FM 90.3 CKMP in Alberta has switched to a format they call QuickHitz where they promise listeners “twice the music” by cutting all of its song times in half, to an average of two minutes.
I should hate this idea, because you can't just chop a song in half and consider it the same song, but I don't.
Earlier this year, I shared a story about tuning into 92.5 one Friday morning.
I was driving my kids to school this morning and my daughter wanted to hear some 92.5. I put it on and they're not playing their typical top 40 songs but instead they're playing a big fat megamix by DJ Clamaxx (not sure I'm spelling that right - I need to Google this guy to get it right).
It's the top 40 hits you'd expect from 92.5, Katy Perry, Kesha, Rihanna, Miley, etc., but just the fun parts and in brief spurts with old school tunes and a lot of 90s rap. It was actually pretty fun.
And when they're mixing Rihanna with Cyndi Lauper, I get to do a little history lesson...
So it got me thinking... why not do the mixes all the time? You get the catchy Miley refrain, then some Biggie mixed with the latest Kesha hit... With these pop songs, you don't need the entire 3.5 minutes... just throw the one verse and chorus in the mix!
And of course, I've written many times about my fondness for Girl Talk, both Feed the Animals and All Day. For the unaware, Girl Talk is Gregg Gillis who mashes up tunes to create brilliant new tunes. You're lucky if you get 30 seconds of a tune with Girl Talk, but it's awesome.
So I can't join the legions who think QuickHitz is the worst thing ever. As I previously wrote, with these pop songs, you don't need the entire 3.5 minutes...
