Some general questions about Kansas (Riley: private school, wage, living) - (KS) - Page 10 - City-Data Forum

luzianne · 07-24-2012, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MOKAN

You bet. Closed-minded people fail to see beyond 'rural' and all the stereotypes they've created for that word. They fail to realize there's a spectrum of social classes and diversity within 'rural'.

Exactly!

luzianne · 07-24-2012, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sco

I could spend my time posting lots of facts but it is clear that you will never change your mind.

You seem to not understand that merely counting the number of radio stations in Kansas subsorted by category proves nothing at all. You are making the assumption that each and every radio station has the same number of listeners and overall popularity.

In Wichita, country format station KFDI has been #1 in the market for years. They routinely have a 12+ share and their share value exceeds their closest competitor (another country station) by 6 points. That is a huge market share for just one station. Basically you can add up listeners from every other station and format in Wichita and still not even come close to the number of people that listen to just that one country station.

It is obvious to anyone paying attention that country is the most popular form of music in Kansas when judged by sales, radio station ratings and concert attendance.

Between now and the end of 2012, the concerts at Wichita's Intrust Bank Arena are 100% country acts. I guess the professional promoters don't have access to the same market research that you do.

It is clear that you have some issue with country music and wish that more of your fellow Kansans viewed it with the same disgust that you do. Unfortunately, in this case the facts don't match up with your personal desire.

I have no issue with country music. I said I like some country music. There are times when I am in the mood to listen to country music and I like Waylon and Willie and Wynona and Hank Jr and some of the old music like Loretta Lynn, Hank Sr, etc. I also like a whole lot of other music. My music of choice is rock and roll, and that's what I listened to in my teen years in RURAL Kansas. Some of my friends liked rock and roll and some of them liked soul. None of them listened to country music. I learned to like that later, after I was married and had kids. I also like blues and some rap music and bluegrass and gospel and lots of other music.

What I have an issue with is people stereotyping Kansas. I don't care that the country station in Wichita has been #1 in the market for years. That doesn't mean all of Kansas listens to country music and I still maintain that that is not true. You can't make generalizations for the whole state based on what Wichita does. The fact is that most music stations in Kansas do not play country music. The reason for that is that there is a higher demand for other types of music. If everyone listened to country, all the stations would be country. But they're not. When I lived in rural Kansas, no one that I knew of listened to country music.

You are right; I am not changing my mind - because I have lived here for 55 years, including rural Kansas (and rural Missouri for that matter), and I know most people don't listen to country music. You obviously aren't changing your mind either, and that's fine. I'm just saying that based on my experience, you are wrong. And apparently others agree with me.

CrownVic95 · 07-25-2012, 05:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luzianne

I don't think country music is the music that MOST Kansans listen to. That's simply not true. I also don't agree that most live music shows are country acts. Why would radio stations play mostly other music if almost all Kansans listened to country? Every state in the US has country stations and country concerts and country fans. I don't think Kansas listens to it any more than other places and the list of radio stations shows that country stations are in the minority in Kansas. Why are YOU being so obstinate?

It's very simple, Luzianne.

You defend Kansas against the belittlers here and thus annoy them. And the degree of popularity of country music is one of the ways (they think) of putting down the state and its residents. Your challenge is a big disruption of their game plan.

The "progressives" who love to put down the state because of its social conservatism preach tolerance, but tolerate only those viewpoints that are cookie cutter matches of theirs.

People like you impede their progress toward the complete absorption and reprogramming of all minds to function in the perfect PC mode. And Kansas is not very PC, at least compared to states like California or Massachusetts. That's why I have such fond memories of my life there.

thriftylefty · 07-25-2012, 07:40 AM

Country music is commercial. That's why you hear it all over rural America. It sells ad time. If you sell irrigation pipe what station are you going to buy ad space on? Sure there is the ; Country Stampede , The State Fair, and The Wichita venues for country shows , but to be fair you would have to add up all the concert series that colleges present, all the Auditoriums , and Historic theatres in Kansas, all the folk, blues, and Jazz festivals, all the Orchestras in the state and their concert seasons. You might find that attendance at these music shows in Kansas is probably holding its own.
The National Orchestra did a swing through Kansas about three or four years ago. They sold out every show at a pretty high ticket price. It might have been 12 shows around the state.

Sometimes radio listenership doesn't necessarily reflect local taste. Local news, weather, market reports and advertising are more important to some than the music. A promoter in Southeast Kansas once tried to book Diamond Rio at the height of their popularity the same week they were on the Tonight Show. Seventy five people showed up in an auditorium that holds 1500. Hose Grecco, the Spanish Dancer sold out the same auditorium. (I might add that there was nearly no people of Hispanic origin in this town) The primary radio station in this market was country.

soanchorless · 07-25-2012, 09:38 AM

Well...this is all going on because I was drunk one night and misread the OP's post. I thought he said he listened mostly to country...re-reading the post, I see his listens to several other things as well. But anyway, my main intention was to let him know that as someone who listens to country music and uses it while djing...he will not have a issues in Kansas. People who listen to country music are common enough that he will fit in. Add in the other music I didn't notice the first time around, and he will still fit in.

No more drunk forum posting for me!

MOKAN · 07-25-2012, 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thriftylefty

Country music is commercial. That's why you hear it all over rural America. It sells ad time. If you sell irrigation pipe what station are you going to buy ad space on? Sure there is the ; Country Stampede , The State Fair, and The Wichita venues for country shows , but to be fair you would have to add up all the concert series that colleges present, all the Auditoriums , and Historic theatres in Kansas, all the folk, blues, and Jazz festivals, all the Orchestras in the state and their concert seasons. You might find that attendance at these music shows in Kansas is probably holding its own.
The National Orchestra did a swing through Kansas about three or four years ago. They sold out every show at a pretty high ticket price. It might have been 12 shows around the state.

Sometimes radio listenership doesn't necessarily reflect local taste. Local news, weather, market reports and advertising are more important to some than the music. A promoter in Southeast Kansas once tried to book Diamond Rio at the height of their popularity the same week they were on the Tonight Show. Seventy five people showed up in an auditorium that holds 1500. Hose Grecco, the Spanish Dancer sold out the same auditorium. (I might add that there was nearly no people of Hispanic origin in this town) The primary radio station in this market was country.

Are you saying they did book Diamond Rio and only 75 people showed up? Would that happen to be for Neewollah in Independence? I can't think of what else in SEK could manage or even attempt to book Diamond Rio, and the biggest act I remember at Neewollah was The Wilkinsons.

While espousing Kansas' musical diversity, don't forget the annual KC Symphony Flint Hills concerts.