About a month ago Urban One flipped Praise 107.9 (Gospel) to Classix 107.9 (R&B) and listeners in Philadelphia are not happy about it. The Tribune reports that local executives, artists and hosts held a meeting to come up with ideas to save Gospel music in their hometown
Representatives from Delaware-based Reach Gospel Radio 97.1, Trenton’s 1300 AM WIMG and Look Up radio were all at the meeting. The group discussed playing secular music, an imbalanced mix of contemporary Christian music over traditional Gospel music, a disconnect with radio personalities and a lack of rotation of local artists and personalities.
Renata Jefferies was a listener of Praise for 20 years. She said when she heard the format had changed she was shocked. “I thought somebody broke into my car. I honestly didn’t know what was going on.
According to the paper, the group decided to on a set of ideas to help the stations stay relevant, including hosting a community day sponsored by Gospel and contemporary radio stations in the tri-state area; educating listeners and potential listeners on their options; and educating older listeners on how to use radio online.
As to flipping the format on Praise 107.9:
By applying Sarah Huckabee Sanders’s rationale, one could easily conclude:
“That’s the way (uh-huh, uh-huh) God wants it. (uh-huh, uh-huh).”
There is, after all, a lot of that going around, is there not?