KZIONradio

Yahoo! LAUNCH - News: Mormon Tabernacle Choir Program Honored



The Mormon Tabernacle Choir is being inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters’ Hall of Fame.

“We are so pleased and grateful to be chosen by the NAB for this honor,” said Craig Jessop, the choir’s music director. “It becomes even more significant for us to receive it during our 75th anniversary year, and when we consider the long list of accomplished names that are part of the NAB Hall of Fame roster.”

Congratulations MOTAB!!

Salt Lake Tribune story.



Allan C. Jackson has had quite a life. Mr. Jackson turns 100 on Monday and life has calmed down quite a bit from his early years.

“I must have some duty the Lord wants me to complete yet. When I do, he’ll be calling me home”

“The family name, Jackson says, came courtesy of his great-great-grandmother, who was a slave of President Andrew Jackson.”

Jackson was one of 16 children and when he was 9 he went to live in the white, Jewish home of Sophie and Sam Strauss, who was related to Levi, the inventor of blue jeans.

“At 14, Jackson married one of the Strauss’ daughters and became a father—to twins, one of whom died—for the first time.”

He became a waiter at places such as Club Maytag in Montgomery and The Sussex Hotel in Springfield, Miss. and met Al Capone.

“Jackson came to Utah by way of the Army, which he joined in the 1930s.”

“An LDS Church member who works as a hospice chaplain, gave Jackson a “death blessing.” Jackson, ill with colon cancer, was comatose and wasn’t expected to live much longer than a few hours”

A few days later he was healthy and wanted to meet the man who gave him a blessing.

“27 years after first getting a Book of Mormon and telling people he would consider the church when ‘the spirit hits me’—Jackson decided the time had come.”

He currently works on genealogy projects for the Church and next fall will lecture at Salt Lake Community College’s LDS Church Institute of Religion.

“Through various marriages and relationships, Jackson had 40 children, 38 of whom are still living; they range in age from 83 to 51. He has 52 grandchildren, 46 great-grandchildren and 18 great-great grandchildren.”

deseretnews.com | ‘Saints & Soldiers’ wins in St. George



Saints & Soldiers is a new LDS cinema genre film that has been winning every film festival it has entered. I believe the movie hits theatres the first of next year.



There’s a cool documentary on the film here.

The KZION survey is winding down and the feedback has been awesome. Here are some comments in response to the question, “What do you like about KZION.”

“Plays a variety of music that isn’t offensive. Both me and my teenagers enjoy the music.”

“I like the fact that I don’t have to worry about the quality of music being played. AND I LOVE to know and listen to new artists!! I especially like the information given for each particular song! It helps me to know how to get more products and CD’s from that particular artist.”

“The music selection is great. I like the previews of new music.”

“I like the variety of music. I like hearing the music LDS artists are doing. I’m so tired of the local regular stations, KZION is a good change of pace.”

“I like the selection of music. Very nice.”

“I like the different varieties of music.”

“I enjoy a mix of generally uplifting positive music performed by LDS artists. The music ranges from sacred to contemporary, even rock and roll.”

There is a constant debate in my mind about the music mix. Traditionally, we are used to hearing a top 40 sound and usually all in the same genre. KZION radio flips this whole concept upside down and plays entire albums and mixes all genres of music into one big hodgepodge.



I used to ask this question in my surveys to KZION listeners, “Should KZION continue to broadcast a mix of genres or create individual stations for each genre?” overwhelmingly, listeners want the mix. I didn’t ask the question this time around but I think that the answer would remain the same. I did not find one negative comment about hearing a sacred song play next to a silly song about snowmen. It’s certainly not for everyone, and I’m sure it does turn some people off and they won’t listen to KZION for that very reason.



There were quite a few comments along this line,

“I don’t like the idea that you have to pay a membership in order to make requests.”

I don’t like it either, but how else do I keep KZION on the Internet? A lot of people, and I mean a lot of people feel that everything on the Internet is free. They don’t understand that everything on the Internet costs money. They might be able to access information, download programs or music, or listen to music for free. But, there are expenses associated with providing content on the Internet, and Internet radio has more than its fair share of expenses.



Good stuff!

More good feedback…

“I dislike the Weekly Edge Sampler. Most of the songs played during these broadcasts are a little too edgy for me…usually, when the Weekly Edge Sampler comes on now, I just turn off KZION until the broadcast is done. I don’t know, I guess I just hear enough of that edgy music in the world that when I’m listening to KZION, I prefer it to be an alternative to the stuff you can find in the world. I use KZION as a refuge from the world to help me feel the Spirit throughout the day”

I sure have had a lot of comments about the Daily Edge show. This comment makes a lot of sense to me. As I’ve mentioned before I really like the edgier side of LDS music but perhaps the noon hour is not the time. No one has said anything about the Friday Night Edge so I’m assuming that’s an OK time slot for the show.

“...the buffering problems can become pretty annoying.”

“Sound is sometimes interrupted.”

“Buffering issues”

“I still have buffering problems.”

“I just have trouble keeping the connection on my computer; it ‘buffers’ a lot.

The buffering problem has been resolved for about three weeks now. There is no buffering caused by the KZION stream. If you have buffering issues it is because of your Internet connection. If you haven’t listened to KZION in the past three weeks or so give it another try. I’m talking about consistent buffering. Of course there is going to be a minor buffer once or twice in an eight hour period.



Maybe I should add a 24 kbit/sec stream? It sounds so bad though but listeners with bad 56 kbits/sec connections and most 32 kbits/sec modem listeners would be able to listen. Are there any 32 kbit/sec modems out there??

The Book of Mormon Movie played in 22 more theatres over the weekend grossing another $27,236 for a total gross of $1,022,374.



The BoM Movie maybe coming to a theatre near you.



Utah, Idaho, Arizona, North Carolina, California, Jacksonville Florida, Tampa Florida, Orlando Florida, and Anchorage Alaska

“I am an addict and as such am unaccountable for my actions…I need therapy and understanding, not dismissal from my job.”



An employee who was fired from his job because he spent his work days logging on to porn websites told a court in Germany.

A Soft Answer picked this article up which has a couple interesting pieces of information.

“Jericho Road did what no LDS artist had done before, selling 30,000 CDs in the first six months.”

Not bad. That’s about $270,000 profit in 6 months.



Brett Raymond said that he only makes about 10% of his income from LDS music. The majority is made from writing music for TV.



A companion article called “Opinions flare over LDS commercialization” really bothered me. The article is about members of the church selling church related items. Like prophet trading cards, temple trading cards, LDS genre films, and I would assume LDS based music.

“‘I have a problem with selling church items,’ said Jessica Peterson, a BYU Bookstore employee. ‘The church has asked people not to do it. Yet, we still carry it.’”

Are you serious? When has the church ever asked members not to sell their music, their films, or their art if it’s about or related to the church? Believe it or not there are members who believe that LDS musicians should not be selling their music. They say that is making money off the gospel.

“Deseret Management, the parent company of Deseret Book, had revenues of more than over $800 million for the year 2001. This included sales of such LDS themed merchandise as books, hobby materials, music, and movies.”

Deseret Book is owned by the church. The president of Deseret Book is Sister Sheri DEW How are we to have uplifting music and quality entertainment if the members who create it are supposed to do it for free? Are they to spend the $10-20,000 dollars it takes to create a CD and give it away? Is it so wrong for a bunch of neighborhood kids to trade temple cards instead of sports cards which represent players that are not role models for kids? Is it wrong for me to buy a beautiful Greg Olsen picture of the Savior for my living room?



I don’t think so.

There have been quite a few comments concerning the Edge shows that play on KZION. These are shows featuring LDS rock music.

“I don’t really like the noon program called the edge, I have at times had to turn it off but will turn the station back on again when it is over.”

“The Friday Night Edge music is a little edgy for me, so I don’t listen then.”

I never listen to the Edge or the Edge Sampler. I tend to turn it off or mute it when those are on.

I actually enjoy listening to the edgier side of LDS music. Of course there is a time and place for everything. Sunday is not a time for this type of music and church meetings is not a place for rock music. As much as I enjoy the edge shows they are starting to become old. There is not a lot of selection so I’m basically playing the same stuff over and over. I’ve had to reduce the daily edge to just twice a week because of the limited selection.



The edge shows will end in a week as Christmas music begins and I will have to reevaluate the whole rock music situation. If I can somehow turn KZION into a business I will be creating several “channels” and one of the channels will be an all LDS rock channel. So there is a future for the Edge.

Some more good comments have come from the KZION survey in progress.

“I was disappointed in the subscription premium service. It was not what I hoped for, and some of the cds that were supposed to be available for listening were not available. I thought it was a bit pricey for what you got.”

and…

“Not enough new music on the jukebox. Used to be that all the special broadcast music was immediately available to subscribers after the broadcast. Since the new jukebox has been put in place there has been little to no new music in the past month or more. Please put the broadcast music or at least something new on the jukebox. It seems the owner is dedicating more time to fancy new features and neglecting the core functions of the station.”

I agree. I have neglected the Jukebox. The biggest obstacle to adding music to the Jukebox is I have to upload the tracks to the server. When I upload the tracks it causes KZION to buffer because KZION uses the upload bandwidth to shoot the stream to the server.



“...and some of the cds that were supposed to be available for listening were not available.” I have looked everywhere on the KZION website and I can’t find where I have specific CD’s listed that are in the Jukebox. The only place that the CD’s are listed is in the Jukebox itself. So, I don’t understand that comment.



I’ll work on adding more music to the Jukebox.

Last night I sent out an invitation to around 1,200 KZION listeners to take part in an anonymous survey. The survey consists of 18 questions about the listening habits, CD buying habits and overall satisfaction of listeners with KZION LDS radio. I have done this several times over the past four years and it never ceases to amaze me what people will say when they know they are anonymous. Some even get downright nasty.



I’ll be sharing the results of the survey around December 1st when the survey ends. But in the meantime I plan on posting some of the comments and questions that were left by listeners who took the survey. Because the survey is anonymous, I have no way to respond to the individuals leaving questions or comments. This seems like a likely place to do just that.



Here are a few of the comments in so far…

“I love listening on Sundays”

“I like the mix of music throughout the day. I appreciate being able to make requests and the links to homepages. My family and I appreciate being able to listen to “modern” music without worrying about lyrics. Kzion Rocks in our house.

Thank you. Last night I was feeling spiritually, mentally, and physically drained. I got my pillow, turned off the lights in the studio, filled the radio queue with MY favorite spiritually uplifting music, and just laid back in my chair and soaked up the music. For two hours I laid there and sang along, contemplated life, shed a few tears, prayed, and even slept a little. KZION has become my therapy and I’m pretty blessed to be able to run KZION.

“KZION has a very humble and spiritual feel. I am a new convert to the church and this music and site make me feel welcome and at home.”

I’m glad you found KZION. I agree, even the contemporary music has a sense of spirituality associated with it.

“I like the music. When working nights it gives me a chance to listen some uplifting music that I normally don’t get the chance to listen to. I wish you were available in my car.”

That may just happen someday. If my plans to make KZION my full time business are fulfilled I am going to try to get KZION on XM satellite radio. Then you could listen to KZION in your car as you drive from one end of the US to the other end.

“I dislike The Virtual DJ. I also dislike how the stream is disrupted on my computer from time to time.”

“...sometimes the new virtual DJ gets annoying…BUT Mike’s pretty cool. ”

I don’t know. I like Mike and Audrey. I personally don’t like talking on the radio and so I found an easy way to get information to the listeners. I’m wondering if people who say they don’t like the virtual DJ’s really mean they want commercial free radio?



I’ll post some more comments or questions as they come in. Thanks to everyone who has participated thus far.

Miller takes two-year leave for Mormon mission



Pro golfer Andy Miller who earned $134,930 during his rookie season on the PGA Tour, will be spending the next two years knocking on doors in Tampico, Mexico.

deseretnews.com | LDS-comedy DVDs aren’t great laugh fests



Two new LDS themed DVD’s were recently released. It’s Latter-day Night! went straight to DVD bypassing the theatres. I Will Go and Do is a “45-minute live-action adaptation of some of the stories from 1 Nephi in the Book of Mormon.”



The music for I Will Go and Do was an Aaron Edson project. I have some of the music and need to get it added to KZION.

Mormon Tabernacle Choir Honored at White House



Wednesday, President Bush awarded the Mormon Tabernacle Choir the National Medal of Arts, the nation’s highest honor for artistic excellence.

Thanks to b e i n g s w i f t . o r g for this great entry on advice for living life well.



A couple of my favorites.



13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.



11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

For the past two weeks I have been working on completely rewriting all of the scripts that control and schedule the daily and weekly shows. The more automated I can make KZION the less time I have to spend working on my hobby and the more time I can spend working on my paycheck.



All of the programming for KZION is coded using a language called PAL (Playlist Automation Language). Its been a massive project to rewrite all the scripts but I think the end result is a much more professionally sounding radio station. Plus 95% of the shows are automated now and require no human intervention.



Spending as much time as I have on KZION has got me thinking about how I could turn my hobby onto a career. I have always dreamed of someday making KZION my employment, but so far I have not figured out a business model that would make me a decent living.



If I can come up with a viable business model I might be able to attract some investors that could give me a boost with becoming employed as the owner of KZION. The only way I see this happening is extending the subscription model to all listeners and some vigorous advertising and marketing. I would also need to add additional channels, perhaps an instrumental and sacred channel. Possibly a rock channel if I could procure more LDS rock music.



Can’t hurt to dream, right? If you have any ideas or if you’re looking for an exciting investment opportunity let me know. My E-mail address can be found at the bottom of this page.



UPDATE: Articles like this make the likelihood of turning KZION into a full time for profit online radio station more achievable. The more broadband users the better chance of people wanting to listen.

Search using Google without opening your browser.



Google recently released a beta version of a deskbar search tool. Simply install and you have a search tool in your taskbar. Search results open up in a small inset window. You can search Froogle, news, groups, definitions, images and of course the web. Even create your own specialty search links. Although it’s in the beta stage I haven’t found any bugs and it’s quite convenient if you perform a lot of searches using Google.

LDS member Bruce Forbes shares his poetry in tribute to veterans everywhere here.



This is a non LDS site with Veteran’s Day poetry and activities.



Here is the Veterans Day Message and Proclamation by President George W. Bush.



“Today, our veterans inspire new generations of Americans as we work to defeat terrorism and advance peace. In respect for and recognition of the contributions our service men and women have made to the cause of peace and freedom around the world,the Congress has provided (5 U.S.C. 6103(a)) that November 11 of each year shall be set aside as a legal public holiday to honor veterans…I encourage all Americans to recognize the valor and sacrifice of our veterans through appropriate ceremonies and prayers.”

Here’s a recap of the week in LDS music.



The LDS Music News website is spotlighting the original motion picture soundtrack to Day of Defense, a newly released LDS cinema genre movie. You can read a review of the CD here. They also reported on a new LDS artist named Lyndsi Mitchell Houskeeper. She has a debut CD, Finding Miracles, which is available now at Deseret Book.



Aaron Edson has released a live-action movie musical based on scripture stories. The project is called I Will Go & Do and is available on VHS and DVD and is suitable for children and adults.



Jenny Phillips, Alex Boye, and Kenneth Cope all have performances in the Salt Lake area this week. Jericho Road will be singing the National Anthem at the Utah Jazz game, November 19th. For a complete list of performances visit here.



Speaking of Jericho Road, the LDS “Boy Band” created and managed by Deseret Book. Now the folks over at Deseret Book have created a “Girl Band” called Providence. The new group consists of Camille Aagard, Kerilyn Johnson, Katharine Matis Adams, and Kelly Shepardson. I haven’t heard of any of these women but I have heard their music and it’s awesome! I am waiting for Deseret Book to send me their debut CD.



The band has an interesting story.



“The women of Providence have experienced tragedy, heartache, loss, and disappointment. They have struggled through trials, learned to rely on the Lord, and want to share their message of hope through their music.



“Take note – you won’t catch these women primping and posing, but rather changing diapers, working, and living everyday lives.”



Although not everyone thinks this is a good idea.

Area Man Seeks Return of Priesthood Keys



“Ryan Wakerli of North Ogden reports the loss of his priesthood keys and is offering a reward for their safe return, no questions asked. Wakerli claims he last had them at a family outing to Cherry Hills, where he was asked to bless the picnic lunch—and he hasn’t seen them since. “At first I assumed my wife had them,” he admits. “She’s pretty good about picking up after me, but I forgot she can’t hold those keys.” If found, they can be dropped in any mailbox for postage-paid return.”



The Sugar Beet: Sattire for your soul