Post-Payola Settlements, Radio Dials Up New Business Plans For Big Summer Festivals.

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Author: Boyle, Mike

TOURING

In these days of increased scrutiny regarding the relationship between radio airplay and artists, the radio show game has changed.

New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's investigation into payolaâ€"and subsequent settlements with three of the four major record companiesâ€"have brought about sweeping changes in the way labels work radio promotion. And that includes that summer marketing stalwart, the radio festival.

Label promotion departments often helped book their star bands at these radio shows. The agreements were largely unspoken, but bands would play the shows for free in exchange for airplay.

Nowadays, acts are playing for a more traditional motivationâ€"cash. Call any record label about landing one of its acts on a station's show, and the response will be much like this one from Warner Bros. VP of rock formats/promotion Mike Rittberg: "Go talk to the band's agent."

Even though Rittberg says that has been Warner Bros.' mantra for years, he adds, "Bands have to get paid full value for their time."

Tampa, Fla.-based Clear Channel regional VP of programming Brad Hardin says his station hires someone to produce shows, line up bands and work with agents. "We pay retail for these bands," he says. "We're not getting any special breaks because we're a radio station."

Spitzer's investigation isn't the only reason bands are getting paid. Acts need the coin due to the changing economics of the music business, Zomba Label Group senior director of promotion Joanne Grand says. "Bands deserve to make a living," she says. "Most bands aren't making it off record sales anymore."

Of course, paying acts the going rate means the economics for these radio events have shifted, leaving programmers and station managers to decide whether the returns justify the energy and effort.

Some rock stations skip the hassle of putting on their own shows and instead create marketing and branding opportunities around multi-artist events like Ozzfest. This usually involves giving away blocks of tickets to listeners, orchestrating meet-and-greets and blanketing the venue with station signage.

"People remember name shows and also remember 'their' radio station being a part of it," one rock label promo executive says. "There's the same marketing bang potential as putting on your own show, but no real [nontraditional revenue] element, and for a lot of stations that's OK."

For those outlets continuing to throw festivals, they are also trying to keep up with the evolving concert expectations of the music fan.

Working with event sponsors Miller Lite and Jägermeister, Hardin says each side of the soundboard at Clear Channel active rock WXTB Tampa's Livestock show will have an area where a winner and nine friends "get to have 'the best seat in the house.' They'll be elevated above the crowd. We've never done anything like it before."

Rock WMMR Philadelphia held its annual Spring Break April 14 at the city's Liacouras Center and, as it has in the past, gave away all 6,000 seats to listeners to see Switchfoot and a re-formed Soul Asylum. WMMR marketing director Eric Simon says the station also added a video element this year.

"We decided to drop some of the more conventional things, such as decorations and beach balls, and reach out to a video monitor company just to get some interaction with the crowd and give our listeners something to watch in between bands," Simon says.

Vince Richards, Clear Channel/Houston director of rock programming, says modern rock KTBZ (the Buzz) Houston's summer event will include interactive activities with Nintendo and Sony PlayStation. He adds that he is looking into producing Instant Live CDs from Buzzfest band performances in conjunction with promoter Live Nation.

Ray Steinman, president of Florida-based Bralco Group, a national special events production and consulting company, says one of his toughest jobs these days is negotiating with bands and production vendors to keep ticket prices affordable.

"What makes it harder and harder each year is that the margins are going down a bit, and the production costs keep going up," he says. "We're still trying to keep a reasonable ticket price because we want a lot of people to come out."

When working with stations for the first time, Steinman says it's like "sticker shock" for the radio executives.

"You go from selling airtime to selling tickets; it's much different than what they're used to. There are a lot of upfront costs radio isn't used to."

PHOTO (COLOR): Many rock stations attach branding to existing festival tours. 'People remember name shows,' one rock label promo executive says.

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By Mike Boyle