January 30, 2023, Issue 843
CRS 2023: A Preview
As Country Radio Seminar prepares to mark its 54th anniversary, CRB Exec. Dir. RJ Curtis and CRS Agenda Committee Chairman Joey Tack and Vice-Chair Brent Michaels tell Country Aircheck that whether it’s your first or 50th CRS, there will be something for everyone and plenty of surprises. Ask Me How I Know: For the first time in several years, CRS returns to a Mondaythrough-Wednesday week and shifts to March, with CRS 2023 running March 13-15 at Nashville’s Omni Hotel. “We hope everyone will arrive early, because our agenda kicks RJ Curtis off first thing Monday morning,” says Curtis. Registration will be open beginning Sunday (3/12) and reopens Monday morning at 8am CT. “The full slate of educational sessions begins promptly at 8am as we launch into our Digital Music Summit,” Curtis explains. Adds Tack, “We have four available morning sessions between 8am and noon, and one afternoon session, covering a wide range Joey Tack of topics from streaming music platforms to social media and Web3.” The opening day will also include CRS Honors, where this year’s Country Radio Hall of Fame class will be publicly unveiled for the first time. “Our Digital Music Summit day is for everyone,” notes Michaels. “Whether or not you work specifically with a streaming platform or not, there will be great takeaways for everyone. Many of these Brent Michaels will be ‘101-style’ sessions breaking down the basics so terrestrial can implement the information, as well.” Day one closes with the first artist interview of CRS 2023: Garth Brooks in conversation to discuss the establishment of a new industry honor, The Garth Brooks No Fences Award (CAT 11/3/22). (continued on page 6)
Whiskey Business: Arista’s Nate Smith celebrates his inaugural No. 1, “Whiskey On You,” with his team. Pictured (l-r) are the label’s Houston Gaither, Lauren Thomas, Paul Grosser, Britany Higgins, Amy Menz and Steve Hodges, Smith, the label’s Ali O’Connell, Dennis Reese, Nicole Walden and Mallory Michaels and The Core Entertainment’s Taylor Manns.
Fabulous Forties: KEEY, WSM-FM, WWKA This month, three Country stations celebrate their 40th anniversaries in the format, as celebrated on page 10. KEEY/ Minneapolis, WSM-FM/Nashville and WWKA/Orlando were all successful Easy Listening or Soft AC stations faced with aging demographics. Each signed on to become the second (or in KEEY’s case, third) FM Country outlet in their markets. Each station also used a more personality-oriented approach to take on, and in the case of KEEY and WWKA, eliminate their more music-based competitors. In WSM-FM’s case, WSIX was prompted to also utilize a more personality-based approach.
© 2 0 2 3 Co u n t r y A i rc h e c k ™ — A l l r i g h t s r e s e r v e d . S i g n u p f re e a t w w w. c o u n t r y a i rc h e c k . c o m . S e n d n e w s t o n e w s @ c o u n t r y a i r c h e c k . c o m