(03-18-2012, 08:11 PM)Haleylvr4evr Wrote: And the person I wrote to is a DJ!
You should write the programming director and mention the American Idol performance. From a guide for bands:
Quote:...DJs have no say at all in what is going to be played (unless, in the case of a smaller station, the DJ is also the PD). So, the biggest pitfall to avoid is asking a DJ at a commercial station "Can I give you my CD for possible rotation?". The DJ is not allowed to say "No", and he/she is probably not going to explain that only the PD can approve regular rotation. The DJ is just going to say "OK".
...WHO DECIDES ON AIRPLAY: On commercial stations, the program director (PD) is the person who decides which artists get played and how much (i.e., the amount of "rotation" or number of "spins".) If someone other than the PD tells you your CD is playing, then you may not be getting accurate information. The music director (MD) does provide input to the PD, but the DJs generally do not. Thus, calling and talking to a DJ on-the-air is of no use. As for specialty shows and mixshows, the individual hosts do pick their own music, but just for their one or two-hour show that airs usually late at night.
...Stations are not in the music business... they are in the ratings business... they get paid to have higher ratings. Whether they play a great song or a crappy song, if their ratings stay the same, then they will make the same money and nothing more. So song quality is not the issue to them. Here's what is the issue: GETTING MORE LISTENERS.
...Their preference of which records to play in regular rotation will greatly be based on which artist is performing in their city, and how many people attend those performances, because if these people want to hear the artist's music after the show, they HAVE to tune in to the station that plays it. For a new indie act, ten people at a gig is irrelevant; a hundred is decent for a small market; three hundred is decent for a medium market; five hundred is jammin' for any market.
http://www.radio-media.com/song-album/main.html