BigChampagne's Ultimate Chart (a/o February 10th):
1. “What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger),” Kelly Clarkson
2. “Set Fire to the Rain,” Adele
3. “Turn Me On,” David Guetta
4. “Rack City,” TYGA
5. “Good Feeling,” Flo Rida
6. “Smooth Criminal (Glee Cast Version),” Glee Cast
7. “Young, Wild & Free,” Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa
8. “Domino ,” Jessie J
9. “Sexy and I Know It,” LMFAO
10. “Ass Back Home ,” Gym Class Heroes
Clear Channel Radio piloted a fresh broadcasting approach at Coachella last weekend, one that relies heavily on user-influenced content. The developing concept, called erockster, includes on-air stations inspired by an online network of music fans at erockster.com.
That sounds like an interesting experiment, though initial information on the project has been misleading. Earlier this week, the New York Post described erockster as festival-inspired format, but that is inaccurate according to Clear Channel. "It's not a music festival format," a company representative flatly told Digital Music News, while outlining a much different sort of playlist.
The confusion came from the initial broadcast from Coachella, which drew exclusively from event-featured artists, a mere starting point for the larger selection. Other aspects of the Post story were also incorrect, according to the representative, though the broader picture is one of user-generated, eclectic selections.
And, a quick listen to the erockster station online reflects a totally diverse collection - including many artists that would probably be unwelcome at Coachella. An initial listen included Guns N' Roses and the Cars, though the sampling also featured Snow Patrol, Jane's Addiction, Air, and DJ Shadow.
All of that represents a step away from tightly-controlled, format-specific stations currently blanketing the United States. Clear Channel has been a major purveyor of those homogenized stations, a programming philosophy that is now at loggerheads with the massively diversified, user-picked collections found on iPods.
An initial attempt to capture that diversity comes from Jack.FM, a format that plays hits from different styles and genres. But erockster is aiming for something different, and replacing smaller, closed playlists with much broader, user-influenced selections.
In total, the erockster station will eventually include a collection of about 5,000 songs, up from 1,000 currently. Those tracks are being culled from the preferences of registered users, including uploaded content. "Our main focus will be on quality and we're going to give a lot of bands that don't have a chance to be heard on the radio that opportunity," said Eric Szmanda, station host and star of "CSI".
Also instrumental in the effort is Evan Harrison, head of Clear Channel Radio's Online Music & Radio unit. Currently, the station can be streamed at erockster.com, alongside on-demand audio and video clips.
But starting May 2nd, erockster will be streamed on select major-market station websites. Additionally, the station will be broadcast digitally across various HD2 companion frequencies. Clear Channel will eventually slot two-hour syndicated segments across mainline, FM stations.
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