99X and the fate of mainstream radio
January 18th, 2008 by Abi Berwager in Music newsAfter 15 years, alternative-rock station 99X (WNNX-FM 99.7) is moving to the Web to become a high-definition subchannel and webcaster. Top 40 hits sister station Q100 (WWWQ-FM 100.5) will be taking its slot for the higher frequency Jan. 25. Apparently, the transition has been looming over 99X for some time now, as the station’s ratings have been declining and the station is ranked 11 in its targeted audience of 18-34-year-olds.
When the AJC’s Rodney Ho wrote about the transition in his radio and TV blog, the majority of the commentors were thrilled about the change, complaining that it should have been done a long time ago. They also bashed program director Leslie Fram, the morning show and the monotony in 99X’s playlist.
So why are they replacing 99X with Q100, which also has a monotonous 20-song playlist of Top 40 hits and a similar morning show?
The majority of mainstream radio stations in Atlanta have morning shows with hosts rambling on about their personal lives and/or political views. When music is actually played, it’s the same songs over and over again. At least 99X had different radio programs to break up the monotony: “Organic X” played acoustic rock; “Sunday School” played new music, imports and promoted local bands; and “Live X” aired live shows played in the studio.
With the growing popularity of XM Radio, Sirius and the iPod, mainstream radio in general could soon succumb to the same fate. With all the new technology, and the annoyance listeners feel when there’s too much talk and not enough tunes, why would anyone bother listening to the radio at all?
Georgia State’s Album 88 (WRAS-FM 88.5) and Georgia Tech’s WREK (WREK-FM 91.1) — both of which were CL Best of Atlanta 2007 winners — seem to be the only stations that truly play a wide variety of music. Album 88’s playlist consists of everything from Swedish acoustic to hardcore metal. Georgia Tech plays music from video games (no shock there) alongside South Asian music and hip-hop. With their minimal chat and variety in music, college stations could set the standard for mainstream radio in the future.
January 18th, 2008 at 11:54 pm
Let’s not forget that 99x was birthed from Power 99, which was one of, if not THE, most important station in terms of popular music in Atlanta. Yvonne Monet’s DJ show was one of the first, and to their credit 99x threw their viable weight behind a plethora of shows that seemed simply to get new music to Atlanta audiences. It’s not really entirely their fault that 99x’s listener would rather hear Godsmack than Goldfrapp-with the various splinter shows, Organic X and Sunday School included, they tried their damndest to feed new sounds to an audience that, by and large, didn’t necessarily want it.
As someone who loathes radio, I’m going to miss 99x out of sheer fact that the question is “now, who remains in Atlanta with any marketing money and pull to actually do what they did?”
January 19th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
You left out WRFG 89.3FM as one of Atlanta’s best indie noncom stations. If you want musical diversity in world, acoustic, jazz, etc.
January 19th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Thank you, I will definitely check that out. I honestly had never heard of it before.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:41 am
Truthfully, this just sucks.
While the music 99x played was not always what I would define as alternative (why do they keep playing Fall Out Boy and Linkin Park?), they had the best morning show in my opinion. Ever since learning of the move of the Bert Show in the mornings, I’ve found myself looking for something new to listen to on the way to work. Something I haven’t had to do since the early 90’s when I would listen to 99x on the way to High School. While I understand 96.1 has a morning show that I hear is decent, the station is just too juvenile for me. Something about their promos bother me, and I would like something that suits my tastes better. I hear Dave FM has a new morning show in the works, but that has yet to pass. I have been holding out for a long time for an HD radio, and I suppose the time is now to buy one. However it just looks like more effort that really necessary for something decent to listen to on the morning commute.
Really, this just sucks.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:49 pm
Do what I have been doing for years, listen to a CD in the car. It is sad to see an icon like 99x diminish to dust, but radio has been horribly bad in Atlanta for years now. I can’t even tell you the last time I switched to the radio. Why would I want to do that??? Nothing I want to hear is playing anyway!
January 22nd, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Radio around the country has been diminishing to dust thanks to corporate ownership. Thanks to the Web for offering so many new places to discover new music – who needs radio anymore when there’s satellite radio or you can plug your ipod into your car and listen to anything from podcasts, college radio stations, your own stuff, or audio books. Welcome to the 21st century.
January 22nd, 2008 at 1:43 pm
99X is what it is, a nationally-branded corporate chain of radio stations that sell the same product – globalized music for profit. What’s wrong with making a buck? By name alone it states it is, alternative, thus a corporate tag given to define music made of the independent, DIY spirit of music that preceded it.
But can anyone remember the term ‘alternative’ bandied about before the album, “Nevermind”. It seemed the large record companies were reeling to figure out why kids were not buying Warrant albums anymore. The term alternative began to creep into the lexicon of music, then radio stations and record companies suddenly became hip to music not produced by big hairs in leathers. Thus a corporation named 99X is born.
The station had some interesting shows, although I have an aversion to morning shows as an earlier poster described as good. I would rather listen to the sound of someone breaking into my home at 3AM than listen to the incessant jammerings of….. [cannot think of nice way to say it - insert your own expletive]. While the rotation did play some older music that had not been broadcast in many years outside of the college radio stations, I found the regular rotation to be slick, repackaged, overly-produced garbage that the same big stations used to play.
Do you remember ‘99 or ‘98 when every ‘big’ alternative band had some name with a number in it? Blink 182, Seven-Mary-3, 311, etc.? Do you not think that was not corporate decision to brand the band with a name that sounded more, um, ‘alternative’?
I can tell you who may be feeling down in the dumps losing you hometown, corporate, nationally-branded radio station, try 89.9FM and enjoy the feedback show of the garbled mish-mish of mixed stations, with fluxing static whir. Now that’s Punk Rock! That’s an alternative to alternative. And it is always changing and introducing new sounds to you car or home. If that does not work for you, try El Patron 105.3 – “Cien Cinco Punto Tres”! That station is ridiculously a rad alternative.
January 27th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
What we have here is a failure to communicate. The corporate radio monsters truly have no clue as to what the people of Atlanta want to hear. The powers behind to music business has succeeded in fractioning the music of today into so many catagories and sub catagories that there is no way any radio station can have a varied playlist. That being said, do you really want to hear Nirvana and The Black Eyed Peas on the same station? There is an unbelievable amount of music that is never heard by the general public. I know this has always been the truth, but there are entire groups of artists that should be heard. Look at the majority of the summer festivals for instance, do you recognize many of these groups, most people do not. I have no doubt the entire playlists of Star94 and Q100 could be written on the head of a pin. This should be seen for what it is….insulting, greed-driven,exclusive,dumbed down mass media garbage. As far as the greed driven statement, I know the media corporations are in it for the money. That is ok, arent we all? Rememeber though, if you give the people what they want to hear the ratings will be there. I refuse to believe that Atlanta is too small a market to support multiple stations of any given format. The media moguls need to to realize polls are not true representations of the people, only of the people who were polled . Atlanta has been in a radio blackhole for far too long, thank God for the mp3. Check out KCUV from Denver on line for a representation of some of these unheard groups.
April 18th, 2009 at 10:39 pm
Actually, I’m pretty sure the reason 99X’s ratings went down the tubes is that they played way, way too many back to back to back extremely hard-edged songs that got on everyone’s nerves after a while. A song or two or even three every half hour in that category would have been ok. But it was more like a song or two or three per HOUR on the playlist might have been a little more laid back. Fast-paced high energy aggressive music is great every once in a while, but I’m pretty sure most people were turned off after hearing it non-stop all day long. 99X didn’t have that problem when I first heard them in October of ‘93. And when I moved to Atlanta in March of ‘95, they didn’t have that problem. But gradually starting around 2002 or early 2003, they started on the road to that aggressive hard-core alt-metal binge. I think a weekly or even once-daily show featuring that kind of stuff for an hour would be great. I would listen to it and probably love it. But I’m not in that mood 24/7. And I’m pretty sure not too many other people are either. I listened to 99X on 97.9 today for the first time. I think the playlist is much better balanced now and sounds more like the original pre-’03 99X I once knew and loved.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:05 am
too corporate. NEXT!