98-450: Richard Noel Marx (born September 16, 1963) is an American adult contemporary and pop rock singer-songwriter. He has sold over 30 million albums worldwide. Marx's first number one success as a songwriter came in 1984 with " What About Me? ", which was recorded by Kenny Rogers , Kim Carnes , and James Ingram , and topped the US and Canadian Adult Contemporary charts. His second chart-topper
196-685: A "best of" disc, an acoustic disc of tracks, and a DVD of a live concert performance at the Shepherd's Bush venue in England. The album was also made available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon , but without the bonus DVD and album booklet. " Everybody " was released as a single in Europe and "When You Loved Me" was released in the U.S., peaking in the Top 20 on the Adult Contemporary chart. In
294-572: A 60-song tally to 50 songs on October 20, 1984, following a major revamp to the magazine. Coinciding with an increase in its reporting panel of album rock stations in the United States, the name of the chart was changed again with the issue dated April 12, 1986, to Album Rock Tracks. On November 23, 1991, instead of reporting panels, Billboard changed its methodology of measuring airplay by using monitored airplay as provided by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems to compile many of its charts. As
392-477: A desire by some radio stations in the late 1950s and early 1960s to continue playing current hit songs but distinguish themselves from being branded as " rock and roll " stations. Billboard first published the Easy Listening chart July 17, 1961, with 20 songs; the first number one was " Boll Weevil Song " by Brook Benton . The chart described itself as "not too far out in either direction". Initially,
490-538: A full album of holiday tracks that he called Christmas Spirit . On July 8, 2014, Marx released his eleventh studio album, Beautiful Goodbye . Marx's next album, Limitless , was released on February 7, 2020. Its lead-off single, " Another One Down ", hit No. 14 on Billboard' s Adult Contemporary chart, giving Marx a span of 32 years at the format. In 2021, he appeared in the Family Guy episode " Young Parent Trap ". His autobiography Stories to Tell ,
588-500: A fundraiser for cystic fibrosis research, "Newsapalooza", sponsored by WLS-AM's Roe Conn program, in which Marx both performed several of his hits with his band and accompanied Chicago broadcast news reporters and anchors covering rock hits. In an interview published in Rolling Stone on June 26, 2009, Marx said he was "ashamed" of having been linked to a $ 1.92 million fine against single mother Jammie Thomas-Rasset by
686-407: A great deal of R&B (without any form of rapping), gospel music , classic soul and dance music (including disco ). Another format, rhythmic AC , in addition to playing all the popular hot and soft AC music, past and present, places a heavy emphasis on disco as well as 1980s and 1990s dance hits, such as those by Amber , and Black Box , and includes dance remixes of pop songs, such as
784-495: A greater emphasis on classic rock with a few newer tracks mixed in. The individual Active Rock and Heritage Rock components were discontinued by Billboard at the end of November 2013 due to a growing lack of difference between the two charts. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the chart, in June 2021, Billboard released two charts ranking the top songs and artists in the history of the chart. " Touch, Peel and Stand " by Days of
882-429: A jazz musician and founder of a jingle company in the early 1960s. His father was of German-Jewish descent. Marx attended North Shore Country Day School . He has three half-siblings from his father's previous marriage. Marx began his career in music at age five, singing commercial jingles written by his father's company; his list of advertising hits includes Arm & Hammer , Ken-L Ration and Nestlé Crunch . Marx
980-514: A major blow to the AC genre, and there are concerns that the portable people meter , a device being used to determine radio listenership, may be incompatible with AC songs and may not accurately pick up that a person is listening to an AC station because of the pitches and frequencies used in the style. Key AC artists of the early to mid-2010s included Bruno Mars , Coldplay , Adele , Arcade Fire , Meghan Trainor , Maroon 5 and Ed Sheeran , featuring
1078-482: A more conservative music library than hot AC-leaning stations. In particular, Chicago's WLIT did not have its airstaff talk over the beginning and endings of songs (in contrast to the hot AC-leaning WFYR ), and played Bob Seger 's " We've Got Tonite " but not " Old Time Rock and Roll " (which was part of WTMX 's playlist). The director of a soft AC station in Connecticut, WEZN-FM , told Warren that he had barred
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#17327939651191176-663: A more pop-influenced, uptempo style than the typical AC fare of previous years, also featuring production values reminiscent of the Motown sound and the so-called Wall of Sound that dominated the soul-heavy pop charts of the early 1960s, when the Easy Listening chart was first introduced. The earlier years of the decade also saw alternative and indie rock acts such as Wilco , Feist , The 1975 , Imagine Dragons , Mumford & Sons , Of Monsters and Men and The Lumineers quickly becoming AC mainstays, although these were eventually replaced by rhythm-based rock bands such as Panic! at
1274-427: A more uptempo direction. In 2017, Inside Radio reported that soft AC had the third-largest decrease in US stations offering the format over the past decade (at 128), ranking behind only adult standards and oldies —a shift credited to aging demographics and a major boom in the wider-appealing classic hits format (which saw the largest overall increase over the same period). Consultant Gary Berkowitz argued that
1372-408: A radio station that everybody goes, 'I'm okay with that'." The increasingly downtempo direction of pop hits in the mid-to-late 2010's also helped to attract additional listeners. Hot AC stations typically keep a larger body of recent hits in rotation than those with rigid, chart-driven formats like CHR and urban contemporary . As these stations' playlists have become concentrated towards airing only
1470-472: A result, this data showed that many songs could spend months to over a year on the Album Rock Tracks chart. Billboard decided to drop to a 40-position chart on the week of June 27, 1992 (still its current format), and songs that fell out of the top 20 and after spending 20 weeks on the chart were moved to a new 10-position recurrent chart. The recurrent chart was scrapped two years later, but not
1568-521: A similar "lite" format by choosing certain tracks (both hit singles and album cuts) of popular artists. By the late 1960s hard rock had been established as one of the rock genres leading hard rock and soft rock to became distinct popular forms in the rock scene, and as major radio formats in the US. Soft rock was often derived from folk rock, using acoustic instruments and putting more emphasis on melody and harmonies. Major artists included Carole King , Cat Stevens , James Taylor and Bread . In
1666-421: A similar playlist to hot AC stations, but with a broader rotation of classic hits from past decades. Soft adult contemporary formats have a more conservative sound oriented primarily towards adult women, urban AC focuses on R&B and soul music that appeal to African American adults, and rhythmic AC focuses on dance music and other rhythmic genres. Hot adult contemporary (hot AC) radio stations play
1764-503: A soft AC station before flipping to hot AC the following month. Over time, some stations have gradually adjusted their playlists to include more recurrents from the 1980s and 1970s (although not to the same extent as other "soft oldies" formats, such as MeTV FM , which have also grown in popularity). Meanwhile, some classic hits and mainstream AC stations have increasingly aired songs that had historically been considered staples of soft AC. Album Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock
1862-622: A stronger lean towards modern rock and pop rock . In the 1990s and early 2000s, modern AC was typically targeted towards women, with Mike Marino of KMXB in Las Vegas describing the format as reaching "an audience that has outgrown the edgier hip-hop or alternative music but hasn't gotten old and sappy enough for the soft ACs." The format typically focused on female rock acts such as Shawn Colvin , Sheryl Crow , Indigo Girls , Jewel , and Sarah McLachlan , and folk rock -influenced bands such as Counting Crows and The Wallflowers . Today,
1960-598: A variety of hit singles from his first five albums plus "Angel's Lullaby", a song written about his children originally appearing on For Our Children, Too , a compilation CD released in 1996 to benefit the Pediatric AIDS Foundation. Greatest Hits was released in Asia in November 1998 and included two new songs, "Slipping Away" and "Thanks to You", a tribute to his mother. The album was certified Gold in
2058-643: A wide range of popular music that appeals towards the 18–54 age group; it serves as a middle ground between the youth-oriented contemporary hit radio (CHR) format, and adult contemporary formats (such as "mainstream" and soft AC) that are typically targeted towards a more mature demographic. They generally feature uptempo hit music from the last 25 years with wide appeal, such as pop and pop rock songs, while excluding more youth-oriented music such as hip-hop . Older music featured on hot AC stations usually reflects familiar and youthful music that adults had grown up with. Likewise, material from legacy pop acts such as
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#17327939651192156-480: A year after its original release, became a sleeper hit on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 and Hot 100 due in part to strong hot AC airplay). The popularity of the hot AC format prompted many mainstream AC stations to add uptempo music to their playlists, while still maintaining a deeper rotation of older hits than hot AC stations. Modern adult contemporary refers to AC formats with
2254-590: Is a music chart in Billboard magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock . The chart was launched in March 1981 as Rock Albums & Top Tracks , after which the name changed first to Top Rock Tracks , then to Album Rock Tracks , and finally to its current Mainstream Rock in 1996. The Rock Albums & Top Tracks charts were introduced in
2352-446: Is a song about the potential pitfalls of the music business. "Don't Mean Nothing" reached No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on Billboard ' s Album Rock chart . Marx became the first new artist played on 117 radio stations nationwide during his initial week on the charts. The next two singles, " Should've Known Better " and " Endless Summer Nights ", reached No. 3 and No. 2, respectively. The fourth single released from
2450-411: Is accentuated. It is usually melodic enough to get a listener's attention, abstains from profanity or complex lyricism, and is most commonly used as background music in heavily-frequented family areas such as supermarkets , shopping malls , convention centers , or restaurants . Like most of pop music , its songs tend to be written in a basic format employing a verse–chorus structure . The format
2548-544: Is also godfather to his children. Waybill went into great detail about their working relationship in a 2020 interview with American Songwriter . Marx and Vesta Williams provided harmony vocals for the Gordon Lightfoot and David Foster penned Anything for Love , for the former's 1986 release East of Midnight . Marx's self-titled debut album , released in June 1987, yielded four hit singles and went triple platinum. The debut single, " Don't Mean Nothing ",
2646-531: Is another subgenre of radio programming that is distinct from the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart as it exists today, despite the apparent similarity in name. In response to the pressure on Hot AC, a new kind of AC format cropped up among American radio recently. The urban adult contemporary format (a term coined by Barry Mayo ) usually attracts a large number of African Americans and sometimes Caucasian listeners through playing
2744-607: Is heavy on romantic sentimental ballads which use acoustic instruments such as pianos , saxophones , and sometimes an orchestral set. However, electric guitars and bass are also usually used, with the electric guitar sound relatively faint and high-pitched. Additionally, post-80s adult contemporary music may feature synthesizers (and other electronics, such as drum machines ). An AC radio station may play mainstream music, but it usually excludes hip hop , house/techno or electronic dance music and some forms of dance-pop and teen pop , as these are less popular among adults,
2842-408: Is not usually considered a specific genre of music; it is merely an assemblage of selected songs from artists of many different genres . Adult contemporary traces its roots to the 1960s easy listening format, which adopted a 70–80% instrumental to 20–30% vocal mix. A few offered 90% instrumentals, and a handful were entirely instrumental. The easy listening format, as it was first known, was born of
2940-527: The Backstreet Boys , Jason Mraz , John Mayer , and Pink is prominent within the format. The "hot AC" designation began to appear in the 1990s; the term described adult contemporary stations with a more energetic presentation and uptempo sound than their softer counterparts. An early example of the format, Houston's KHMX Mix 96.5 , climbed from 14th place in the market to third in the six months after its launch. The station's format and branding
3038-621: The Beautiful Goodbye is also on this album, along with the studio version of Moscow Calling that had also been a bonus track to Beautiful Goodbye as a remix. On January 8, 1989, Marx married singer, dancer, and actress Cynthia Rhodes , who appeared in Staying Alive , Flashdance , and Dirty Dancing . Rhodes appeared as the female lead in Marx's first video, "Don't Mean Nothing". They had three sons together. In April 2014,
Richard Marx - Misplaced Pages Continue
3136-535: The Carpenters , Dionne Warwick , Barry Manilow , John Denver , and Olivia Newton-John found it harder to have major Top 40 hits as the 1980s wore on, and due to the influence of MTV, artists who were staples of the Contemporary Hit Radio format, such as Richard Marx , Michael Jackson , Bonnie Tyler , George Michael , Phil Collins , Laura Branigan and Journey began crossing over to
3234-548: The Jonas Brothers and Halsey began to be featured on AC stations more than on top 40 stations. In radio broadcasting, adult contemporary is divided into several sub-formats, each with their own musical direction and demographic targeting. Hot adult contemporary formats generally feature an uptempo rotation of recent hits that appeal to a wide adult audience. A station formatted as "adult contemporary" with no qualifier, also referred to as "mainstream" AC, generally has
3332-576: The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Rasset had shared 24 songs on the file-sharing website Kazaa in 2005, and Marx's "Now and Forever" was one of them. Marx played piano on the song "Here" and produced Matt Scannell's vocals on two tracks for Vertical Horizon 's 2009 album, entitled Burning the Days . In March 2010, Marx released Stories to Tell , his first fully acoustic album. On May 3, 2011, Marx
3430-474: The Soul Solution mix of Toni Braxton 's "Unbreak My Heart". In its early years of existence, the smooth jazz format was considered to be a form of AC, although it was mainly instrumental, and related a stronger resemblance to the soft AC-styled music. For many years, George Benson , Kenny G and Dave Koz had all had crossover hits that were played on both smooth jazz and soft AC stations. During
3528-507: The 1940s and early 1950s. After 1965, differences between the Hot 100 chart and the Easy Listening chart became more pronounced. Better reflecting what middle of the road stations were actually playing, the composition of the chart changed dramatically. As rock music continued to harden, there was much less crossover between the Hot 100 and Easy Listening chart than there had been in the early half of
3626-590: The 1960s. Roger Miller , Barbra Streisand and Bobby Vinton were among the chart's most popular performers. One big impetus for the development of the AC radio format was that, when rock and roll music first became popular in the mid-1950s, many more conservative radio stations wanted to continue to play current hit songs while shying away from rock. These middle of the road (or "MOR") stations also frequently included older, pre-rock-era adult standards and big band titles to further appeal to adult listeners who had grown up with those songs. Another big impetus for
3724-461: The 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening , pop , soul , R&B , quiet storm and rock influence. Adult contemporary is generally a continuation of the easy listening and soft rock style that became popular in the 1960s and 1970s with some adjustments that reflect the evolution of pop/rock music. Adult contemporary tends to have lush, soothing and highly polished qualities where emphasis on melody and harmonies
3822-453: The 1980s, soft rock songs still enjoyed a mild success thanks to Sheena Easton , Amy Grant , Lionel Richie , Christopher Cross , Dan Hill , Leo Sayer , Billy Ocean , Julio Iglesias , Bertie Higgins , and Tommy Page . No song spent more than six weeks at No. 1 on this chart during the 1980s, with nine songs accomplishing that feat. Two of these were by Lionel Richie, " You Are " in 1983 and " Hello " in 1984, which also reached No. 1 on
3920-682: The 1980s, the soft AC format was positioned as being a more upbeat version of easy listening that would appeal better to a younger audience, mainly by excluding instrumental beautiful music . Easy listening stations had begun shifting to the format out of concern that their existing programming would not appeal to the current generation of listeners. In a 1990 article, James Warren of the Chicago Tribune characterized soft AC stations as being "as middle-of-the-road and unthreatening as modern media get", with personalities that were encouraged to be as inoffensive and "low-profile" as possible, and
4018-502: The 1980s. The growth of AC was a natural result of the generation that first listened to the more "specialized" music of the mid-late 1970s growing older and not being interested in the heavy metal and rap/hip-hop music that a new generation helped to play a significant role in the Top 40 charts by the end of the decade. Mainstream AC itself has evolved in a similar fashion over the years; traditional AC artists such as Barbra Streisand ,
Richard Marx - Misplaced Pages Continue
4116-679: The 1990s and early 2000s such as Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera were added to the rotation of most AC stations. As trap music and similar styles of hip-hop began dominating top 40 stations during the last years of the 2010s, AC stations began picking up rhythmic artists like Rihanna , Lady Gaga , Ellie Goulding , Taio Cruz and Pitbull as well as EDM artists like Avicii , Daft Punk , Calvin Harris , David Guetta and Tiesto . Meanwhile, younger artists like Camila Cabello , Justin Bieber , Selena Gomez , Ariana Grande , Nick Jonas and
4214-475: The 1990s, to improve their appeal among changing demographics, some soft AC stations began to widen their playlist to include selections from contemporary acts with 80s, & 90s, musicians & bands such as Bon Jovi , Bryan Adams , Celine Dion , Roxette , Mariah Carey , Eric Clapton , Phil Collins , Elton John , Cher , Whitney Houston , Journey , and Queen . On the other hand, by 1996, New York's WLTW had begun to phase out its softer music in favor of
4312-593: The 2000s, country music / countrypolitan musicians such as Kelly Clarkson , Clay Aiken , Billy Joel , Garth Brooks , Shania Twain , LeAnn Rimes and Carrie Underwood scored hits on soft AC, particularly in Southern states. A popular trend in the late 1990s and 2000s was remixing dance music hits into adult contemporary ballads, especially in the US, (for example, the "Candlelight Mix" versions of " Heaven " by DJ Sammy and Yanou , "Listen To Your Heart" by D.H.T. , and " Everytime We Touch " by Cascada ). Key to
4410-573: The 2000s, the AC market gained an increased presence in the music industry, as its radio formats were popular nationwide—Smooth jazz and "Urban AC" stations were ubiquitous in the East Coast, while Soft rock and "adult standards" stations were common in the Midwest, and pop-oriented "Hot AC" and "world music"/Hispanic AC stations were easily found in the West Coast and the "Sun Belt". This led to
4508-480: The AC chart during this time. In 1996, Billboard created a new chart called Adult Top 40 , which reflects programming on radio stations that exists somewhere between "adult contemporary" music and "pop" music. Although they are sometimes mistaken for each other, the Adult Contemporary chart and the Adult Top 40 chart are separate charts, and songs reaching one chart might not reach the other. In addition, hot AC
4606-425: The AC charts with greater frequency. Collins has been described by AllMusic as "one of the most successful pop and adult contemporary singers of the '80s and beyond". However, with the combination of MTV and AC radio, adult contemporary appeared harder to define as a genre, with established soft-rock artists of the past still charting pop hits and receiving airplay alongside mainstream radio fare from newer artists at
4704-447: The AC charts. In addition to Celine Dion , who has had significant success on this chart, other artists with multiple number ones on the AC chart in the 1990s include Mariah Carey , Phil Collins , Michael Bolton , Bryan Adams , Whitney Houston and Shania Twain . Newer female Adult album alternative singer-songwriters such as Sarah McLachlan , Natalie Merchant , Jewel , Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow also broke through on
4802-750: The Disco , Neon Trees , X Ambassadors , Sheppard , Bastille , American Authors , Fitz and the Tantrums , Foster the People , Twenty One Pilots , Walk the Moon and Milky Chance . During the middle of the decade, newer artists such as CeeLo Green , OneRepublic , Rachel Platten , Christina Perri , Andy Grammer , James Bay , Sara Bareilles , Shawn Mendes , Sia , Sam Smith , Gavin Degraw , Charlie Puth and Colbie Caillat as well as acts that were popular in
4900-474: The Hot 100 and its second single, " Hazard ", made it to No. 9. Both songs hit No. 1 on Billboard ' s Adult Contemporary chart for four weeks and one week respectively. "Hazard" became Marx's second UK top ten, reaching No. 3. In early 1994, as he and his family permanently left Los Angeles behind and returned to Chicago, Marx released Paid Vacation , and scored his fourth consecutive platinum album. The acoustic ballad " Now and Forever " peaked at No. 7 on
4998-516: The Hot 100, his final top ten hit on that chart. The year 1997 saw the release of Flesh and Bone , Marx's final studio album on the Capitol imprint. The disc's first single, "Until I Find You Again", hit No. 3 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart and No. 42 on the Billboard Hot 100. Marx's Greatest Hits compilation was released in November 1997. The 16-track album includes
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#17327939651195096-586: The Hot 100. In 1989, Linda Ronstadt released Cry Like a Rainstorm, Howl Like the Wind , described by critics as "the first true Adult Contemporary album of the decade", featuring American soul singer Aaron Neville on several of the twelve tracks. The album was certified Triple Platinum in the United States alone and became a major success throughout the globe. The Grammy Award -winning singles, " Don't Know Much " and " All My Life ", were both long-running No. 1 Adult Contemporary hits. Several additional singles from
5194-438: The March 21, 1981, issue of Billboard . The 50- and 60-position charts ranked airplay on album rock radio stations in the United States. Because album-oriented rock stations focused on playing tracks from albums rather than specifically released singles, these charts were designed to measure the airplay of any and all tracks from an album. Rock Albums was a survey of the top albums on American rock radio, while Top Tracks listed
5292-623: The New was the number-one song on the Greatest of All Time Mainstream Rock Songs and Shinedown was named the number-one artist on the ranking of Greatest of All Time Mainstream Rock Artists. The current number-one song on the chart is "Angel Song" by Nothing More featuring David Draiman . These are the artists with at least 8 songs that topped the Mainstream Rock chart. These are the songs that have spent at least one year (52 weeks) on
5390-602: The U.S. In 2000, Marx debuted his sixth studio album, titled Days in Avalon . This disc was released on the Signal 21 Records label founded by Marx and former Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer and record producer Bobby Colomby . After signing a new deal with his former label, Manhattan Records , Marx released the 2004 album My Own Best Enemy . In 2008, Marx released Duo , on which he collaborated with Vertical Horizon 's lead singer Matt Scannell . On June 12, 2008, Marx
5488-455: The airline's handling of the situation. In response, Korean Air stated that they would respond more assertively to similar situations in the future. ASCAP Pop Music Awards Grammy Awards Billboard Music Awards Other awards Adult contemporary music Adult contemporary music ( AC ) is a form of radio -played popular music , ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad -heavy music of
5586-523: The album, " Hold On to the Nights ", earned Marx his first No. 1 hit. The latter three of the album's singles were also hits on Billboard ' s Adult Contemporary chart , beginning a long string of hits on that chart. Marx embarked on a 14 month world tour, initially opening for REO Speedwagon , but began headlining his own shows. In 1988, Marx was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance – Solo for "Don't Mean Nothing". The same year,
5684-684: The brand (among others) being adopted by competitors such as Entercom . Industry analyst Sean Ross argued that older demographics were becoming more lucrative due to changes in listening habits among younger audiences, which prefer digital platforms such as music streaming services over linear terrestrial radio, and also noted how mainstream AC was dependent on the Top 40 charts to break new songs. Current soft AC stations have continued to feature recurrents such as Michael Bolton , Celine Dion , Elton John, Fleetwood Mac , Hall & Oates , and Whitney Houston, while contemporary musicians such as Adele and Michael Bublé have also become modern fixtures of
5782-440: The chart was reintroduced to its primary website and magazine. When R&R ceased publication in June 2009, Billboard incorporated its rock charts, Active Rock and Heritage Rock into its own publication. The radio station reporters of the two charts combine to make up the Mainstream Rock chart. In the United States, Active rock stations concentrate on current hits over classic rock standards while heritage rock stations put
5880-470: The couple announced they were divorcing. On December 23, 2015, Marx married Cuban-American actress Daisy Fuentes in Aspen, Colorado . On December 21, 2016, it was reported that Marx helped Korean Air flight attendants pacify an unruly, possibly intoxicated passenger while he and his wife were aboard a flight bound from Hanoi to Seoul, even providing photographic evidence of the incident. He also criticized
5978-428: The current hits at a given time, hot AC airplay can build and sustain a song's popularity over a long-term period. This effect has been credited in helping build an audience for early singles from new acts such as Adele , Rachel Platten (" Fight Song ", which gained prominence for its use during Hillary Clinton 's 2016 US presidential election campaign ), and Max Schneider (whose 2016 single " Lights Down Low ", over
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#17327939651196076-464: The disc made the AC Top 10 as well. The album won over many critics in the need to define AC, and appeared to change the tolerance and acceptance of AC music into mainstream day to day radio play. The early 1990s marked the softening of urban R&B in the shape of new jack swing, at the same time alternative rock emerged and traditional pop saw a significant resurgence. This in part led to a widening of
6174-511: The early 1970s, softer songs by The Carpenters , Anne Murray , John Denver , Barry Manilow , and even Barbra Streisand , began to be played more often on "Top 40" radio. Top 40 radio stations played the Top 40 hits regardless of genre. As the texture of much of the music played on Top 40 radio began to soften, the Hot 100 and Easy Listening/AC charts became more similar. Easy Listening radio began playing songs by artists who had begun in other genres, such as rock and roll or R&B . Much of
6272-412: The evolution of the AC radio format was the popularity of easy listening or " beautiful music " stations, stations with music specifically designed to be purely ambient . Whereas most easy listening music was instrumental, created by relatively unknown artists, and rarely purchased (especially as singles, although Jackie Gleason 's beautiful music albums sold well in the 1950s), AC was an attempt to create
6370-437: The format during the 2010s. These developments helped to expand the popularity of the format among younger listeners such as millennials ; Nielsen Audio ranked hot AC as the third most-popular format among millennials, behind pop and country music . Of the format's expanding demographic reach, WOMX-FM program director Dana Taylor stated that hot AC stations "may not be the radio station that everybody agrees on, but it's
6468-554: The format is fairly uncommon, with KTCZ in the Minnesota Twin Cities and KMXP in Phoenix, Arizona being some of the few modern AC stations left. The Soft adult contemporary format typically targets women 25–54 and at-work listening. Soft AC playlists are generally conservative in comparison to hot AC, focusing on pop and power ballads , soft rock , and other familiar, light hits. Upon its establishment in
6566-529: The format until the early 1970s), new age songs and most pre-1964 artists were gradually phased out from AC radio throughout the early to mid-1990s. Unlike the majority of 1980s mainstream singers, the 1990s mainstream pop/R&B singers such as All-4-One , Boyz II Men , Christina Aguilera , Backstreet Boys and Savage Garden generally crossed over to the AC charts. Latin pop artists such as Lynda Thomas , Ricky Martin , Marc Anthony , Selena , Enrique Iglesias and Luis Miguel also enjoyed success in
6664-590: The format. In addition, the soft AC sound has diversified to include more songs that are "safe and universal" but not necessarily "soft", with Ross presenting examples such as Simple Minds ' " Don't You (Forget About Me) ", the retroactively-defined genre of yacht rock , and noting that KSWD in Seattle—one of the stations that had launched in the soft AC "boom" of the late-2010s—had featured dance- and synth-pop songs such as " Poker Face ", " Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) ", and " Uptown Funk " in its final days as
6762-498: The hits had become established. An article on MTV 's website by Corey Moss describes this trend as: "In other words, AC stations are where pop songs go to die a very long death. Or, to optimists, to get a second life." As adult contemporary has long characterized itself as family-friendly, "clean" versions of pop songs began appearing on the AC chart, as were the cases of " Perfect " by P!nk , and " Forget You " by Cee Lo Green , both in 2011. AC radio's shift into more mainstream pop
6860-576: The last four decades." Marx has written or collaborated on songs with other artists, including " This I Promise You " by NSYNC and " Dance with My Father " by Luther Vandross . Marx has been nominated for five Grammy Awards . In 2003, he won the Grammy for Song of the Year for "Dance with My Father". Marx was born in Chicago, Illinois, the only child of former singer Ruth ( née Guildoo) and Dick Marx ,
6958-408: The late 2000s, certain pop songs began entering the AC charts instead, generally after having recently fallen off the Hot 100. Adrian Moreira, senior vice president for adult music for RCA Music Group , said, "We've seen a fairly tidal shift in what AC will play". Rather than emphasizing older songs, adult contemporary now began playing many of the same songs as top 40 and adult top 40 , but only after
7056-407: The late-1970s. This led to specialized radio stations that played specific genres of music, and generally followed the evolution of artists in those genres. On April 7, 1979, the Easy Listening chart officially became known as Adult Contemporary, and those two words have remained consistent in the name of the chart ever since. Adult contemporary music became one of the most popular radio formats of
7154-427: The market, not only allowing to cater to more niche markets, but it also became customary for artists to make AC-friendly singles. At the same time, the genre began adopting elements from hard rock as tastes were shifting towards louder music, while AC stations in general began playing more rock acts. "Softer" features such as light instrumental music (carried over from the beautiful music format—many AC stations carried
7252-430: The methodology. To differentiate between classic and alternative album rock radio formats, Billboard changed the name of the chart to Mainstream Rock Tracks beginning with issue dated April 13, 1996. The Mainstream Rock Tracks chart did not appear in the print edition of Billboard from its issue dated August 2, 2003, being accessible only through the magazine's subscription-based website, Billboard.biz. In late 2013,
7350-414: The music recorded by singer-songwriters such as Diana Ross , James Taylor , Carly Simon , Carole King and Janis Ian got as much, if not more, airplay on AC stations than on Top 40 stations. AC stations also began playing softer songs by Elvis Presley , Linda Ronstadt , Elton John , Rod Stewart , Billy Joel , and other rock-based artists. Soon after, the adult contemporary format began evolving into
7448-738: The presence of numerous genres on the AC charts, often crossing to the "pop" charts, winning over many critics in the need to define AC, and increased the tolerance and acceptance of AC music into mainstream day-to-day radio play. Josh Groban 's single " You Raise Me Up " and Michael Bublé 's cover of "Fever" are often cited as key examples of the high production values and ballad-heavy sound that defined 2000s-era AC, often dubbed as "jazz-pop", heavily carrying classical, jazz and traditional pop influences. Artists such as Nick Lachey , James Blunt , Jamie Cullum , John Mayer , Jason Mraz , Norah Jones , Diana Krall , Amy Winehouse and Susan Boyle also achieved great success during this period. During most of
7546-487: The reading of top-of-hour news headlines, so that listeners wouldn't be tempted to tune away to an all-news station to learn more. Soft AC stations tend to be more selective in their music libraries than other adult contemporary stations, preferring proven songs over current hits. Upon the onset of the format's popularity, core artists typically included singers such as Nat King Cole , Perry Como , Neil Diamond , Barry Manilow , Johnny Mathis , and Barbra Streisand . By
7644-539: The reformed Fleetwood Mac , whose Rumours (1977) was the best-selling album of the decade. By 1977, some radio stations, notably New York's WTFM and NBC -owned WYNY , and Boston's WEEI , had switched to an all-soft rock format. As Softrock 103 , WEEI was famous for its promotional campaigns, featuring slogans such as " Joni , without the baloni." and " The Byrds , without the nyrds." However, different forms of popular music targeted to different demographic groups, such as disco vs. hard rock , began to emerge in
7742-609: The sixth single from Repeat Offender . Marx performed the Beatles ' " Help " at the Berlin Wall in late 1989. Marx also received his second Grammy nomination in 1990 for Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male for "Right Here Waiting". In 1991, Marx released his third consecutive platinum album Rush Street . The album saw artists such as Luther Vandross and Billy Joel appear as backing vocalists and guest pianists. The disc's first single, " Keep Coming Back ", went to No. 12 on
7840-554: The soft AC format had become increasingly irrelevant in comparison to mainstream and hot AC, due to PPM markets preferring uptempo music. At the same time, however, soft AC began to experience a resurgence. In April 2016, iHeartMedia flipped its San Francisco classic soul station KISQ to soft AC as The Breeze ; as of November 2018, it was the top station in the Bay Area. The trend continued into 2017 and 2018, with iHeartMedia extending its Breeze brand to other soft AC flips, and
7938-519: The song " Surrender to Me ", which he co-wrote with Ross Vanelli, appeared in the film Tequila Sunrise . Repeat Offender , Marx's second album, was released in May 1989. It rose to No. 1 on Billboard ' s album chart. It went triple platinum within a few months and eventually sold over 5 million copies in the United States alone. The first two singles, "Satisfied" and the platinum-selling " Right Here Waiting ", both reached No. 1. "Right Here Waiting"
8036-454: The sound that later defined it, with rock-oriented acts as Chicago and the Eagles , becoming associated with the format. In addition, several early disco songs, did well on the Adult Contemporary format. Soft rock reached its commercial peak in the mid-to-late 1970s with acts such as Toto , England Dan & John Ford Coley , Air Supply , Seals and Crofts , Dan Fogelberg , America and
8134-400: The success of AC in the 2000s was the 25–34 demographic which had outgrown the pop music offerings of the time, most new rock became too alternative and harsh for AC radio and most new pop was now influenced heavily by dance-pop , hip-hop and electronic dance music . At the same time, the music industry also began to focus on older audiences and markets generally considered "niche". During
8232-516: The summer of 2011, Marx collaborated with the internet comedy duo Rhett and Link , producing a celebrity endorsement for a colon-cleansing spa in Sacramento, California. The ad spot and its "making of" was featured on an episode of Rhett and Link's Commercial Kings television series on IFC . On November 1, 2011, Marx released The Christmas EP , a five-song collection of Christmas songs. In October 2012, Marx followed up The Christmas EP with
8330-410: The target demographic . AC radio often targets the 25–44 age group, the demographic that has received the most attention from advertisers since the 1960s. A common practice in recent years of adult contemporary stations is to play less newer music and more hits of the past, even some songs that never even charted the AC charts. This de-emphasis on new songs slows the progression of the AC chart. Over
8428-504: The time. The amount of crossover between the AC chart and the Hot 100 has varied based on how much the passing pop music trends of the times appealed to adult listeners. Not many disco or new wave songs were particularly successful on the AC chart during the late 1970s and early 1980s, and much of the hip-hop and harder rock music featured on CHR formats later in the decade would have been unacceptable on AC radio. Although dance-oriented, electronic pop and ballad-oriented rock dominated
8526-422: The top 5 of the Billboard charts . He has scored a total of 14 number one singles, both as a performer and as a songwriter/producer. As a singer, his No. 1 hits include " Hazard ", " Right Here Waiting ", " Hold On to the Nights ", " Endless Summer Nights ", and " Satisfied ". According to Billboard , Marx "holds the distinction of having written songs that have hit No. 1 on various Billboard charts in each of
8624-529: The top individual songs being played. Mike Harrison of Billboard explained that when major artists release albums, more than one song from the album can become popular at the same time. The first number-one song on the Top Tracks chart was " I Can't Stand It " by Eric Clapton . On September 15, 1984, the Rock Albums chart was discontinued and Top Tracks was renamed Top Rock Tracks. It reduced from
8722-421: The vocalists consisted of artists such as Frank Sinatra , Doris Day , Johnny Mathis , Connie Francis , Nat King Cole , Perry Como , and others. The custom recordings were usually instrumental versions of current or recent rock and roll or pop hit songs, a move intended to give the stations more mass appeal without selling out . Some stations would also occasionally play earlier big band -era recordings from
8820-401: The years, AC has spawned subgenres including "hot AC" (or "modern AC"), "soft AC" (also known as "lite AC"), " urban AC " (a softer type of urban contemporary music ), " rhythmic AC " (a softer type of rhythmic contemporary ), and " Christian AC " (a softer type of contemporary Christian music ). Some stations play only "hot AC", "soft AC", or only one of the variety of subgenres. Therefore, it
8918-689: Was 17 and living in Highland Park, Illinois , when a tape of his songs ended up in the hands of Lionel Richie . Richie thought Marx had talent and told the teen, "I can't promise you anything, but you should come to L.A." Marx said one of the first musicians he met in Los Angeles was Fee Waybill of the Tubes with whom he has collaborated at least 30 times. They met in a recording studio. In that same 2014 video segment for Ameoba Records. Marx called Waybill "my life-long best friend" and said Waybill
9016-568: Was 1985's " Crazy ", a song he co-wrote with Rogers which reached number one in the Hot Country Songs chart. Marx's self-titled debut album went triple-platinum in 1987, and his first single, " Don't Mean Nothing ", reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Between 1987 and 1994, he had 14 top 20 hits, including three number one singles. Marx is the only male artist in history to have his first seven singles reach
9114-552: Was Marx's first No. 1 hit on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart as well as his first big hit outside of North America, reaching No. 1 in several European countries and giving Marx his first top ten hit in the UK. It has been covered numerous times, most notably by Monica and 112 in a 1998 duet. Another single from the album, " Children of the Night ", was written and composed in support of a Van Nuys -based organization for runaways. It became
9212-417: Was a result of the changes on the broadcasting landscape following the 2005–2007 economic downturn and eventual recession , as advertisers preferred more profitable chart-based formats, which meant the demise of many AC-based formulas, primarily those aimed at older audiences, with tastes changing towards more modern music among all age groups. Diminishing physical record sales throughout the 2010s also proved
9310-620: Was invited onto the stage at the Curran Theater in San Francisco by Hugh Jackman . It was opening night of Hugh Jackman in Performance . Jackman and Marx sang "Right Here Waiting" together, with Marx changing the lyrics of the last chorus to "right here waiting for Hugh". Also on May 3, 2011, the reissue of Stories to Tell was released in the United States as a three-disc set exclusively through Walmart . The set included
9408-543: Was part of a PBS television series called Songwriters in the Round Presents: Legends & Lyrics . In Episode 102 of the first season, Marx appeared along with Kenny Loggins , Nathan Lee, and rock band Three Doors Down . This episode also features an interview with singer-songwriter Diane Warren . On October 31, 2008, " Emotional Remains " and " Sundown " were released, as digital downloads, on Marx's official site. On December 6, 2008, Marx headlined
9506-455: Was released in July 2021. He appears as himself and performs " Right Here Waiting " in the 200th episode of The Goldbergs , "The Wedding" which aired in March 2022. His new album Songwriter was released on September 30, 2022, and released the first single Same Heartbreak, Different Day on July 15, 2022. A previous non-album single Just Go that was subsequently released as a bonus track to
9604-482: Was widely replicated by other stations. Many hot AC outlets are among the top stations in their respective market. Initially focused more on pop rock, the format has evolved to reflect changes in the composition of this audience; by the mid-2000s, the format had evolved to include more uptempo pop music, while alternative and indie rock crossovers (such as Foster the People , Imagine Dragons , Lovelytheband , and Twenty One Pilots ) became more prevalent within
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