Urban Radio Programmer Responds to PD Blaming PPM for Boring Urban Radio
Posted: November 14, 2012 at 10:15 am
Urban Radio Programmer Responds to PD Blaming PPM for Boring Urban Radio
Kev,
First and foremost let me say I greatly enjoy your humorous missives about the industry. Your art is amazing as well. You wear a lot of hats. As far as the PD complaining yesterday, the post caught my attention, not because of what he was stating but what was between the lines. First off, urban programmers today understand PPM is engrained in the fabric of our radio industry so whether we like it or not it is what it is. The best of us learn to work with it and/or around it to get the job done. Second, I saw where he complained that he was ‘tired of answering to people who knew nothing about his listeners and his music.’ Since there is only radio one, Oops, I mean ONE RADIO corporation that makes PDs answer to a content person, it’s easy to know what company this person works for. The other radio corporations don’t beat their PDs over the head as much about music. While I know you don’t care for him, I just so happen to like the person that he is talking about, is this PD pissed because he is not able to play songs or is there something else he is REALLY pissed about? I think you get the drift.
Anonymous Major Market PD.
Kevin’s response..
I mean really.. c’mon you know what he’s complaining about. Make no mistake it’s not that I dislike this person, I don’t know him and have never met him. I was a bit pissed when Cathy Hughes, for example, said on 60 minutes years ago that she was going to make sure her PDs were on the up and up and nothing fishy was going on. My question to her is… how do you explain The Frequency? I do understand the PDs frustration and I don’t question his complaint’s legitimacy, so it’s a combination of both. I give a lot of credit to you programming guys (and gals) as I would not survive two hours in today’s radio because I would tell the upper management to eat a bowl of hot bowels.
First off, let me start by saying I know not of who you are speaking about but that doesn’t really matter when we’re speaking on the facts of Urban Mainstream radio is boring. I would have to agree that the PPM/consultants/Dir. Of Programming has made it rather difficult for the PD’s these days. A PD these days (if he/she isn’t a seasoned vet in the game whom the company trusts their judgment) is no more than a button pusher/puppet. It’s sad when a PD who has the experience, charisma and the alkaloids to show that he/she can get the job done without hesitation and the company won’t allow them to do so. Not only is Urban mainstream boring but UAC formats are not breaking any new R&B records that fit their format. The PPM is destroying urban radio as we know it in my opinion.