Calgary radio station offers twice the hits by cutting songs in half
A Calgary radio station has become the world’s first to adopt a new format that offers listeners half of their favourite hits, so twice as many songs can be played every hour.
AMP Radio’s new format, which was unveiled Friday, broadcasts professionally edited down versions of songs.
Steve Jones, VP of programming for Newcap Radio, which operates close to 100 stations across the country including AMP, said it is a sign that radio is finally willing to get with the times.
“Radio is using archaic logic to decide its programming,” he said. “When you think about why songs are the length they are it goes back to the ’50s and ’60s when radio stations demanded three-minute songs and artists provided them. In order to be on a 45 RPM record with any sound quality your song had to be around three, three-and-a-half minutes. If you wanted to be on the radio or you wanted to be in a jukebox, which is how people heard their music back then, you had to be on a 45 RPM record. So that was the way it was done.
“As we look to people’s changing habits and changing attention spans and watch people on their iPod listening to half a song and forwarding on to the next one we sort of came to the conclusion that maybe it was time to rethink why songs are the way they were.”
The format, called QuickHitz, uses songs provided by Vancouver-based SparkNet Communications.
Calgary singer Jann Arden spent much of Thursday on Twitter making fun of the switch: ‘‘Does anybody know of an art gallery I can go to to look at paintings that are HALF covered up?’’ she tweeted. ‘‘The NHL is only having one period this season. Makes sense. Those games are just too long.’’
Some other Jann Arden tweets:
https://twitter.com/jannarden
More on this story:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/08...songs-in-half/
Do you agree or like this new programming choice? Discuss!
Amp Radio was already the pitts anyways.