middays, and Joe Bob in afternoons. The station also remains the local affiliate for St. Louis Cardinals baseball. Let FREEDOM ring in Southeast Missouri! The ALL NEW Freedom 97.9 is HERE! We have the very best of Missouri's Country Legends, St. Louis Cardinals Baseball, plus the return of Bud & Broadway in the Morning! Listen live at https://t.co/AhUgJKnvSF! pic.twitter.com/f8SoJ7PmFB — Freedom 97.9 (@freedom979mo) May 27, 2022 more

From Radio Online: Audacy/New York and Rutgers Athletics ink a multi-year agreement to make WFAN-AM andamp; FM the home for Rutgers football and WCBS-AM the flagship station for Rutgers men's basketball. Beginning with the 2022-23 season, WFAN will air all regular games and post-season football games, including a More...

From Radio Online: Bloomberg Media and iHeartMedia have announced a lineup of new original podcasts for 2022, featuring a mix of daily and weekly news programs and narrative-style limited series. These five shows will be the first podcasts to debut as part of a multi-year agreement More...

From Radio Online: Cumulus Media's Classic Hits KHYT-FM (K-Hit 107.5)/Tucson will launch a new morning show, "Dakota andamp; Andy," on Tuesday, May 31. The program will be hosted by veteran air personalities Dakota and Andy Taylor and will air weekdays from 5-10am. The duo will replace morning host Tim Tyler, who More...

From Radio Insight: Community Broadcasting has launched Classic Hip Hop “Jamz 107.5” W298BI Florence SC. Branding as “Throwback Hip Hop of the 80s, 90s & More”, the new station is launching with 10,000 songs commercial free. The launch of Jamz follows last month’s frequency swap between the company’s 93.7 and 97.1 licenses with Variety Hits “Frank-FM“ moving to 93.7 WSIM Lamar and Adult CHR “Star” moving to 97.1 W246AW Florence/WSIM-HD3. more

From Radio Insight: After being part of Audacy Hip Hop “KS 107.5” KQKS Denver since 1994, morning host ‘Tony V’ Valdez has announced he will depart the station after deciding to not renew his contract with the station. After a brief stint at then R&B 1510 KDKO, the Denver native joined then “KS 104.3” as late night host in November 1994. He would move to middays in 1999 and stay there until 2016 followed by a brief run in afternoons. He moved to mornings in May 2017 alongside ‘DJ Chonz’ and “Ya Girl Cedes’. He has hosted mornings solo since their departure in January 2018. He also spent time at then sister Country 98.5 KYGO as overnight and then afternoon host between 2013 and 2015. In a social media post announcing his departure, Valdez notes that he is a free agent and looking forward “to finding my next home and entertaining the city once again”. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tony V. Valdez (@itsmetonyv) more

From All Access: CUMULUS MEDIA's Classic Hits KHYT (K-HIT 107.5)/TUSCON, AZ, will debut the DAKOTA & ANDY Morning Show on TUESDAY, MAY 31st. The show will air on M-F from 5a-10a. The pair are stepping … more

From All Access: BLUE RIDGE BROADCASTING Contemporary Christian WMIT (THE LIGHT FM)/ASHEVILLE, NC has hired TIM 'DOC' MARANVILLE as Managing Director of Programming and Content. MARANVILLE replaces … more

From All Access: Radio veteran BRYAN REEDER has been named OM/PD for HEH COMMUNICATIONS Country KSAM (COUNTRY 101.7) and Classic Hits KHVL (THE LAKE 94.1 and 104.9)/HUNTSVILLE, TX. REEDER previously held the … more

From All Access: iHEARTMEDIA Top 40 KIIS-FM/LOS ANGELES is being taken out of the SIRIUSXM channel lineup as of JUNE 1st. The station has aired on SIRIUSXM since XM RADIO’s 2001 debut as part of a deal … more

From All Access: The BROOKLYN NETS are launching a pair of podcasts as part of the NBA's podcasting deal with iHEARTMEDIA. The shows include the weekly "VOICE OF THE NETS WITH CHRIS CARRINO," … more

From All Access: YEA NETWORKS' nationally syndicated TINO COCHINO RADIO has landed in OKLAHOMA. TCR moves into nights at STEPHENS MEDIA Top 40 KTRX (STAR 92.7)/ARDMORE, OK.STEPHENS MEDIA CHR Format … more

From All Access: THE MECHANICAL LICENSING COLLECTIVE (MLC) is celebrating PRIDE Month this JUNE with two events for LGBT music industry creators and professionals, part of the organization’s ongoing … more

From All Access: COX MEDIA GROUP Country KKBQ (93Q COUNTRY)/HOUSTON is in search of its next morning show member to replace TIM TUTTLE, who departed earlier this month (NET NEWS 5/10). Key roles in the … more

From All Access: MONUMENT RECORDS’ WALKER HAYES performed under unique conditions for Country WGAR/CLEVELAND last night (5/26): he was just about to start his set at the THIRSTY COWBOY in MEDINA, OH for … more

From All Access: COUNTRY RADIO SEMINAR's "CRS360" webinar series latest episode, “I’m A Fraud: Dealing With Imposter Syndrome,” conducted on WEDNESDAY (5/25), is now available … more

From All Access: AMAZON MUSIC will conduct artist meet & greet appearances, oversee the CMA Close Up Stage “Artist of the Day” interviews, and present appearances by "COUNTRY HEAT … more

From All Access: Celebrating 35 years since his debut album was released, multi-GRAMMY® Award-winning artist STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN has signed a new deal with PROVIDENT LABEL GROUP to release new … more

From All Access: Record producer, arranger and conductor BILL WALKER died YESTERDAY (5/26) at the age of 95. One of his best-known roles was as the Musical Director for ABC's THE JOHNNY CASH SHOW, … more

From Radio Insight: more

From Radio Insight: With today’s retirement of Tim Tyler, Cumulus Media Classic Hits “K-Hit 107.5” KHYT Tucson will debut “Dakota & Andy” as its new morning show on Tuesday, May 31. Jennifer ‘Dakota’ Conter moves to mornings from nights at the station. She has been with KHYT since 2016 after previously spending much of her career in Southern California including her Bakersfield, Oxnard/Ventura and Santa Barbara. She also worked at Alternative “Y107” KLYY Los Angeles. Andy Taylor moves up to mornings from afternoons at the station. Taylor has been with KHYT since 2010 and also serves as Program Director/morning host at KGVY LLC Oldies 1080 KGVY/107.5 K268DC Green Valley AZ and hosts the syndicated “Tech Talk Radio“. Taylor previously hosted mornings at Classic Rock 96.1 KLPX and News/Talk 790 KNST in Tucson as well as KPSI-FM Palm Springs CA. Cumulus Media (NASDAQ: CMLS) announces that Cumulus Tucson’s Classic Hits radio station K-Hit 107.5/KHYT-FM will launch its new morning show, “Dakota & Andy,” on Tuesday, May 31st. The program will be hosted by veteran on-air personalities Dakota and Andy Taylor and will air Monday through Friday from 5:00am-10:00am. The dynamic duo will step into the morning show slot previously held by K-Hit 107.5 morning host Tim Tyler, who announced his retirement from radio earlier this month and signs off today after a successful 51-year career. Andy Taylor heads to K-Hit Mornings from Afternoons on the station. Before becoming a favorite of Tucson afternoon radio listeners Taylor was heard for nearly a decade in Palm Springs, CA, as co-host of the “Barry and Andy Morning Show” on KPSI-FM, before moving the show to Tucson from 2000-2007. Since then, Taylor has been heard on Tucson News/Talk station KNST AM 790 and as Morning Host on Tucson’s KGVY 1080. A 30-year radio veteran, Taylor has also produced his own technology show since 1996 and is the Tech Expert for KMSB Fox 11 with weekly segments on the latest in technology. Dakota moves to Mornings on K-Hit 107.5 from Nights and Saturday afternoons on the station. A 25-year radio veteran, Dakota has been heard on stations in markets including Los Angeles, Ventura, Bakersfield, and Santa Barbara, CA, as well as Tucson. A former teacher and video editor, Dakota holds a Master’s degree in Digital Journalism from National University. Herb Crowe, Operations Manager/Program Director, KHYT-FM, said: “While all of us at K-Hit are happy for Tim Tyler as he starts a new chapter of his life, we’re also incredibly excited about the opportunity to expand and develop the talents of Dakota and Andy in their new morning show roles.*They are both extremely familiar with the Tucson market and bring a wealth of experience and creativity to morning drive.” Dakota commented: “I am thrilled, ecstatic, over the moon and still a bit in shock about being given the honor to create a morning show with Andy Taylor. I am looking forward to a whole world of possibilities as well as the new friendships and partnerships Andy and I will be making. Through all of life’s ups and downs, radio has always been my one true love.” Andy Taylor added: “I’m really excited for the opportunity to shake K-Hit 107.5 listeners out of bed with great morning radio. Together, Dakota and I will help get rid of the sleepies!” more

From All Access: BAHAKEL COMMUNICATIONS Alternative KRXP (X1039)/COLORADO SPRINGS, CO has promoted midday host AUBREY BISHOP to Promotions Director. BISHOP joined the BAHAKEL team over a year ago and has … more

From All Access: A slate of new podcasts from BLOOMBERG MEDIA is coming via iHEARTMEDIA and the iHEARTPODCAST NETWORK for 2022, the first five shows under a multiyear agreement between BLOOMBERG and … more

From All Access: YEA NETWORKS' nationally syndicated TINO COCHINO RADIO has landed in OKLAHOMA. TCR moves into nights at STEPHENS MEDIA Top 40 KTRX (STAR 92.7)/ARDMORE, OK.STEPHENS MEDIA CHR Format … more

From All Access: iHEARTMEDIA Top 40 WRVW (107.5 THE RIVER)/NASHVILLE has rolled out the lineup for its annual RIVER ON THE ROOFTOP concert series. The event returns after a two-year hiatus to JASON … more