weekly March 11, 2024, Issue 900
CRS First Impressions
More than 200 first-time attendees participated in CRS 2024. Country Aircheck asked several of them for their impressions. • WJRN/Lebanon, VT midday host Erin Bourne: I grew up, live, and work in a small town in Vermont, so to be part of something so big was such an honor. Even after hearing what my colleagues had said prior ... I was blown away. As for panels, I enjoyed “Importance of Air Talent.” I focus my show primarily on country artist news [so] this data was great to bring back to my team. And so much music. Aahhh! The luncheon at the Ryman was unbelievable. I had to keep pinching myself that I was actually there. Such a historic place. CRS was the best experience of my life. • Audacy/Houston VP/Programming Erin Bourne Melissa Chase: Keith Urban showing old studio footage of playing on a cardboard box was a memorable moment. Jelly Roll and Bailey Zimmerman did fantastic jobs talking about the making of their songs. Seeing all the female programmers in one room at the Girls’ Night Out event with Megan Moroney was really special. Watching Kane Brown talk about how radio changed everything for him – to actually hear the artists acknowledge that – is a nice thing. Melissa Chase Jason Prinzo always brings it with his mental health talk. On one panel we learned how listeners want light-hearted content [but] we’re also having to hide our own emotions at times [which] creates a need for even more mental health care for ourselves when we turn the mics off. And AI sounds scarier than it is [so] hearing about people using it – not to get rid of people but to make more time to be creative – was spectacular. I was nervous I wasn’t going to know people or would be seen as an outsider, but everyone is Bryan Riley so loving and embracing, and the artists are so approachable. Everyone just wants you to be a part of the community, and
KC & The Sunshine Band: The KBEQ & KFKF/Kansas City St. Jude radiothon brings in more than $312,000. Pictured (l-r) are Jenny Matthews, Lydia Taylor, Todd Nixon, Tater, St. Jude patients Dillion and Natalie, Debbie Erikson, Dale Carter and Ashley Snow (front).
D+S Tour: Bigger Venues
“Dan + Shay should be nominated for Entertainers of the Year after what I saw,” Cox KCYY/San Antonio PD Christi Brooks told Country Aircheck after the duo’s show at the Moody Center in Austin last week (3/7). If you’re attending any of the upcoming Heartbreak on the Map Tour dates, Brooks recommends staying until the end of the show for a surprise (no spoilers). Despite a smaller crowd due to traffic (IYKYK at that venue), Brooks says openers Hailey Whitters and Ben Rector delivered. “Hailey shined,” she said, noting how many people were singing back every word. “I love her Dan + Shay authenticity and she is so talented.” Describing the duo’s entrance, Brooks said, “The whole crowd was singing along to Taylor Swift’s ‘Bad Blood,’ and on that last note when Taylor says ‘yeah,’ the arena goes completely black and Dan + Shay walk onto the stage backlit by a spotlight.” Accompanied by an acoustic guitar, the duo broke into “Save Me The Trouble,” but right before
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