Responding to Nielsen's Response Part Two: Voltair

Home , Dime Store Cowgirl, Long Stretch of Love, One Hell of an Amen

July 27, 2015, Issue 458 Part Two: Voltair And Beyond After Tuesday’s webinar challenged Voltair’s efficacy and touted PPM technology while also promising Voltair-like enhancements, Nielsen Audio remains at the center of a raging radio debate. For reaction and discussion following the webinar, see Responding To Nielsen’s Response (right). If you missed part one of this special report last week (CAW 7/20), click the link and catch up. This week, Country Aircheck looks at the issue’s impact on music, potential upside and a host of unanswered questions. On Keys & Voltair... While the greatest issue identified by Voltair seems to be encoding of talk, music is also said to be subject to PPM Save It For A Radio Day: Radio and encoding variances. How significant friends party at Kenny Chesney’s and those are is open for debate. “I Jason Aldean’s The Big Revival/Burn have seen it affect music, but not on It Down Tour stop at the Rose Bowl Country,” says one cluster programmer. Saturday (7/25). Pictured are (back, l-r) “The problem comes with the stopsets. Some voices don’t KKGO/Los Angeles’ Tonya Campos and encode well. And if a spot is dry, there’s nothing for the watermark friend Max Miller, Broken Bow’s Layna Bunt, KUZZ/ to hang onto. That’s where Country will see the greatest growth. It Bakersfield’s Tom Jordan and Brent Michaels and wife turns out people were listening to the breaks after all.” Julie, Brody Turnbeaugh, The Big Time’s Jackie Stevens, Max Media/Norfolk VP/GM Dave Paulus disagrees. “I don’t KWNR/Las Vegas’ Jo Jo Turnbeaugh, Valory’s Amy Staley think there’s any question certain songs encode better than others. and The Big Time’s Whitney Allen; front (l-r) Broken I’ve seen it in action.” Some even lay the death of the Smooth Jazz Bow’s Lee Adams, Tom Jordan’s wife Lori, and Barb and format at the feet of PPM, arguing its propensity for quiet sounds husband KFRG/Riverside’s Lee Douglas. Inset: Blue Chair/ and sparse arrangements weren’t ideal for encoding’s demands. Columbia’s Kenny Chesney (r) is surprised by legendary “Smooth Jazz was dying a long time before PPM,” one industry sportscaster Keith Jackson with the first-ever Rose Bowl observer close to the format argues. “Companies started bailing Stadium jersey backstage. out of that format in 2000.” Even if Country generally provides a solid musical bed for Responding To Nielsen’s Response the encoder’s watermarks, Country Aircheck has heard that at The long-awaited PPM Enhancements And Voltair Testing least one top artist’s song gets a poor grade from the Voltair. If Update found Nielsen Audio execs critical of the controversial there’s one, could there be others? And what of M Score? “When processor’s limitations, affirming their meter count goes down, in all likelihood that was just encoding belief in the ratings they issue and dropout,” researcher Richard Harker says. “Massive decisions promising updates to PPM technology are being made with M Score and it (continued on page 8) (CAT 7/21). Reaction has been mixed. ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected]

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One large market exec called it “a whole lot of to-do about nothing. I was kind of amused by the ambiguity of their position. PAGE THREE PIC They don’t support Voltair, but can’t validate it’s doing anything incorrectly. Non-support of the device is the same position they had before. Nothing changed. I also don’t buy that lab tests are a fair representation of what happens in the real world.” The real world of advertising may have been a consideration in such a measured response. “This could have a profound effect on buying decisions, from New York all the way down through the markets,” says the same GM. “Until Nielsen figures this out, I can see buyers deciding to slide more money to digital and television. That’s a scary proposition. And we’ve had a few folks on the client side asking about this. It’s impossible to ignore.” Another cluster manager noted the webinar’s promise that info would be released to clients immediately after the call. “Well, it’s Monday and nothing has been seen by anyone, to my knowledge. That doesn’t seem very immediate and is the kind of stuff that creates apprehension about the vague timetable for the ‘improvements.’” One of Voltair’s most vocal critics says the webinar could have gone farther in letting the air out of the ballooning controversy. Consultant Randy Kabrich taps deep ratings data to assert the processor’s ineffectiveness in swaying the final numbers. Based on sales of the device and the number of stations in PPM markets, he estimates more than 60% have Voltair units installed. “Are we growing?” he asks. “AQH rating from June 2014 – pre-Voltair – to June 2015 is basically a wash – plus 0.9. The tide is not rising and if it was, we should have at least seen it for the two-thirds of PPM stations using Voltair.” Sweet Comb Alabama: Then-WZZK/Birmingham Kabrich details his findings on his blog (here), regularly adding PD Justin Case (r) gets cozy with a long-haired to his case with overall and station or market specific findings. Blake Shelton at the Oak Mountain Amphitheatre “No matter how I sort it, I can’t find any effect,” he says. “People in Pelham, AL in the mid-2000s. Send pics are going to see what they want to see. No matter how many facts from your mushiest days to pagethreepic@ you show them, they’ll come to their own conclusion.” countryaircheck.com. And with many observers seeing less than definitive answers on Tuesday, conclusions are still varied. “They did a very good job of what they normally do in a pressure filled situation,” Chart Chat says Max Media/Norfolk VP/GM Dave Paulus of Nielsen. Congrats to Brantley Gilbert, George “I was pleased to see they admitted there is an issue and a Briner and the Valory promotion crew on need for improvement, but I don’t know if they have any other scoring this week’s No. 1 with “One Hell Of An choice given the optics of the situation. There were some Amen.” The song is the second chart-topper quality comments and some that felt like a tap dance. It wasn’t from his Just As I Am album (“Bottoms Up”). terrible, but I don’t think anyone walks out thinking they got And kudos to Lesly Simon and the full resolution. Nielsen stated their case. Whether the industry Arista staff on landing 61 adds for Jerrod Brantley Gilbert decides to make this a bigger deal or lets it fade away, they’ll Niemann’s “Blue Bandana,” topping this have no one to blame but themselves.” –Chuck Aly week’s board.

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MY TUNES: MUSIC THAT SHAPED MY LIFE Blue, You’re My Boy: Jerrod Niemann, Zach Brown from Republic Nashville’s the Arista crew A Thousand Horses discusses his and Sony execs most influential music: celebrate his Add 1. The Rolling Stones: They play Board-topping all different styles. They play rock and “Blue Bandana.” roll, but they’ve got their country songs Pictured (l-r, front) like “Far Away Eyes” and “Honky Tonk are Lauren Thomas, Women.” They even had their disco Rusty Sherrill and phase. But it’s always the Stones and I Jenny Shearin; love them. (center) Andy Elliott, Zach Brown 2. Tim McGraw, A Place In The Lesly Simon, Christy Sun: It was the first country album I ever Barbinski and bought. I was in high school and I came late to country music, R.G. Jones; (back) Steve Hodges, because I grew up with all my parents’ classic rock records. But Randy Goodman, all the girls in school listened to country music, so I figured I Niemann, Ken should get in on that. After I heard that album, I was hooked. Robold and 3. Smashing Pumpkins, 1996 MTV Awards: They played John Sigler. “Tonight Tonight” and it was the first time I realized I wanted to be in a band. I wasn’t the same after that. I went to school the next day and said, “Man, I’m going to be in a band. I don’t need to worry about this homework stuff!” News & Notes 4. Weezer, Self-Titled (The Blue Album): One of my EMI Nashville’s Eric Church will headline Country Thunder neighbors introduced me to it. The melodies are crazy. It got 2016 in Twin Lakes, WI July 21-24. Early bird and four-day me thinking about songwriting. passes here. 5. Elvis/An American Trilogy: As a kid growing up in Music Health Alliance (MHA) Dir. Operations & Senior Care Georgia, we’d go to Stone Mountain and watch the laser show Shelia Shipley Biddy has been designated a Certified Senior – and that song was always in it. When I’m dying, I want that Advisor (CSA) to help music industry seniors and their families. song to be playing. I love it. More info here. • Highly regarded music you’ve never heard: Until recently, Singer-songwriters Elizabeth Elkins and Vanessa Olivarez I’d never really heard Paul Simon’s music. Our bass player of the duo Granville Automatic have signed a publishing deal Graham’s been listening to him a lot this year – and it’s awesome! with BMG. • An “important” piece of music you just don’t get: I’m Singer-songwriter Robert Arthur has signed a publishing not really into Pink Floyd. I’ve listened to them and I’ve tried, deal with MV2 Entertainment. but I’m not into it. Steve Wariner is sharing his cross-country road trip in an RV • An album you listened to incessantly: Bob Dylan’s with fans via Facebook and Twitter, including photos from visits to Blonde On Blonde. I love it from start to finish. unique places, favorite stops and vacation activities. • Obscure or non-country music everyone should listen Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge will celebrate its 55th birthday in to: “Shark Attack” by Grouplove. downtown Nashville Oct. 21 with a free Lower Broadway street • Music you’d rather not admit to enjoying: When we’re party featuring Randy Houser, Jamey Johnson, Terri Clark, and more. partying I like to listen to Rihanna. I’m usually the DJ on the bus Bill Anderson will kick off his fall tour Aug. 22 in Sandstone, after the show. MN at the Midwest Country Music Theater. Complete dates here.

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The Grand Ole Opry will honor Connie Smith on her 50th OFF THE RECORD: Clare Dunn anniversary as an Opry member during two shows on Aug. 8. More here. I grew up listening to Country KVAY/ Lamar, CO and Oldies KLMR-FM. As a kid in southeast Colorado, I spent a lot of my The Week’s Top Stories time on a tractor for 10 or 12 hours a day. Full coverage at countryaircheck.com. Which station you could tune in depended • Nielsen Audio released Spring 2014 diary ratings. (7/13-27) on where you were working in the field. • Emmis promoted three senior executives. (7/27) I sang backup on Luke Bryan’s • CBS Radio WYCD/Detroit weekender Sean Cash joined “Country Girl (Shake It For Me).” I was Curtis’ WQDR/Raleigh for middays. (7/27) • Townsquare made executive changes. (7/24) driving through Oklahoma with my sister • CBS Radio shuffled local management. (7/23) in her pickup. She was flipping through Clare Dunn • Morning vets Johnson & Johnson returned to Cumulus’ KUBL/ the stations and I heard two seconds of Salt Lake City. (7/23) the song and recognized my voice. I made her go back to the • CBS Radio WDSY/Pittsburgh morning co-host Jimmy Roach station. The first time I heard my own song on the radio, I was exited. (7/22) driving to WYCD/Detroit with my radio rep, Michelle Tyrrell. I broke out my phone and filmed it. It was just nuts. I freaked out. Every time I’m at a truck stop I have to get almonds or Part Two: Voltair And Beyond coffee. I just graduated to a bus. Prior to that, I toured 150-200 (continued from page 1) shows a year in my pickup, then in a van. During those years coffee was always a must because you were either trying to stay awake may be totally bogus. It’s worse than not having information – it’s to drive or keep the driver awake. And almonds are one of the having the wrong information.” How long can it be before a programmer says to a promotion healthiest things you can get at a truck stop, so I try to do that. rep, “Sorry, your single doesn’t encode well”? Or, conversely, reps I think I would just gherm Keith Urban because he’s come to radio pre-staged with Voltair numbers on their singles? such a huge influence for me, so instead I would love to have Harker doesn’t see it as all that far-fetched. “What we’ll do as an dinner with Eric Clapton. As a guitar player, he was also a huge industry is learn what encodes well and what doesn’t. We’ll now influence. I really look up to him. I would order a ribeye steak have another sound code [in our scheduler] so we don’t play two and green beans. songs back-to-back that don’t encode well.” My music is high energy. It’s stories about my life set to a The Upside: If the issues Voltair has revealed about PPM backdrop of a beat that makes you want to move. encoding are accurate, there’s plenty of good news, too. “The My last impulse buy was a long sleeve t-shirt I bought audience is larger than we think,” Harker says. “The decline in yesterday that says “Philadelphia.” It’s the most comfortable AQH is not as great as it appears. So if we’re doing this well under t-shirt I’ve ever had. these circumstances, if we get accurate ratings and if streaming I wish I had written Keith Urban’s “Somebody Like You.” gets rated, that’s going to be additive. Radio ends up in a much better place.” It’s a classic. I love the way the lyric is a little bit abstract. Paulus’ drive for answers stems from his belief that radio could There’s room to interpret it a couple of different ways. be doing a lot better in a competitive media landscape. “The big I have to have makeup with me on the road. I have picture is that a rising tide lifts all boats,” he says. “If everybody forgotten it a couple of times. That’s always an expensive trip to gets full credit for the listening that’s actually happening, all the Walgreen’s or Walmart. ratings go up. Hypothetically, that gives us more flexibility to raise I love Oklahoma City. I wouldn’t mind being stuck there. rates. I’d rather see that than having everyone trying to sneak a Something about that town is very comforting to me. It’s a piece box in the back door hoping for a competitive advantage over the of home, even though I’m not from Oklahoma. next guy.” ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected]

July 27, 2015 Page 10 Until that day, however, secret black boxes will remain secret. And ratings reports will continually beg the question, “Is it real, or is it Voltair?” “Let’s assume competitive stations are all going to end up with Voltair,” Harker says. “Then we’ll have a level playing Then there’s the digital question. “While PPM may do an field. What we’re noticing is numbers falling more in line with inadequate job with analog radio, it does a dreadful job with what we saw in diaries. We’ll then boil that down to something digital – streaming, HD and the like,” Harker says. “Everyone is that’s closer to measuring actual audience. We thought, trying to sell more digital but can’t because we don’t have the optimistically, that PPM had 70% accuracy. Now we’re thinking it ratings. That’s a big discussion.” was closer to 50-60% accuracy with the issue with talk. We don’t One of many. Also up for discussion: think Voltair will give us 100%, but it will be closer than it is now. • Will non-Voltair stations find work-arounds? “Voltair is a scalpel, “That could bring us back to the diary days where we’re but that doesn’t mean you can’t use an axe,” Harker says. “Basically, competing for listeners, not trying to game the PPM technology. turn up the treble. And then it amounts to how much programmers Playing to PPM is not the same as playing to listeners.” will push that before ruining the sound of their station.” Even better, such shifts could restore radio’s competitive • What does this mean for radiothons, which have been advantage over Pandora and the like. “Once you see talk in the radically altered, moved or dropped entirely in response to context of the ratings it deserves you go, hold it, maybe there is an arguably faulty data? alternative to radio being a jukebox,” Harker adds. “All it takes is • And, are there legal ramifications? “It’s definitely a class- one or two to win in the ratings with talk and personality for others action lawsuit waiting to happen,” one radio exec says. “Think to follow suit. The race to talk as little as possible is basically over.” about five years of lower ratings and decreased revenue. Radio Mr. Kotter! Mr. Kotter: The search for answers is anything has been getting a huge black eye for no reason at all.” but over. Paulus asserts the rising controversy’s singular focus Nielsen’s initial response hasn’t seemed to answer many on the encoding side of the equation. What is happening on the questions, but Harker is one of many well past needing decoding side? “PPM functionality isn’t just about the product that validation for what he’s seen with his own eyes. “We have spent goes out on the air, but also about how the meter reader receives the last seven or eight years learning how to do bad radio based it,” he says. “The big mystery is the way their environmental on bad information,” he says. “It may take eight years to unlearn surroundings and ambient noise affect the meter.” all that.” –Chuck Aly CAC

July 27, 2015 Page 12 Spring Diary Scoreboard Here are Spring 2015 (4/2-6/24) Nielsen Audio diary ratings results from Legend: A “+” indicates a Classic Country outlet; a “^” designates co- July 20-24, listed alphabetically by market. Ranks (in parentheses) are among owned Country stations in the metro; “t” indicates a tie; and a “*” indicates a subscribers. Non-subscribing stations in published markets are excluded. station best in that statistic.

Station/City 12+ Share Last Book 12+ Share Spring 2015 Station/City 12+ Share Last Book 12+ Share Spring 2015 WQMX/Akron 7.7 (1) 7.5 (1) WIOV/Lancaster, PA 9.5 (2) 9.9 (1) KBQI/Albuquerque 3.5 (7t) 2.8 (9) WZCY/Harrisburg, PA (Lancaster, PA) 3.5 (5) 3.2 (5) KBQI-HD2/Albuquerque 2.2 (13) 2.2 (12t) KGRT/Las Cruces, NM 8.1 (2) 7.3 (2) KRST/Albuquerque 3.5 (7t) 3.9 (6) KFGE/Lincoln, NE 8.5 (2) 9.4 (2) WCTO/Allentown 10.3 (2) 9.5 (3) KZKX/Lincoln 6.6 (4) 6.8 (4) KCWR/Bakersfield^+ 2.3 (14) 1.9 (15) KMJX/Little Rock^+ 6.8 (4) 6.8 (3t) KUZZ/Bakersfield^ 9.4 (1) 9.6 (1) KSSN/Little Rock^ 7.7 (2) 6.3 (5) KVMX/Bakersfiled 0.8 (18t) 1.2 (17) WMAD/Madison 3.0 (1) 2.8 (10t) KAWO/Boise, ID 4.3 (6) 4.8 (2t) WWQM/Madison 5.8 (3) 6.3 (4) KIZN/Boise, ID^ 3.5 (9) 2.6 (15) KTEX/McAllen, TX 10.2 (1) 8.9 (2) KQBL/Boise, ID 1.8 (17) 3.9 (11t)* WKSJ/Mobile 7.5 (3) 7.6 (3) KQFC/Boise, ID^ 3.1 (10t) 2.0 (17t) KTOM/Monterey 2.5 (10t) 3.2 (7t) WCKN/Charleston, SC 3.6 (10) 3.1 (11t) KYZZ/Monterey 0.9 (13) 1.0 (13) WEZL/Charleston, SC 5.0 (6) 5.2 (5) WGTR/Myrtle Beach, SC 8.6 (1) 6.9 (2t) WIWF/Charleston, SC 1.9 (15) 3.1 (11t) WLFF/Myrtle Beach, SC 2.6 (9t) 2.5 (10) WOGT/Chattanooga, TN 1.8 (10t) 1.9 (15) WCTY/New London, CT 13.9 (1) 13.7 (1) WPLZ-HD2/Chattanooga, TN 1.6 (12) 2.3 (13) KXKT/Omaha^ 9.2 (2) 9.9 (1) WUSY/Chattanooga, TN 13.8 (1) 12.3 (1) KFFF/Omaha^+ 3.1 (9t) 4.1 (8t) WUUQ/Chattanooga, TN+ 7.7 (4t) 5.8 (4t) WXBM/Pensacola, FL 5.3 (3) 4.2 (2) KATC/Colorado Springs 5.2 (5t) 6.2 (2) KCCY/Pueblo, CO 5.4 (3) 4.2 (3) WCOS/Columbia, SC 3.8 (8) 5.4 (4) KQLA/Salina, KS 1.3 10.0 WOMG/Columbia, SC 1.4 (12 1.3 (12) KSKG/Salina, KS 6.6 2.0 WKRO/Daytona Beach, FL 3.5 (3) 1.5 (3) KYEZ/Salina, KS 5.3 3t KHKI/Des Moines^ 7.3 (1) 6.2 (6) WCTQ/Sarasota 5.5 (2) 4.1 (2) KJJY/Des Moines^ 5.3 (6t) 4.8 (8) KDRK/Spokane 5.7 (3) 5.1 (6) KHEY/El Paso 5.4 (8) 4.5 (8) KIIX/Spokane 2.1 (14) 1.9 (15) KHGE/Fresno 2.5 (13) 3.5 (9) KXLY/Spokane 5.5 (4) 5.2 (4t) KSKS/Fresno 4.4 (6t) 4.9 (4) WRNX/Springfield, MA 4.9 (3) 5.6 (3) WCKT/Ft. Myers 3.5 (9) 3.0 (11) WNSH/New York (Stamford, CT) 1.6 (14t) 2.0 (10t)* WWGR/Ft. Myers 5.7 (3) 6.6 (1) KATM/Modesto (Stockton) 4.3 (5t) 6.0 (3) WAVW/Ft. Pierce 4.9 (3) 5.6 (1) KSTN-AM/Stockton 2.5 (9) 2.6 (8)* WPHR/Ft. Pierce 3.9 (4) 3.5 (5) WKKO/Toledo 8.6 (1) 8.9 (1) WHWY/Ft. Walton Beach, FL 7.4 (1) 8.5 (1)* WCKY/Toledo 1.4 (9) 1.2 (9) WYZB/Ft. Walton Beach, FL 4.4 (5t) 3.1 (6t) KTOP/Topeka, KS 2.9 (7t) 3.1 (7) WDVH/Gainesville+ 0.8 (9t) 1.3 (9) KTPK/Topeka, KS+ 8.8 (3) 7.2 (2t) WRUF/Gainesville 2.1 (6t) 3.4 (5) WIBW/Topeka, KS 10.2 (1) 8.1 (1) WTRS/Gainesville 2.1 (6t) 3.7 (4) KYUN/Twin Falls, ID 4.2 (2t) 2.7 (3) WRNS/Greenville, NC^ 7.7 (3) 9.9 (2) KHGE/Fresno (Visalia, CA) 1.3 (6) 1.7 (8) WQSL/Greenville, NC^ 1.9 (9t) 1.7 (8) KFDI/Wichita^ 10.7 (1) 10.5 (1) WAYZ/Hagerstown, MD 13.3 (1) 11.8 (1) KFTI-AM/Wichita^+ 1.2 (16) 1.8 (16) WRBT/Harrisburg 6.7 (4) 6.3 (4) KVWF/Wichita 2.1 (15) 2.5 (13) WZCY/Harrisburg 2.3 (8) 3.9 (6)* KZSN/Wichita 6.9 (2) 5.3 (6) KQUS/Hot Springs, AR 15.3 (1) 18.0 (1) WGGY/Wilkes Barre 6.9 (3) 7.8 (2) WDRM/Huntsville, AL 11.2 (1) 13.2 (1) WSJR/Wilkes Barre 2.0 (9) 2.0 (10) WFFF/Huntsville, AL 0.8 (12t) 1.0 (12) WBYL/Williamsport, PA 5.1 (6) 4.7 (6) WXBQ/Johnson City, TN 21.9 (1) 19.6 (1) WILQ/Williamsport, PA 22.1 (1) 20.9 (1) WCYQ/Knoxville 3..4 (7) 5.0 (6) WDSD/Wilmington, DE 2.4 (5) 3.3 (5) WDKW/Knoxville+ -- 2.7 WXCY/Wilmington, DE 4.3 (3) 4.2 (3) WIVK/Knoxville 17.1 (1) 13.9 (1) WGTY/York, PA 10.9 (1) 11.8 (1) WMYL/Knoxville 1.5 (11) 2.3 (10) WZCY/Harrisburg (York, PA) 1.5 (7t) 2.9 (5) WPCV/Lakeland 10.3 (1) 13.2 (1) ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected]

July 27, 2015 Chart Page 1

LW TW Artist/Title (Label) Total Points +/- Points Total Plays +/- Plays Audience +/- Aud Stations ADDS

3 1 BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) ✔ 28734 3650 8397 998 56.38 6.97 153 0

1 2 JASON ALDEAN/Tonight Looks Good On You (Broken Bow) 28504 -39 8324 -6 56.528 -0.436 154 0

5 3 MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) ✔ 26007 3018 7514 829 51.261 5.308 154 0

6 4 LUKE BRYAN/Kick The Dust Up (Capitol) 23727 1941 6944 577 47.243 4.582 154 0

9 5 ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving... (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) ✔ 22663 3030 6573 946 44.809 5.51 154 0

8 6 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 21761 1708 6556 590 42.749 3.503 154 0

10 7 BRAD PAISLEY/Crushin' It (Arista) 19761 688 5986 186 37.758 1.067 154 0

11 8 DUSTIN LYNCH/Hell Of A Night (Broken Bow) 19132 1639 5403 373 38.985 4.587 153 0

12 9 SAM HUNT/House Party (MCA) 18278 1135 5298 329 37.088 1.964 152 0

2 10 LITTLE BIG TOWN/Girl Crush (Capitol) 17998 -9040 5408 -2604 32.809 -19.768 154 0

14 11 THOMAS RHETT/Crash And Burn (Valory) 16395 1182 4777 355 33.53 2.806 152 0

4 12 CANAAN SMITH/Love You Like That (Mercury) 16342 -7635 4551 -2342 33.256 -14.064 154 0

15 13 CHRIS JANSON/Buy Me A Boat (Warner Bros./WAR) 15326 1336 4571 400 30.399 3.424 152 2

17 14 BRETT ELDREDGE/Lose My Mind (Atlantic/WMN) 15154 1310 4418 473 30.042 2.268 154 0

18 15 KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) ✔ 14635 1948 4232 616 28.524 4.766 154 2

16 16 ERIC CHURCH/Like A Wrecking Ball (EMI Nashville) 14428 474 4253 127 29.145 1.042 152 0

19 17 MADDIE & TAE/Fly (Dot) 12200 1148 3566 322 23.615 2.685 154 2

20 18 JAKE OWEN/Real Life (RCA) 11715 997 3343 318 22.017 1.816 150 1

21 19 CHASE RICE/Gonna Wanna Tonight (Columbia) 11269 685 3265 165 19.311 1.656 147 0

22 20 KIP MOORE/I'm To Blame (MCA) 10999 737 3160 190 20.439 1.185 151 0

26 21 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy... (Blue Chair/Columbia) ✔ 10701 2611 3011 783 22.33 5.744 153 16

23 22 COLE SWINDELL/Let Me See Ya Girl (Warner Bros./WMN) 9742 577 2924 192 17.001 1.355 138 3

24 23 LADY ANTEBELLUM/Long Stretch Of Love (Capitol) 9438 900 2696 269 18.283 1.176 153 0

28 24 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Anything Goes (Republic Nashville) 9028 1693 2579 462 17.174 4.626 146 20

25 25 DAN + SHAY/Nothin' Like You (Warner Bros./WAR) 8652 386 2563 205 16.878 0.924 142 1

July 27, 2015 Chart Page 3

LW TW Artist/Title (Label) Total Points +/- Points Total Plays +/- Plays Audience +/- Aud Stations ADDS

29 26 OLD DOMINION/Break Up With Him (RCA) 8269 1018 2242 318 14.079 1.625 141 5

27 27 BIG & RICH/Run Away With You (B&R/New Revolution) 8126 562 2506 135 13.842 0.941 144 5

32 28 CAM/Burning House (Arista) 7717 1111 2249 330 14.557 1.149 132 13

30 29 PARMALEE/Already Callin' You Mine (Stoney Creek) 7351 631 2279 175 11.018 0.855 144 2

35 30 CHRIS YOUNG/I'm Comin' Over (RCA) 6352 842 1744 216 10.398 1.569 126 2

33 31 BROTHERS OSBORNE/Stay A Little Longer (EMI Nashville) 6335 195 1837 70 10.788 0.275 126 2

31 32 REBA/Going Out Like That (Nash Icon/Valory) 5216 -1419 1491 -469 12.594 -2.247 83 0

36 33 JANA KRAMER/I Got The Boy (Elektra Nashville/WAR) 4857 197 1460 64 9.647 0.497 127 5

38 34 HUNTER HAYES/21 (Atlantic/WMN) 4479 714 1315 157 8.794 1.568 133 11

34 35 MICKEY GUYTON/Better Than You Left Me (Capitol) 3914 -1617 1178 -577 5.314 -1.957 148 0

39 36 DRAKE WHITE/It Feels Good (Dot) 3684 -18 1068 5 4.834 0.03 101 3

37 37 MO PITNEY/Country (Curb) 3681 -363 1141 -84 5.123 -0.386 107 2

41 38 MIRANDA LAMBERT/Smokin' And Drinkin' (RCA) 3119 218 905 67 4.923 0.887 101 4

43 39 DARIUS RUCKER/Southern Style (Capitol) 2954 447 787 94 4.19 0.74 97 5

CHASE BRYANT/Little Bit Of You (Red Bow) 2942 191 954 68 4.059 0.364 97 6

44 41 LOCASH/I Love This Life (Reviver/Star Farm) 2895 397 937 107 4.582 1.032 80 5

45 42 RANDY HOUSER/We Went (Stoney Creek) 2680 317 888 105 2.868 0.207 102 6

40 43 AUSTIN WEBB/All Country On You (Streamsound) 2550 -1140 810 -440 6.055 -0.981 102 0

47 44 TOBY KEITH/35 MPH Town (Show Dog) 2467 256 722 69 2.779 0.039 100 1

48 45 THE CADILLAC THREE/White Lightning (Big Machine) 2271 106 776 48 2.243 0.147 100 6

50 46 A THOUSAND HORSES/(This Ain't No)... (Republic Nashville) 2213 326 659 88 2.79 0.295 85 8

Debut 47 STEVEN TYLER/Love Is Your Name (Dot) 2154 783 698 231 3.87 2.642 89 13

Debut 48 KELSEA BALLERINI/Dibs (Black River) 2141 1022 644 317 3.146 1.218 90 23

46 49 THOMPSON SQUARE/Trans Am (Stoney Creek) 2138 -88 675 -28 2.564 -0.075 91 0

49 50 BILLY CURRINGTON/Drinkin' Town With A... (Mercury) 2032 87 654 12 2.498 0.092 94 1 ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected] July 27, 2015 Chart Page 4

Country Aircheck Add Leaders Adds Activator Top Point gainers JERROD NIEMANN/Blue Bandana (Sea Gayle/Arista) 61 ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving... (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) 1333 ✔ EASTON CORBIN/Yup (Mercury) 35 MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) 1307 ✔ KELSEA BALLERINI/Dibs (Black River) 23 KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) 1212 ✔ BLAKE SHELTON/Gonna (Warner Bros./WMN) 22 BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) 1193 ✔ FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Anything Goes (Republic Nashville) 20 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy... (Blue Chair/Columbia) 1182 ✔ ANDY GRAMMER & ELI YOUNG BAND/Honey... (S-Curve/Valory) 17 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 1111 DAVID NAIL/Night's On Fire (MCA) 17 BRETT ELDREDGE/Lose My Mind (Atlantic/WMN) 794 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy Day (Blue Chair/Columbia) 16 LADY ANTEBELLUM/Long Stretch Of Love (Capitol) 654 CAM/Burning House (Arista) 13 LUKE BRYAN/Kick The Dust Up (Capitol) 626 STEVEN TYLER/Love Is Your Name (Dot) 13 CAM/Burning House (Arista) 625 Country Aircheck Top Point gainers Activator Top Spin gainers BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) 3650 ✔ ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving... (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) 259 ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving... (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) 3030 ✔ MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) 225 MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) 3018 ✔ BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) 221 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy...(Blue Chair/Columbia) 2611 ✔ KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) 219 KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) 1948 ✔ KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy... (Blue Chair/Columbia) 216 LUKE BRYAN/Kick The Dust Up (Capitol) 1941 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 198 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 1708 BRETT ELDREDGE/Lose My Mind (Atlantic/WMN) 161 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Anything Goes (Republic Nashville) 1693 CAM/Burning House (Arista) 120 DUSTIN LYNCH/Hell Of A Night (Broken Bow) 1639 KELSEA BALLERINI/Dibs (Black River) 119 CHRIS JANSON/Buy Me A Boat (Warner Bros./WAR) 1336 LADY ANTEBELLUM/Long Stretch Of Love (Capitol) 113

Country Aircheck Top Spin gainers Country Aircheck Top Recurrents Points BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) 998 BLAKE SHELTON/Sangria (Warner Bros./WMN) 15869 ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving... (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) 946 KELSEA BALLERINI/Love Me Like You Mean It (Black River) 11391 MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) 829 EASTON CORBIN/Baby Be My Love Song (Mercury) 11374 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy... (Blue Chair/Columbia) 783 BILLY CURRINGTON/Don't It (Mercury) 10108 KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) 616 ZAC BROWN BAND/Homegrown (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) 9990 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 590 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Sippin' On Fire (Republic Nashville) 8590 LUKE BRYAN/Kick The Dust Up (Capitol) 577 A THOUSAND HORSES/Smoke (Republic Nashville) 8446 BRETT ELDREDGE/Lose My Mind (Atlantic/WMN) 473 SAM HUNT/Take Your Time (MCA) 8073 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Anything Goes (Republic Nashville) 462 CARRIE UNDERWOOD/Little Toy Guns (19/Arista) 7570 CHRIS JANSON/Buy Me A Boat (Warner Bros./WAR) 400 LUKE BRYAN/I See You (Capitol) 6256 ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected] July 27, 2015 Chart Page 5 COuNTRY AIRCHECK ACTIVITY A D D D AT E S THE CADILLAC THREE/White Lightning (Big Machine) Moves 48-45* August 3 2,271 points, 776 spins Waterloo Revival/Bad For You (Big Machine) 6 adds: KAJA, WGGY, WLHK, WRNX, WUSJ, WUSN KACEY MUSGRAVES/Dime Store Cowgirl (Mercury) BLAKE SHELTON/Gonna (Warner Bros./WMN) A THOUSAND HORSES/(This Ain’t No) Drunk Dial (Republic Nashville) August 10 Moves 50-46* Tim McGraw/Top Of The World (Big Machine) 2,213 points, 659 spins 8 adds: WDRM, WGTY, WKLI, WSLC, WUSH, WWQM, August 17 WXTU*, WYCT Tyler Farr/Better In Boots (Columbia)

STEVEN TYLER/Love Is Your Name (Dot) Send yours to [email protected] Debuts at 47* 2,154 points, 698 spins 13 adds including: KIIM*, KSCS, KSJO*, KUBL*, KYGO, W1MC*, WBCT, WDSY, WGKX*, WGNA CHECK OUT 7/28 KELSEA BALLERINI/Dibs (Black River) Daryle Singletary There’s Still A Little Country Debuts at 48* 2,141 points, 644 spins Left (TMFx4) 23 adds including: KBEB, KFRG, KHEY, KILT, KJKE, KKWF, Singletary returns with his first album since 2009, KMDL, KPLM, KTEX, KTST with 10 new songs and two bonus tracks – “America” and “The Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised,” which features the THOMPSON SQUARE/Trans Am (Stoney Creek) late Johnny Paycheck. Moves 46-49 2,138 points, 675 spins; No adds August 7 Luke Bryan Kill The Lights (Capitol) Michael Ray Self-Titled (Atlantic/WMN) BILLY CURRINGTON/Drinkin’ Town With A Football Problem (Mercury) Lindi Ortega Faded Gloryville (The Grand Tour/ Moves 49-50* Last Gang) 2,032 points, 654 spins 1 add: WQMX August 21 Kip Moore Wild Ones (MCA) Whitney Rose Heartbreaker of the Year CRAIG CAMPBELL/Tomorrow Tonight (Red Bow) (Cameron House) 1,901 points, 631 spins 4 adds: KFRG, WEBG, WKXC, WQYK August 28 Maddie & Tae Start Here (Dot) Various Mud Digger Vol. 6 (Average Joes) DIERKS BENTLEY/Riser (Capitol) 1,777 points, 567 spins Sept. 11 Brett Eldredge Illinois (Atlantic/WMN) 3 adds: KJKE, WGGY, WSLC Sept. 18 Leigh Nash The State I’m In (Thirty Tigers) LEE BRICE/That Don’t Sound Like You (Curb) 1,223 points, 438 spins Sept. 25 Thomas Rhett Tangled Up (Valory) 2 adds: WQIK, WSSL Don Henley Cass County (Capitol) ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected] July 27, 2015 Chart Page 6

LW TW Artist/Title (Label) Points +/- Points Plays +/- Plays Stations Adds

1 1 JASON ALDEAN/Tonight Looks Good On You (Broken Bow) 12292 331 2370 56 55 0

3 2 BRANTLEY GILBERT/One Hell Of An Amen (Valory) ✔ 11872 1193 2253 221 55 0 6 3 MICHAEL RAY/Kiss You In The Morning (Atlantic/WEA) ✔ 10758 1307 2064 225 53 0 7 4 FRANKIE BALLARD/Young & Crazy (Warner Bros./WAR) 10449 1111 2032 198 55 0

10 5 ZAC BROWN BAND/Loving You Easy (SouthrnGrnd/Varvatos/BMLG) ✔ 10380 1333 1984 259 55 0 2 6 LITTLE BIG TOWN/Girl Crush (Capitol) 9832 -1307 1901 -261 52 0 5 7 BRAD PAISLEY/Crushin' It (Arista) 9820 -101 1903 -26 55 0 8 8 LUKE BRYAN/Kick The Dust Up (Capitol) 9781 626 1892 108 54 0 4 9 CANAAN SMITH/Love You Like That (Mercury) 8698 -1980 1647 -411 50 0 11 10 THOMAS RHETT/Crash And Burn (Valory) 8229 382 1563 93 55 0 12 11 SAM HUNT/House Party (MCA) 8117 505 1550 99 56 2

17 12 KEITH URBAN/John Cougar, John Deere... (Capitol) ✔ 7568 1212 1456 219 57 1 14 13 ERIC CHURCH/Like A Wrecking Ball (EMI Nashville) 7450 405 1445 100 55 0 13 14 DUSTIN LYNCH/Hell Of A Night (Broken Bow) 7386 256 1444 42 54 0 16 15 BRETT ELDREDGE/Lose My Mind (Atlantic/WMN) 7289 794 1416 161 57 0 15 16 CHRIS JANSON/Buy Me A Boat (Warner Bros./WAR) 7121 550 1418 110 55 0 18 17 JAKE OWEN/Real Life (RCA) 5998 457 1134 87 55 0 19 18 KIP MOORE/I'm To Blame (MCA) 5645 327 1065 59 53 0 20 19 MADDIE & TAE/Fly (Dot) 5537 472 1078 88 53 1 23 20 KENNY CHESNEY/Save It For A Rainy Day (Blue Chair/Columbia) ✔ 5460 1182 1049 216 56 8 22 21 LADY ANTEBELLUM/Long Stretch Of Love (Capitol) 5187 654 1021 113 54 0 21 22 COLE SWINDELL/Let Me See Ya Girl (Warner Bros./WMN) 5184 478 1002 108 54 1 24 23 CHASE RICE/Gonna Wanna Tonight (Columbia) 4497 334 850 65 51 1 25 24 FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Anything Goes (Republic Nashville) 4294 453 831 86 54 4 26 25 CHRIS YOUNG/I'm Comin' Over (RCA) 3543 394 714 84 49 1 29 26 CAM/Burning House (Arista) 3409 625 618 120 41 5 28 27 DAN + SHAY/Nothin' Like You (Warner Bros./WAR) 3023 222 591 41 42 5 27 28 REBA/Going Out Like That (Nash Icon/Valory) 2793 -117 522 -34 32 0 30 29 PARMALEE/Already Callin' You Mine (Stoney Creek) 2639 197 508 30 42 2 33 30 OLD DOMINION/Break Up With Him (RCA) 2589 420 512 79 47 7 ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected] July 27, 2015 Chart Page 7

LW TW Artist/Title (Label) Points +/- Points Plays +/- Plays Stations Adds

31 31 MIRANDA LAMBERT/Smokin' And Drinkin' (RCA) 2559 143 515 25 43 1 34 32 BIG & RICH/Run Away With You (B&R/New Revolution) 2547 406 498 81 33 2 32 33 BROTHERS OSBORNE/Stay A Little Longer (EMI Nashville) 2420 151 431 29 41 1 35 34 HUNTER HAYES/21 (Atlantic/WMN) 2041 68 394 11 32 3 36 35 RANDY HOUSER/We Went (Stoney Creek) 1920 322 356 66 31 1 37 36 MO PITNEY/Country (Curb) 1552 -34 261 -16 31 1 38 37 LOCASH/I Love This Life (Reviver/Star Farm) 1530 -38 217 -6 14 0 41 38 DIERKS BENTLEY/Riser (Capitol) 1467 96 318 24 29 1 40 39 JANA KRAMER/I Got The Boy (Elektra Nashville/WAR) 1410 35 273 7 25 0 48 40 KELSEA BALLERINI/Dibs (Black River) 1267 559 222 119 26 9 47 41 TOBY KEITH/35 MPH Town (Show Dog) 1234 399 225 67 27 2 44 42 DARIUS RUCKER/Southern Style (Capitol) 1161 244 238 58 18 2 42 43 A THOUSAND HORSES/(This Ain't No) Drunk Dial (Republic Nashville) 1120 -113 223 -10 22 0 43 44 BILLY CURRINGTON/Drinkin' Town With A... (Mercury) 1106 131 235 30 21 0 46 45 OLIVIA LANE/You Part 2 (Big Spark) 814 -39 154 -6 16 0 39 46 AUSTIN WEBB/All Country On You (Streamsound) 720 -825 136 -169 23 0 53 47 STEVEN TYLER/Love Is Your Name (Dot) 702 229 142 50 14 2 45 48 DRAKE WHITE/It Feels Good (Dot) 689 -198 121 -26 15 0 50 49 LEE BRICE/That Don't Sound Like You (Curb) 642 66 149 17 12 2 49 50 THE CADILLAC THREE/White Lightning (Big Machine) 618 28 81 6 8 1 52 51 OLD DOMINION/Nowhere Fast (RCA) 570 70 57 7 1 0 51 52 CLARE DUNN/Move On (MCA) 511 -26 84 0 9 2 54 53 TYLER FARR/Withdrawals (Columbia) 463 23 85 3 9 0 Debut 54 ALAN JACKSON/Jim And Jack And Hank (EMI Nashville) 415 170 88 31 11 1 59 55 BLACKJACK BILLY/Why God Made Summertime (Reviver) 400 90 40 9 1 0 Debut 56 BRIAN COLLINS/Shine A Little Love (Blue Light) 386 113 63 15 7 1 57 57 UNCLE EZRA RAY/B.Y.H.B. (Tentative/INgrooves) 366 46 39 7 3 0 56 58 DREW BALDRIDGE/Dance With Ya (THiS) 360 20 36 2 1 0 58 59 JT HODGES/Ray Bans (Buffalo Sound) 350 30 35 3 1 0 Debut 60 BIG SMO/Rebel Road (Elektra/WMN) 320 110 32 11 1 0 ©2015 Country Aircheck™ — All rights reserved. Sign up free at www.countryaircheck.com. Send news to [email protected]