JUNE 14, 1999 ISSUE 2259 THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN RADIO SECTAl1NSTOl Country's Summer Games MUSIC RHYTHM [H i,i]I i Chante's Got a Hit! FROM THE ALBUM HOT A/C Edwin McCain Can't Ask For More Sugar Ray's Someday Is Now! FEATURING URBAN Destiny's Child FROM Pays The Bills YOUR. NEWS XM Gets $250M Warchest KNEES Owens Sr. VP At Clear Channel Cox Invests In MP3 =rom the Publishers of Music Week, MBI and fono Miller Freeman Publication MATT www.americanradiohistory.com Confederate Railroad The Great Divide Jenai Matt King Tracy Lawrence Mullins -Black The Old Dogs South Sixty -Five www.americanradiohistory.com Johnson Tops Urban Promo for Atlantic Ronnie Johnson has been appointed Senior Vice President of Urban Promotion for Atlantic Records. Val Azzoli, the Atlantic Group's Co-Chairman/Co-CEO, com- mented, "Black music has always occupied a central role in the life of Atlantic Records, and with Ronnie on board, we are confident that our artists will benefit from a creative, aggressive promotional strategy second to i:' none in our business. Ronnie is one of the most accom- plished, admired, and well -liked executives in the R&B field, and it is with great pleasure that I welcome him into the Atlantic family." FIRST PERSON Amazon launches Liquid/MP3 music Web site MP3. a AS TOLD TO TONY SANDERS "The major labels really don't want to use They want secure for- mat for downloading, hence Liquid Audio. The smaller and indie labels see MP3 as a great way to promote their songs to the broadest audience George Jones possible. In the future, we're going to be expanding this area and we The Cold Hard Truth want it to be a place where customers can check back regularly to find the greatest new music from a broad range of artists, whether that's going George Jones' latest hit single, "Choices," off his new to be in the Liquid Audio format, or the MP3 format, or both." -PRODUCT Asylum album "The Cold Hard Truth," couldn't have MANAGER GREG HART ON TUESDAY'S LAUNCH OF Amazon.com's NEW come at a better time. As George tells it, radio seems ONLINE -DOWNLOADING "MUSIC STORE." to be coming around to embracing Country's legendary "Country and traditional artists. Also, this new hit single and music just album help mark the 40th anniversary of George's first Music Industry Responds Number One hit, "White Lightning" (Mercury). Very few moves back "We don't market violence, we promote artists. And artists can claim as many hit records as he can, or can and forth when artists have difficult messages to deliver, we stick- say they've had a career that's covered as much terri- er that music and it works." -RIAA CEO AND tory while remaining true to their musical roots. His like a PRESIDENT HILARY ROSEN, RESPONDING TO THE VIOLENT new album is due for release on June 22. pendulum." AND REPEAT JUVENILE OFFENDER ACCOUNTABILITY AND Country music seems to come in cycles. Remember REHABILITATION ACT S.254, A JUVENILE JUSTICE BILL THAT when "hot new Country" was big? Listeners stayed with that one for quite a little WOULD, IN PART, CREATE A HIGH-LEVEL FEDERAL COMMIS- while. Then, after a while, people began to get a little tired of that sound and kind SION TO DETERMINE IF THE RECORDING INDUSTRY AND 01111 R Ií VI ERTAINMENT INDUSTRIES MARKET VIOLENCE TO YOUNG PEOPLE. of leaned back toward the traditional Country music, the kind of music I sing. Country music just moves back and forth like a pendulum; every six or seven years or so it goes one way, and then it comes back again. The cycles all are driven by what people want. Sure, the record labels influence Radio Revenue Still Climbing what the music sounds like, but that's just one part of the bigger picture. The radio industry's combined Ultimately, if the fans and listeners get tired of something, they're going to let the local and national ad sales were artists and the labels know about it. I think right now they're telling us they want more traditional Country. The fans really are the people who keep you going. up 6 percent for the month of I really hadn't thought about doing another record, but Evelyn Shriver, who used April, when compared to April to be my publicist before she took over Asylum, came to me and said she wanted 1998, marking the 80th consecu- to try an album. I said, "Well, that's great." I just sort of semi -retired from record- tive month of revenue gains for ing, but radio's being awful nice to us lately, The new single from this album, the industry. Local ad dollars "Choices," seems to be getting great airplay, and it just feels wonderful to be my were 8 percent higher than this age and to have another chance with radio to reach fans. time last year, while national I really think we've got one of the best albums in years. Keith Stegall, who pro- duces Alan Jackson and Sammy Kershaw really worked overtime on this album. sales were off by 1 percent. Keith and I have been friends for many years but we had never done any work *BASED together before this collaboration, and I'm just thrilled with it. It's wonderful to be ON RAB RADIO REVENUE INDEX OF MORE part of it all and to have been able to be performing my entire career. I 1HAN 100 MARKE I S CONTENTS FORMAT SECTIONS SPOTLIGHT: COUNTRY TOP 40/RHYTHM CROSSOVER 16 COUNTRY NEWS G2 and You... Callout Research: What to Expect 42 Owens to Sr. VP at Clear Channel 4 RAP 23 Summer Games 48 XM, CD Radio Ink New Pacts 4 URBAN, JRBAN A/C 24 Ratings & Research: Country Competitons 57 Cox Puts $45m Into MP3.com 4 Gerod Stevens: Learn As You Go TRIPLE A 58 Launch Buys SW Nets 4 A/C, HOT A/C 31 Folk Rock: It Takes a Village... RADIO@LARGE 6 Gettin' Ready For the Conclave AMERICANA 64 GRAB BAG 6 ALTERNATIVE 36 Playing for Keeps BACKSTAGE 9 Women Leading the Charge, Pt. 2 JAZZ/SMOOTH JAZZ & VOCALS 67 ACTIVE ROCK 38 Smooth Jazz Meets Academia Miller Freeman A United Newa & Media comma C1999 GAVIN June 14, 1999 gavin 3 www.americanradiohistory.com XM, co Radio Cox Puts 45m Into MP3.com FIRST WORDS Are the major labels threatened by format and the soon -to -be -public Move Forward MP3.com? I'd say only if they adopt MP3.com. Cox Interactive Media's What Would Bill Do? an ostrich strategy. But if they've got $45m investment in MP3.com will The introduction of Media - BY TONY SANDERS their eyes open and they're embrac- lead to the two companies forming base 24-7 data into the ing the changes that are happening, and operating "a number of music - pages of GAVIN last week has led a few individuals to "This deal is great for us. We get a 12 - then they should see MP3 as an related Web sites." Cox Enterprises suggest that GAVIN has opportunity." So says a source at Cox has major holdings in radio, TV. year exclusive with GM, we get con- "abandoned" stations in tent from Clear Channel, and DirecTV Enterprises, whose company has just newspapers and cable. Many of Cox secondary markets. gives us a sales and distribution sys- made a major, $45 million commit- Radio's stations are currently web - Not true. We are still col- lecting playlists tem and five million potential cus- ment to supporting the MP3 audio casting their over -the -air signals. from sta- tions that are not monitored right That's tomers off the bat." how a by Mediabase so we can source at XM Satellite Radio charac- compile "G2" (GAVIN sec- terized to GAVIN Tuesday's (6/8/99) Owens to Sr. VP at Clear Channel ondary) charts. We also are announcement that Clear Channel, conducting an ongoing Jacor Communications Program- Clear Channel acquired last month. review to determine which DirecTV, General Motors, and a pri- ming veteran Tom Owens has been Owens and Clear Channel's of these stations most accu- vate group were investing a com- rately reflect in appointed Senior Vice President, Radio Division President Randy true airplay bined $250 million in XM. their respective formats. Programming for all 450 Clear Michaels have worked together as XM plans to begin operations at Some people have reacted Channel Communications domestic programming partners for more to these changes by remind- the end of next year, with coast -to - stations. Owens was formerly Senior than a decade, most recently at ing us that Bill Gavin was a coast service in the U.S. due in 2001. Vice President, Programming for Jacor. "We have numerous pro- champion of small market The same day, competitor CD radio. And we agree. Bill Jacor Communications, Inc., which grammers qualified for advance- Radio announced that National knew that some records got ment from both the new and for- started in secondary markets Public Radio had inked an exclusive mer Clear Channel ranks," Owens and built their national suc- deal to provide two channels of pro- Clear Channel Buys commented. "One of our most crit- cess from there-which is gramming for the satellite -radio why we're dedicated to ical initial duties will be to prompt- provider. One NPR channel will be building our "G2" charts for Into BuyltNow ly identify and appropriately assign this segment of the industry.