Update: Although its air personalities have signed off, due to demand from listeners, oWow Radio will continue to stream its playlist of Timeless Rock at least through October, or as long as it’s financially feasible. Listen at oWOW.radio and the oWOW app.
“We know that continuing the music is only one of the many programming and marketing elements of oWOW, and does not incorporate the personalities, news, pubic service, regional information, opinion, and being live and local, which have become known for,” says oWow’s Chief content Officier John Gorman. ” But for now, we will continue to provide the Cleveland Timeless Rock soundtrack element of oWOW in this interceding period.”
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The wreckage left by the failure of our president and U.S. Senate to deal with the pandemic and its impacts in a timely manner keeps piling up.
The latest casualty is Cleveland-based streaming online radio station oWOW.radio. The station will go dark on Friday October 2 after broadcasting for five and a half years. Sadly it could’t kick COVID’s butt without some outside help, which will soon be the story for many such small businesses.
The station was the brainchild of John Gorman, the mastermind behind WMMS-FM in its ’70s-’80s heyday, and the late Jim Marchyshyn, who helmed WMMS’s marketing and promotion department from 1982-1985. After years of discussion and planning, the station was established in 2014 and went live in February 2015. Its format featured quality classic rock mixed with current adult-oriented rock, and many of the best local artists. It featured specialty shows such as lues guitarist Alan Greene’s weekend BluesTime and Sunday’s Naked Brunch featuring acoustic, low tech and demo music. The station’s air staff included prominent area air personalities Ravenna Miceli and Steve Pappas.
The station’s demise is entirely due to COVID-19. Its advertiser base consisted largely of restaurants, bars, retail stores, entertainment venues, concerts and other special events — all things shut down by the pandemic.
“These are unprecedented times,” says Gorman. “After much consideration and weighing several factors in our industry, we recognized that continued operation of oWOW.radio is no longer viable in this negative business environment. Since we are not in a situation to influence the uncertainty of the future, we are unable to ride out the storm. Though this past summer’s online streaming ratings on oWOW were 20 percent above last summer’s numbers, the numerous business closures prevented us from converting those numbers in a stagnant advertising market.”
In the past, summer has produced more than 50 percent of oWOW’s annual revenue. The station also hosted a weekly summer “oWOW Happy Hour” concert broadcast from the Music Box in the Flats.
Gorman says that he, Miceli, Pappas and their financial partners will stay together to look at potential ways of bringing the station back.
“We were also hopeful that Congress with agree on another PPP package, which would have allowed us to remain on the air while considering other options for oWOW’s future,” says Gorman.
We’re all hopeful for that and wish we didn’t have a Senate leader who prioritized rushing through the confirmation of a new Supreme Court Justice over bringing relief to struggling working Americans and small businesses such as oWow radio.
One Response to “Cleveland Streaming Radio Station oWow To Go Dark Due to the Pandemic”
Dewey Forward
John, Steve and Ravenna, I am saddened to hear this news. I had just shared my love for this station on my facebook… (which I’m not a frequent visitor but seem to have a lot of “friends” I wish you the best and if there is anything I can do for you, you have a friend in Chagrin Falls.
Peace and Love,
Dewey Forward
ChagrinFallsPopcorn.com