Now in 1997, the pendulum is swinging in the direction of what has now been dubbed by the mainstream press as 'Electronica.' This music is what could be deemed the offspring of Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk and New Order. In other words, 'Electronica' is dance music. The same format that made WLIR great the first time around. Contrary to popular belief, dance music is and always has been fashionable and nobody else in New York radio is even thinking about touching it. Looks like no greater time than now to switch formats from WLIR's current triple AAA format with low ratings to this format which, while not proven, will grow to be a massive format for the station because it's not a conventional radio medium which Z-100 can easily latch on to -- in essence, it would be like a continuation of what 'LIR was doing in '88, only with today's music.
DANCE MUSIC!? NOBODY LIKES DANCE MUSIC!
WRONG!! Dance music is hot, and is only gaining ground.
Electronica is the buzzword developed by the ultra-conservative US rock press to hide the words 'dance music.' For some reason, these people seem to be afraid of dance music. What's funny is that dance music is massive the world over. Go to any foreign country and dance bands are right up there with No Doubt and all the other pop music on the charts. Dance music is not the Spice Girls, La Bouche or that other disco crap that WKTU plays. It's The Prodigy, Underworld, The Chemical Brothers, Orbital, Faithless, Sneaker Pimps, Daft Punk, Moloko, BT, and hundreds of other LIVE PERFORMING, ALBUM ARTISTS whom are signed to major labels in the U.S.
Even more than album artists, dance music is also a DJ-driven singles-based phenominon where a good 12" club hit in the UK can go on to sell over 400,000 copies if the national radio station picks up on it, and with the massive club scene there, there's usually five of them in the top-20 on any given week. Take a look at the U.S., and we're not so far off ourselves. There are countless DJs who are considered pop stars to the younger set. People like Josh Wink, Junior Vasquez, Roger Sanchez, David Morales, Keoki, Doc Martin, Danny Tenaglia and literally hundreds of others. DJs are becoming so big, that going to a rave party or a club is the eqivalent to what kids did in the 60's and 70's when they went to see their favorite band. And these DJs are making a killing monetarily. $2,000 dollars for 2 hours work is common with many spinners, and club owners are throwing this money at them BECAUSE THEY'RE POPULAR -- PEOPLE LIKE THEM. It is estimated that there is a base of a half a million people in the New York area alone who are between the ages of 18-24 and are dance-friendly.These people are deemed trendsetters and tastemakers by their peers. Which translates to more listeners once these folks wear station t-shirts and tell their friends how cool WLIR is because they play dance music.
