Twangin' Radio Gaga!

Howdy folks & followers!

Thank goodness for friends & family for sharing their comments about the single & the entire record, and thanks to all of the anonymous folks who have been requesting Still Crazy at radio stations across Canada but not getting to hear it. Thanks to the 15 stations that have picked up the song so far in Canada, and 96+ other stations around the world (that I know of) that are playing it, and hundreds of folks who send in their positive comments from all over the U.S., Canada, and other parts of the world via Jango Internet Radio. It all helps to keep the fire burning!

Now for a dose of reality. I told you last time I was to share some of the bad & the ugly of the Canadian radio promotion to date. It's coming at you, right after this brief commercial pause...

T-shirt & CD Bundle

The past six weeks have been humbling, enlightening, downright nerve-wracking, and somewhat frustrating with the Canadian radio promotion. But you know me (at least some of you do...) and I don't necessarily throw in the towel just because I am smashing into the harsh realities of the commercial music world. I knew what I was getting into when I started...and I believe in the idea a person/artist can never know what is or isn't possible unless they go for it, take some risks, believe in the music and find out for themselves. If we only believe in what everyone tells us is near impossible, then the picture becomes rather bleak, like a shallow empty grave with a hand reaching out and inviting you into it. If you see that, what do you do?  Do you oblige? Nnnnnnnahh...not just yet, Pilgrim.

"Not crazy about this. Gary Allan struggles to get radio airplay how is this Gary Allan wannabee going to?"    

This was a comment made about Still Crazy by a highly respected Program Director in Canada a few weeks ago and passed along to other programmers in his "notes". I posed the question in my last post..."is this good, bad, or ugly?", and the replied, "all three...". Here is what I mean:

The Good:

I love getting associations to other artists - I take it as a slight compliment...

The Bad:

It means they won't be adding it to the play-list because of this and possibly other reasons...

The Ugly:

These comments are posted by this Program Director (who will remain nameless because I respect his work) in notes to other Program Directors who also consider Still Crazy for airplay and it can & likely will influence how others perceive the music, sound, and intentions of my music.

But, that's just a harsh reality of the business. No tears shed...just more curiosity bred as to how the heck I am going to make this work!!??!! Just buckle-down and book more shows, I guess.

Despite the lack of positive result so far from my investment in Still Crazy to commercial radio across Canada, I am still happy that I took the chance to put it out there. There are still a two weeks left in the initial phase of this promotion (8 weeks). The encouraging tracker/promoter I hired, Bob Martineau says, "Keep your chin up, it's still early...". It kinda feels like the old days when my hockey coaches would say such things when we were down 3-0 after 2 periods. We would have to go out onto the ice, win every face-off, make more hits & rough the opposition up a bit in the corners, wear them down with the classic Canadian "dump & chase" strategy, and capitalize in the late stages of period three to come back and edge out the opposition 4-3 in regulation or overtime. With steady goaltending, and intensive offense & calculated risk by the defense, most teams (if they had the willpower) could pull this off, and have done so thousands of times throughout the history of the sport. It makes for exciting hockey!

Trouble is, this is radio & music we are talking about...not hockey. I like to consider myself at least somewhat intelligent, and I don’t see the score changing all that much in the next two weeks - although I'll follow Bob's advice and keep my chin up. I think I might have needed 15-20 station adds in the first week or two, inclusive some BDS stations taking the lead in order for the song to grow wings. Much is left in the hands of the Program Directors, whom I respect, have a duty to play the best music possible for their listeners. They hold a lot of power over whether an artist gets exposure or not. An amazing amount of power, actually. I never looked at it from that perspective when I was working as a Program Director/Music Director.

What I am not go into is explanations as to why the song is not being played by more stations, or why it should be played...that’s up to the programmers to decide. If the song isn't good enough, it isn't good enough. There are a lot of great songs out there. What I share with you, if you are interested enough to keep reading, is the way it’s set-up and how things influence each other. Stations in Canada are broken down into 4 main categories 1) BDS (Broadcast Data Systems) reporting stations, 2) Secondary stations, 3) Community & college stations, 4) Public radio in the way of the CBC (Swedish equivalent SR). BDS stations hold the most power because they are the stations that report to the “charts”. I could be played on 100 Secondary stations, and never be a hit because they do not report to Broadcast Data Systems. BDS stations make up the charts, and influence other stations.

Now here comes the first Catch 22 that I have experienced...

Because I am focused on commercial BDS & Secondary stations, if I am not played on BDS stations (so far in none yet during this promotion - some still thinking about it...)...then the song can never chart as a hit. If the song never charts as a hit, by default the effect can/will be that I will not be played on a majority percentage of Secondary stations either. Why? Because they are programmed to “only play the hits”. OUCH! There is the odd renegade program director out their that sort of "flip the bird" to the charts, and still play music that they like and feel should get some airtime. Award winning Program Director Bruce Leperre from 730 CKDM in Dauphin, Manitoba is an example. He takes chances and took a chance on Still Crazy, for which I am thankful. There are others, as well...but no so many left. Radio, like the music industry, is a changing landscape. Not so many people taking chances on artists they are unfamiliar with. Summary: if I don’t crack the line-up/playlist of the BDS stations which comprise at a guess - roughly 15-20% of the 134 stations across Canada ...then the promotion will yield a significant loss due to the fact that most other stations won’t/can’t play it because it’s not already a hit. But you can’t become a hit until you are played = Catch 22.

Here is a second Catch 22...

The idea is to let Still Crazy run for 8 weeks as a single (we’ve done 6 now), and then evaluate whether or not to continue promoting it for another 4 weeks, after which more decisions need to be made. What decisions? Well, the main decision as to whether or not to invest in another single to be promoted. I am damned if I do because it’s gonna cost me and add to the pile up of investments to produce, release & promote the record without so much payoff so far from the promotion. I am damned if I don’t because if I don’t release another single...I will likely not be taken seriously by program directors as a developing artist...and without appropriate exposure via radio, it limits the opportunity establish as a developing “mainstream” artist...which in turn, limits the amount of respect from potential venues & festivals....which limits the opportunity to recoup costs via live shows. And.....there are no guarantees that the next single will be played either. So, summary: damned if I do, damned if I don’t = Catch 22.
Good news in all that...heck, it’s just one big experiment to see how far a guy can go with a little focus and effort!

So, that said...............thanks for reading. I need to sleep, evaluate, and make good business decisions.  I need to balance the desire for breakthrough motivated by self-actualization with the ego bashing that I get when I am “passed over” by program directors because they are either not familiar with me, or they just don’t believe that the song is good enough to compete.

If you have advice, knowledge, expertise that could help me make wise decisions in this game you are welcome to reach me! I am always open for suggestions. So long for now...

TWANG ON!
//Evan