It’s been said all the way back since the advent of television that radio — good old fashioned terrestrial radio, not satellite or Internet — is in its final death rattle. If that’s true, it’s been an unbearably long, gruesome and cruel death… and it’s still going on! Or could it be that radio plays to all of our better media instincts, absorbing personalities, demographics, and the best and worst traits of either, and therfore could survive infinitely? We don’t have the answer to that, but this summer, Philebrity intern Dan Pierson will be listening to a different Philly-area station for a full hour once a week in the noontime hour, blogging what he finds, and then publishing those findings here. After the jump, Dan takes on one of the big players in the Philly radio market: The venerable and often mind-boggling Q102.

Station: WIOQ 102.1
Format: Mainstream top 40
Target Demographic: Pre-Teens to Club-Hopping 30-year-olds. Selling the sexy side of Pop Music, but also keeping rock-inclined listeners happy. Also, they have a whole segment on Butterfaces on their website, so they aren’t too worried about keeping it classy.

Noon: “Damaged” – Danity Kane.
“Leavin’” – Jesse McCartney
I know I’m at the right station, as the bass of the song seems to be cranked up to 11. Already, it’s clear that Q102 is the choice for dudes with souped-up Hondas. DJ Lisa Paige then decided to take down the beat with a mellow breakup song. Pop Music has feelings, too.

The Week’s Big Giveaway: Trip to LA to see Fergie. Concert tickets, airfare, hotel stay, and even meet the Duchess. I wonder if she’ll pee her pants for you too.

Roll the ads; BET Awards, Subaru Dealership with catchy jingle, Laser eye surgery, Plastic Surgery, Charter School. The commercials for top 40 radio are much better than other stations because some advertisers feel the need to use jingles and songs to trick the listener into believing Subaru’s new SUV is actually a new single.

Next up: “Love in The Club” – Usher.

12:15pm: Lisa Paige complaining about gas prices: “I could have used that money to buy jewelry at Sephora.” Best Plug Ever. Next up:

“Take a Bow” – Rihanna
“Love Is Gone” – David Guetta/Chris Willis
“4 Minutes” – Madonna
Pretty Good Trio. Q102 used to have a noon block of workout music, and they seem to have carried over some of those ideals. Everything Q plays seems to be fast. Fast ads, fast songs, Lisa is a fast talker. They know the ADD of their audience well.

More ads: Celebrity Family Feud, Conicelli Toyota, Vh1 I love the New Millennium, California Psychics, Hershey Park. Ads for Psychics? Isn’t that whole Miss Cleo Phase soooo last Millennium?

12:30pm: Promise of a Commercial Free Hour. Not if Lisa has her way.

“Dangerous” – Kardinall Offishall/Akon
“Ready or Not” – The Fugees
“Pocketful of Sunshine” – Natasha Bedingfield
Q102 is so successful because their playlist works for their younger and older demographic. Songs like “Dangerous” may not appeal to the older listeners, but Natasha Bedingfield will bring them back in. Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

12:45pm:“When I Grow Up” – The Pussycat Dolls
“With You” – Chris Brown
“Closer” – Neyo
“Realize” – Collbie Caillat
Roller Skating Rinks should pay a percentage of their profits to Q102, because after this is over, I want to strap on some rollerblades and skate around listening to Haddaway, and then awkwardly couple skate to “Realize.”

“Summertime” – DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince
A+. Q102 pleases the locals with West Philly’s own, and yet, it doesn’t seem like pandering. It’s a natural selection from their current hits and 90′s gems playlist, and a solid way to end the hour. With nary mention of Butterfaces, too.

This entry was posted on Monday, June 23rd, 2008 at 4:04 pm.