Headlines

That's according to BuzzAngle Music's latest report which analyzed consumption for the first six months of the year. So far in 2017, total music consumption is up 9.9% over 2016. Over 290 million album project units have been sold compared to 266.6 million album project units in the first half of 2016. Here are some of the highlights from the report...

The CRB has selected its Board of Directors for 2017-2018. Board President is Kurt Johnson (Townsquare Media). R.J. Curtis (All Access Music Group) will return as Vice President, and Beverlee Brannigan (E.W. Scripps) will serve as Secretary.

It’s time for all the early birds to get ready to register for Country Radio Seminar 2018, to be held Feb. 5-7 at the Omni Nashville. Early bird registration opens July 10 with the special rate of $499. Registrations will be available for purchase at www.CountryRadioSeminar.com. This will be the 48th annual CRS.

(By Bob McCurdy) Winston Churchill once described success as, “Walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” The tenacity to face down adversity and triumph. That is grit. Hall of Fame basketball coach Pat Riley has often said, “I can get knocked down five times but I will get up six times.” That is grit. And that is what Radio certainly has.

(By Editor-in-Chief Ed Ryan) It wasn’t an overnight success, not by a long shot. And in a time when most companies look for instant ratings, it’s rare you see a broadcaster stick with a format for so long, giving it time — and money — to find its footing. That’s exactly what Hubbard Radio did with KTMY (myTalk 107.1) in Minneapolis-St. Paul.

(By Randy Lane) Two words separate good shows from great shows: What else? Once you have a good idea, what else can you add to give it more impact? Continue to ask the what else question and you’ll discover new ways to create killer content.

iHeartMedia San Antonio debuted 96.1 NOW in San Antonio over the holiday weekend. The format is Hit Music and kicked off with a full weekend of commercial-free music. The format includes artists such as Justin Bieber, The Chainsmokers, Ed Sheeran, and Bruno Mars. The local lineup of jocks will stay as is.

The 24-hour business and radio station, in conjunction with Beasley Media Group, announced that over the holiday weekend Bloomberg Radio was being heard on Beasley's 106.1FM, WRCA 1330 AM, and 92.9/WBOS-FM HD2. Bloomberg Radio will continue to broadcast on WXKS 1200AM/94.5FM-HD2 for the next few months.

Alpha Media, West Palm Beach, changed WMEN from Fox Sports 640 to 640 The Hurricane over the holiday weekend. The station will still be an all-sports Fox affiliate, but the station now says it will "carry more edge and attitude."

CKLW in Windsor got a blast of votes over the holiday weekend taking the lead back from WKBW in Buffalo in our poll of The Greatest Top 40 Radio Stations of all time. Cast your vote now. Your top 10 choices will appear in the July 24 issue of Radio Ink, right next to the top picks from Lee Abrams and Randy Michaels.