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BPM (XM)
Encyclopedia
BPM is one of four Dance/Electronic music satellite channels offered by Sirius XM Radio, operating on XM channel 51 (previously 81), Sirius channel 51 (previously 36, where it replaced The Beat on November 12, 2008) and Dish Network
channel 6036. DirecTV
carried this channel on channel 859 until February 9, 2010
. On May 5, 2011, BPM can now be heard on channel 51 for both services and Dish Network
6051.
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
from east to west. Each hour features a different DJ from a different city. Each hour the "flight" "touches down" in a new city and the next DJ plays.
This popular show has been methodically hacked down to its current three hours from its original 8 hours (9pm ET to 5am ET). Brian Howe, Kill Tha DJ, Marcus McBride, Jamie J Sanchez, Mark D and Chris The Greek were the first DJs dropped. Joe Bermudez and Mike Rizzo were then let go from the Air BPM lineup in April/May 2009 and in July 2009, Scotty Boy and Nathan Scott were discontinued.
The Spin Factor - A two hour dance music
countdown, hosted by former PD Alan Freed, showcasing the top songs on BPM based entirely on requests and user input. It consisted of approximately 28 songs and the #1 song from one year prior. This program replaced "33 & 1/3" in January 2006. In 2006, "The Spin Factor" aired every Sunday at 3pm ET, Monday at 6pm ET, and Monday nights at Midnight ET. The Spin Factor was discontinued in January 2007; Its last weekly produced countdown program was December 24, 2006. No reason has yet been posted.
The BPM Project - An hour-long program that focused on new tracks and listeners were invited to respond with feedback on whether they want to hear them played regularly. Also hosted by Alan Freed, this program replaced the "Wannabes" segments that were part of "33 & 1/3".
Bullet Points - Daily short-form dance music news and event listings by Alan Freed. Each week's reports were published on the BPM web site attached to the weekly countdown chart.
Corsten's Countdown (which moved to sister dance station Electric Area) An interactive monthly countdown show hosted by Ferry Corsten
. This series features new dance tracks, club mix sets and the top club songs voted on by listeners online.
D.U.I. (Dancing Under the Influence) (discontinued after the Sirius XM merger) Six hours of DJ sets from BPM Resident DJs
In addition, "Matt Darey's Nocturnal" (A popular worldwide dance music
show) aired as part of the "D.U.I." block.
Melle Mel came aboard as a replacement for DJ Smooth. Prior to the DUI show, DJ Smooth was one of the DJs who played the Rotation mix sets, from October 2002 to December 2005.
Global Domination (which moved to sister dance station Electric Area) features two hour sets from five different DJs across the world (the name "Global Domination" comes from the far-flung nature of the DJs).
Backspins With Boesche - An hour of classic dance music
tracks from the 1990s and early 2000s mixed by BPM Resident DJ, Jon Boesche.
Air BPM in Reverse - Discontinued as of March 14, 2009. (Same as AIR BPM, but backwards with respect to programming schedule) An eight-hour block of DJ sets by BPM Resident DJs on Saturday nights presented in the format of an imaginary flight across America
from east to west. Each hour features a different DJ from a different city. Each hour the "flight" "touches down" in a new city and the next DJ plays.
Addiction w/ DJ Armando Used to air weeknights at 11pm ET/ 8pm PT, Sunday mornings at Midnight ET/ 9pm PT. DJ Armando previously aired a live 'Addiction' show at 5pm ET & 8pm ET. Many fans were disappointed by the move to 11pm.
, the emphasis changed dramatically to focus on remixed top-40 music, taking the playlist from the now-defunct Sirius 36 The Beat. Most of the older dance content is now on The Strobe
. Immediately afterward, there was major public backlash, notably on the station's Facebook page and other fan pages on the web. Many hardcore dance/club fans were alienated by the music favored by the small minority to whom the channel was trying to appeal. After many months of BPM "crying wolf" about changes coming, on June 16, 2009, the channel's pure dance origins temporarily returned. The station announced that it had expanded the playlist to include the entire channel library from 2001 to the present. Shortly afterward on June 30, 2009, program director Skyy left the company. Management of the station shifted to Mike Abrams (who has been with XM since 2004) and Geronimo, former program director of the defunct pre-acquisition Sirius dance channel, "The Beat", known for its heavy focus on mainstream top-40 remixes and tracks from the 90s and 80s.
On January 15, 2009, "The Beat Morning Show with Geronimo" made its debut. Geronimo was heard on The Beat during its run on Sirius, and the show feature music that was heard on The Beat previous to the combination of the two services. As of June 13, 2009, "The Beat Morning Show" is no longer used on air or listed in the program guide.
Many subscribers had expressed their displeasure with the "Bagatelle Brunch" that aired on Saturday afternoons. An overwhelming number of comments on the station's Facebook
fan page have complained that the allegedly live broadcast from a nightclub is poorly mixed, with excessive crowd noise and music that is entirely inappropriate for what is supposed to be a dance station. As of October 12, 2009, BPM dropped the weekday 1pm "Best of Bagatelle Brunch" from the schedule. As of February 5, 2011, due to subscriber backlash, the show has been canceled. The Saturday afternoon 3 hour slot is now hosted by Geronimo.
BPM has been nominated for a radio award in each of the subsequent 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th and 26th IDMAs for 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 but has not won since 2005.
Satellite TV (ch. 859), and on two U.S. airlines: JetBlue and AirTran Airways
, and on supported devices by users of AT&T
, Sprint (for Sirius users) and Alltel
wireless.
Dish Network
Dish Network Corporation is the second largest pay TV provider in the United States, providing direct broadcast satellite service—including satellite television, audio programming, and interactive television services—to 14.337 million commercial and residential customers in the United States. Dish...
channel 6036. DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
carried this channel on channel 859 until February 9, 2010
2010 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2010.-Events:*Date Unknown: CHOI/Quebec City flips from Alternative Rock to News/Talk.*January 4: KJCS/Lufkin, Texas goes silent....
. On May 5, 2011, BPM can now be heard on channel 51 for both services and Dish Network
Dish Network
Dish Network Corporation is the second largest pay TV provider in the United States, providing direct broadcast satellite service—including satellite television, audio programming, and interactive television services—to 14.337 million commercial and residential customers in the United States. Dish...
6051.
Regular Programming
BPM is presented in a Top 40 radio style. Its original program director was Blake Lawrence (known on-air as "Maxwell House"), who headed the channel until he left XM for New York's WQCD in 2004. BPM's original format, from 2001 through 2005, was current mainstream dance; in 2006 it made a slight shift toward the pop mainstream. However, in March 2009, its emphasis changed dramatically to focus primarily on remixed top-40 music, 90's dance cuts and select songs that date to the early 1980s, a similar format to the former Sirius channel, "The Beat". BPM is commercial-free and has on-air DJs.Programming Blocks
Monday-Thursday- 12mid-6a America's Dance Hits
- 6a-9a BPM Morning Workout
- 9a-2p Geronimo on BPM
- 2p-8p Danny Valentino on BPM
- 8p-12mid Miss V. on BPM
Friday
- 12mid-6a America's Dance Hits
- 6a-10a BPM Morning Workout
- 10a-2p Geronimo on BPM
- 2p-8p Danny Valentino on BPM
- 9p-10p Fresh Friday's with Kramer
- 10p-(Sat)1a AIR BPM-See Below for Line-up
Saturday
- 3a-10a America's Dance Hits
- 10a-3p Tim Bauman on BPM
- 3p-6p BPM with Geronimo
- 6p-8p BPM Air Candy Countdown
- 8p-9p Adrenaline with The Riddler
- 9p-10p Adrenaline with Louie Devito
- 10p-11p Bob SinclarBob SinclarBob Sinclar, originally spelled "Sinclair" - , is a French record producer, House music DJ, remixer and owner of the label Yellow Productions.- Career history :...
on BPM - 11p-12mid David GuettaDavid GuettaPierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...
on BPM
Sunday
- 12mid-1a KaskadeKaskadeRyan Raddon , better known by his stage name Kaskade, is an American DJ and record producer. On October 20, 2011, DJ Magazine announced the results of their annual Top 100 DJ Poll, with Ultra Records Kaskade placed at #30...
on BPM - 1a-8a America's Dance Hits
- 8a-10a Fresh Friday's with Kramer (Replay from Friday before)
- 10a-12noon BPM Air Candy Countdown
- 12noon-3p Geronimo on BPM
- 3p-6p Miss V. on BPM
- 6p-12mid Tim Bauman on BPM
Specialty Programs
BPM Air Candy Countdown - The 25 most-played songs of the week. The program runs Saturdays from 6 to 8pm and Sundays from 10am to 12noon.Mixshows
Air BPM (Formerly Air 81) - A three-hour block of DJ sets by BPM Resident DJs on Friday nights presented in the format of an imaginary flight across AmericaUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from east to west. Each hour features a different DJ from a different city. Each hour the "flight" "touches down" in a new city and the next DJ plays.
- 10pm ET - Johnny Budz (New York)
- 11pm ET - Cato K (Miami)
- Midnight ET - DJ LeonyDJ LeonyDJ Leony is a Latin music DJ, remixer and producer based in Orlando, Florida. He has had a long-standing residency at the Latin Quarter night club at Universal CityWalk at the Universal Orlando Resort. During 2007-2008 he was also the program director of all Latin music channels at XM Satellite...
(Orlando)
This popular show has been methodically hacked down to its current three hours from its original 8 hours (9pm ET to 5am ET). Brian Howe, Kill Tha DJ, Marcus McBride, Jamie J Sanchez, Mark D and Chris The Greek were the first DJs dropped. Joe Bermudez and Mike Rizzo were then let go from the Air BPM lineup in April/May 2009 and in July 2009, Scotty Boy and Nathan Scott were discontinued.
Former shows
33 & 1/3 This was the first dance music countdown show on BPM, which ran from 2001 to 2006. The program aired on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and counted down the top 33 & 1/3 songs (actually 34; 33 1/3 is the RPM on a dance 12" single, hence the show's name). In between the tracks, 5 new singles that was being tested as feedback for listeners called "Wannabes" was featured, along with a flashback of a number one song that reached the top spot on the show a year earlier. Originally hosted by Maxwell House (Blake Lawrence), then by Alan Freed.The Spin Factor - A two hour dance music
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
countdown, hosted by former PD Alan Freed, showcasing the top songs on BPM based entirely on requests and user input. It consisted of approximately 28 songs and the #1 song from one year prior. This program replaced "33 & 1/3" in January 2006. In 2006, "The Spin Factor" aired every Sunday at 3pm ET, Monday at 6pm ET, and Monday nights at Midnight ET. The Spin Factor was discontinued in January 2007; Its last weekly produced countdown program was December 24, 2006. No reason has yet been posted.
The BPM Project - An hour-long program that focused on new tracks and listeners were invited to respond with feedback on whether they want to hear them played regularly. Also hosted by Alan Freed, this program replaced the "Wannabes" segments that were part of "33 & 1/3".
Bullet Points - Daily short-form dance music news and event listings by Alan Freed. Each week's reports were published on the BPM web site attached to the weekly countdown chart.
Corsten's Countdown (which moved to sister dance station Electric Area) An interactive monthly countdown show hosted by Ferry Corsten
Ferry Corsten
Ferry Corsten, also known under the alias System F, is a Dutch producer of trance music, in addition to being a DJ and remixer. He also hosts his own weekly radio show, Corsten's Countdown. He routinely plays at events all over the world with crowds in excess of tens of thousands. In 2009 Ferry...
. This series features new dance tracks, club mix sets and the top club songs voted on by listeners online.
D.U.I. (Dancing Under the Influence) (discontinued after the Sirius XM merger) Six hours of DJ sets from BPM Resident DJs
- Melle Mel (Detroit)
- DJ Armando (Hartford)
- DJ Scotty Boy (Las Vegas)
- Lil Cee (New York)
In addition, "Matt Darey's Nocturnal" (A popular worldwide dance music
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
show) aired as part of the "D.U.I." block.
Melle Mel came aboard as a replacement for DJ Smooth. Prior to the DUI show, DJ Smooth was one of the DJs who played the Rotation mix sets, from October 2002 to December 2005.
Global Domination (which moved to sister dance station Electric Area) features two hour sets from five different DJs across the world (the name "Global Domination" comes from the far-flung nature of the DJs).
- "Club Life" with DJ Tiësto of the Netherlands
- "Nocturnal" with Matt Darey of London
- "12 inches of Cox" with Chris Cox of Los Angeles
- "Junior's World" with Junior Vasquez of New York
- Jonathan Peters of New York
- DJ Tiësto (replay)
Backspins With Boesche - An hour of classic dance music
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
tracks from the 1990s and early 2000s mixed by BPM Resident DJ, Jon Boesche.
Air BPM in Reverse - Discontinued as of March 14, 2009. (Same as AIR BPM, but backwards with respect to programming schedule) An eight-hour block of DJ sets by BPM Resident DJs on Saturday nights presented in the format of an imaginary flight across America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from east to west. Each hour features a different DJ from a different city. Each hour the "flight" "touches down" in a new city and the next DJ plays.
- 9pm ET - Mike RizzoMike RizzoMichael "Mike" Rizzo, is an American DJ/remixer from New York City since the early 1990s. He is well known for working with various artists such as Jennifer Green and Sun, all of whom scored hits on both Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts.He also achieved success on both...
(New York) - 10pm ET - DJ TheoDJ TheoDJ Theo is an House DJ and producer based in New York City. He is best known for his mix series, Nervous Nitelife: Summer Clubbing . Theo can be heard on Sirius Satellite Radio Electric Area channel 38 every Friday at 4 a.m. EST...
(New York) - 11pm ET - Joe Bermudez (Boston)
- Midnight ET - DJ LeonyDJ LeonyDJ Leony is a Latin music DJ, remixer and producer based in Orlando, Florida. He has had a long-standing residency at the Latin Quarter night club at Universal CityWalk at the Universal Orlando Resort. During 2007-2008 he was also the program director of all Latin music channels at XM Satellite...
(Orlando) - 1am ET - Scotty Boy (Las Vegas)
- 2am ET - Cato K. (Miami)
- 3am ET - Nathan Scott (Chicago)
- 4am ET - Johnny Budz (New York)
Addiction w/ DJ Armando Used to air weeknights at 11pm ET/ 8pm PT, Sunday mornings at Midnight ET/ 9pm PT. DJ Armando previously aired a live 'Addiction' show at 5pm ET & 8pm ET. Many fans were disappointed by the move to 11pm.
Criticism
As noted above, in March 20092009 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2009.- Events :* January 1: Kurdish TV starts broadcasting in Turkey.* January: Michael Smerconish, morning host at talk radio WPHT Philadelphia, begins syndication of his morning show to WHFS in Washington and WOR in New York City.* January 17: Two well...
, the emphasis changed dramatically to focus on remixed top-40 music, taking the playlist from the now-defunct Sirius 36 The Beat. Most of the older dance content is now on The Strobe
The Strobe
Studio 54 Radio is a disco and freestyle music radio station, one of four Dance/Electronic music channels operated by Sirius XM Radio. The channel was originally known as The Strobe from 2002 to 2011, when it was relaunched under its current incarnation, a hommage to the legendary New York City...
. Immediately afterward, there was major public backlash, notably on the station's Facebook page and other fan pages on the web. Many hardcore dance/club fans were alienated by the music favored by the small minority to whom the channel was trying to appeal. After many months of BPM "crying wolf" about changes coming, on June 16, 2009, the channel's pure dance origins temporarily returned. The station announced that it had expanded the playlist to include the entire channel library from 2001 to the present. Shortly afterward on June 30, 2009, program director Skyy left the company. Management of the station shifted to Mike Abrams (who has been with XM since 2004) and Geronimo, former program director of the defunct pre-acquisition Sirius dance channel, "The Beat", known for its heavy focus on mainstream top-40 remixes and tracks from the 90s and 80s.
On January 15, 2009, "The Beat Morning Show with Geronimo" made its debut. Geronimo was heard on The Beat during its run on Sirius, and the show feature music that was heard on The Beat previous to the combination of the two services. As of June 13, 2009, "The Beat Morning Show" is no longer used on air or listed in the program guide.
Many subscribers had expressed their displeasure with the "Bagatelle Brunch" that aired on Saturday afternoons. An overwhelming number of comments on the station's Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
fan page have complained that the allegedly live broadcast from a nightclub is poorly mixed, with excessive crowd noise and music that is entirely inappropriate for what is supposed to be a dance station. As of October 12, 2009, BPM dropped the weekday 1pm "Best of Bagatelle Brunch" from the schedule. As of February 5, 2011, due to subscriber backlash, the show has been canceled. The Saturday afternoon 3 hour slot is now hosted by Geronimo.
Awards
BPM was twice the recipient of the annual International Dance Music Awards' "Best Satellite Dance Channel" award (for calendar years 2004 and 2005). This is notable for the fact that the award was presented only twice and because the public votes on the awards. BPM was the favorite of the other XM dance cluster channels nominated - "The Move" and "The System" - as well as the dance channels on former competitor Sirius.BPM has been nominated for a radio award in each of the subsequent 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th and 26th IDMAs for 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 but has not won since 2005.
Other broadcast platforms
BPM was included in almost every XM cross-promotion previous to the 2008 acquisition and was heard by subscribers to DirecTVDirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
Satellite TV (ch. 859), and on two U.S. airlines: JetBlue and AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways
AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of the Dallas, Texas-based Southwest Airlines, is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Orlando, Florida. AirTran operates over 650 daily flights , primarily in the eastern and midwestern United States...
, and on supported devices by users of AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
, Sprint (for Sirius users) and Alltel
Alltel
Alltel Corporation is a wireless service provider, primarily based in the United States. Before an acquisition by Verizon Wireless, it served 34 states. After the merger, Alltel continues to serve six states, mostly in rural areas...
wireless.
External links
- BPM website
- BPM at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- Alan Freed at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
including dance/club music news - BPM Spin Factor Chart Archive - An archive of "33 & 1/3" and "Spin Factor" charts including DJ set lists and music news
- Dance/Mix Show Airplay Chart - BPM is a reporter to the Billboard Dance Radio Airplay chart
- ShoutDRIVE Radio Alan Freed, former XM BPM Program Director's online dance station