The Industry

I love getting in touch with radio people in positions that I would love to have. One of my great friends from school (you know who you are) recently got a job up in Merritt for on-air and before I knew it I was connected with Brian (her boss), who I actually had the pleasure of meeting when he came to meet our class as we graduated at the annual talent scout. Anywho… I asked Brian to share some information on being a music director (a dream job for me). This is his story!

Hi Mitch;

I’m more than happy to help shed some light on what a Music Director does. Unfortunately I find in my experience that it’s the type of position (especially in smaller markets) that is slowly dwindling out in the industry. Most people I know, including myself, who are MD’s also have one (or more) other job titles. As for the question you posed, here goes:

How do you choose songs?

We air a Mainstream AC format from 6am - 10pm and a Country format from 10pm - 6a. I use cross-Canada Media Base charts (which is based on radio airplay) to determine what songs we add on a weekly basis in each format. 

What influences your decisions?

We have three different categories for our current songs within each format. Each category is based on rotation. The songs in each Category are ranked according to the Media Base chart.

Category 1 International AC (Songs #1-9)
Category 2 International AC (Songs #10-20)
Category 3 International AC (Songs #21-33)

In our rotation, Category 1 comes up more often than Category 2 and Category 2 more often than Category 3. 

And the idea is exactly the same for our Country Categories.

What are the challenges of being in charge of all the music?

The main challenge of being in charge of all the music is that I don’t have a lot of time on a weekly basis to listen to new music. I have a number of record company reps who call me weekly with their adds, etc. but I have to tell them that I can’t promise anything when it comes to adding new songs as I use Media Base as my guide.

That being said, if there’s a local artist (meaning from our immediate community of Merritt and the Nicola Valley), I’m happy to play their song, although maybe not in a regular rotation.

As for my thoughts on CANCON…

I think in principle, CANCON is a good thing. It’s great to see more stations in larger centres start to pay attention (at least in the AC format) to artists like Feist, Ash Koley, Andrew Allen, Hayley Sales, etc. But of course, it still adds to the wealth of international Canadian artists like Bryan Adams and Shania Twain, which isn’t really necessary in my opinion. Canadian artists should be able to stand on their own merits, sure, but the reality is that without the CANCON rules, so many Canadian artists wouldn’t get airtime. I’m not saying it’s right, it’s just a fact.

Regards,

Brian Wiebe

Program Director/Morning Show Host 
Q101 Merritt’s Music Mix

Hooray! Like I said it’s really cool to get a better insight into the side of the business that I would love to tackle at one point in my career. I mean just look at my Sure Shots, that’s my attempt at being a music director! However, the most interesting thing I found in this write-up is the debate that is brought up regarding CANCON (or Canadian Content). In Canada radio stations have to play a certain amount of homegrown talent each day in order to keep their license.This is a big deal to many. Is it right that there is a governing body which is putting restrictions on radio? Or is it a good way to promote local artists? 

My stance on CANCON rules is this. I think it’s fantastic. With that said, I also believe a lot of stations are copping out. Yes, Nickelback, Avril Lavigne and Stereos are Canadian, but that is only 3 of thousands of bands that can fill the void. The idea in my mind is to take a bigger risk with local content. Play the popular/mainstream stuff, but then also make a conscious effort to find others. That is why I want to be a music director. 

I want to know what you think about CANCON though. Leave a comment below or send me an email to feedback@theradioindustry.com

Thanks again Brian!

Let the debate BEGIN!

-Mitch