How Much Influence Should You Tube Play In Music Decisions?

Jay Bedford, Program Director|Music Director|Morning Host at 1035 The Eagle/Sydney shared this fascinating factoid:

"So here are our five Power Currents for this week ... 5 of them ... and the corresponding number of views on YouTube ... plus one more song!

3.9 million views ... Blake Shelton ... Mine Would Be You
3.5 million views ... Chris Young ... Aw Naw
2.9 million views ... Tim McGraw ... Southern Girl
2.4 million views ... Robby Johnson ... South of Me1.2 million views ... Miranda Lambert ... All Kinds Of Kinds
1.1 million views ... Zac Brown Band ... Sweet Annie"

He asks:  "Should these figures have an influence? Those are amazing stats for an unknown guy from Quebec that is not play listed on any major radio stations. (Song is not Canadian content even though the artist is Canadian.)"

My reaction, after being intrigued, impressed and watching the video, is that streaming and downloads are a lot like sales figures.

I want to know more before deciding it's right for my radio station.  It would be interesting to see the location of the hits and views/listens to see how many are from your local area compared to the others.

Callout and online testing are still my major criteria for this reason, even over mScore tracking.

You know they are your heavy users, and even their age and gender cell, so you can target what we choose to play, but goodness knows this is certainly a great sign, among the many emerging stats that radio needs to stay aware of as listeners find new ways to discover new favorites.

Entertainment News Is Still News

That means that there's no point in doing the story if you aren't sure it's correct.

Telling me something I didn't know achieves nothing if later I find out that what you told me was wrong.  News is about information, but it's also about building (or destroying) trust.

A&O&B prep producer Dan Van notes:   

"I think Miranda Lambert is country music's most sensationalized artist.  She is always pregnant (on blogs and tabloid sites). While at the CMA Awards I took a call from a station saying they heard she was drunk backstage.  CRAZY!"

The latest pregnancy story is just an example why each and every radio station should have a Content Producer (or somebody) to do some fact checking before reporting or posting. 

Dan adds:  "The same site also keeps reporting that she and Blake will be in Los Angeles for Thanksgiving but she told me at the CMA Awards that they are heading home for (4) days at Thanksgiving.  Right after Tuesday's show no doubt."   (Take A Listen To The Audio)

That story ran for the Albright & O'Malley & Brenner clients on the Wednesday (11/14) prep (with her saying it in her own words). 

Fact checking paid off in that case when Dan asked her if she was flying in the in-laws to LA for Thanksgiving. 

Blogs and social sites need to have facts checked before posting, especially on such personal matters like a pregnancy.

Your credibility is at stake.  These days, radio can't be as "fast" as gossip spread socially.

Let's work harder than ever to become known as the one that doesn't report until we know it's RIGHT.

Neil Haislop: Brad, Miranda And Justin Rock LA

Friday night the second leg of Brad Paisley's American Saturday Night Tour filled up and sold out L.A.'s monster Staple's Center, Paisley received the Super Star treatment he's long since earned.

As he's been doing on this tour, Brad skips the big sound and light show, bang up, whip-em-into-a-frenzy opening that brings most big stars on stage. Instead, he appears in the darkened house, runs down the ramp to the center of the arena, picks up an acoustic guitar and starts the show alone. The crowd couldn't have been any more wildly enthusiastic if he'd kicked off the show any other way. That's because these true Paisley fans knew the singing, picking and solid, record-setting string of consecutive #1 hits this special, totally original performer was about to gift them. They were not disappointed.

One of the reasons Brad can jump into the action that way is because he's always been smart about who he invites to opening his shows, from Jack Ingram, Taylor Swift, Jimmy Wayne, Dierks Bently and Friday night's opener, fast rising star, Justin Moore, who passed on the growing energy to country's kick-butt diva-in-waiting Miranda Lambert.

Justin came on stage like he belonged there, and his well-received contemporary cowboy repertoire proved that he did. He's doing himself a lot of good on this sold out Paisley tour.

Miranda with her rockin', attitude-charged, Dolly-style, independence and irresistible country charm was...irresistible!.. as she was welcomed as the big star that she is...made so by her completely unique, self-penned repertoire, and high-energy, cool chick songs that appeal to chicks and Chucks alike.

If the American Saturday Night tour is coming your way and it's not already sold-out, run, don't walk, to your computer or ticket window and make sure you see it.

The pranks have begun on Brad’s tour as Moore was the first to be messed with this week. Apparently, Haislop reports, one of Brad’s crew guys came on stage during Justin’s set in Fresno wearing nothing but a big diaper, in recognition of Justin’s new baby girl, Ella Kole, who was born last week. In response, Justin decided to take that same diaper and wear it on stage during the encore song “Alcohol”.

Justin kept his clothes on under the diaper though. Clearly the major punches have yet to be thrown out on the road. We’re certain there’s more craziness from the tour to come!

Country Weekly Dishes On Blake And Amanda

Blake Shelton opens up about family, hard times, his new hit, life on his Oklahoma ranch . . . and girlfriend Miranda Lambert:

“I just love how my life is at the moment,” Blake sums up, and it’s not difficult to see why. His current single “Home” is among his fastest-rising ever and he’s also settled into a sprawling ranch he bought last year in Oklahoma. Plus, Miranda lives on her own farm about six miles away. As for their relationship, Blake admits that they’re taking it slowly. “I’m not in any hurry to get married again,” he tells Country Weekly. “She says she’s not in a hurry to get married. For once, I just want to enjoy bein’ comfortable with where things are in my life and how they’re flowin’ along right now.”