Nashville's classic country radio station, WSM-AM, has
been the subject of controversy over the last few weeks. The
future of the station, which has become a fixture in country
music history, was threatened by its owners, Gaylord Entertainment,
who were considering changing the format to a sports network.
Several of country music's biggest stars verbally protested
the change, including Vince Gill, Hank Williams Jr., Brad
Paisley, Chely Wright, and Marty Stuart, to name a few.
Garth Brooks, however, views the matter from a different
perspective. "We all love our music and we all love our
format, but remember, it's a business, and if a station that
has been a certain station for so long can't make it in that
field anymore and has to sell out or gets a better offer,
it's simply business," he says. "Country should
be its own flag. Whoever plays it as long as they believe
in it and are sincere in it, then I'm happy with it."
Yesterday (January 14) afternoon, Gaylord executives announced
that WSM-AM will remain a country station, due in part to
the number of phone calls and emails in support of the Grand
Ole Opry's flagship station. The news was delivered at the
Ryman Auditorium, where Gill and Stuart were on hand to applaud
the decision. There will be some changes made to the station,
however, to make it more profitable. WSM-AM lost $1.5 million
last year.
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