SS Music greets 2005 with new initiatives

SS Music greets 2005 with new initiatives

MUMBAI: Southern music channel Southern Spice Music (SS Music), which has its 4th anniversary bash due in April 2005, is now dressing itself up for the big occasion. The channel has lined up cultural shows and ground events for the coming months.

On the programming front, the channel has conceptualised a couple of new shows, based on lifestyle and career.

The channel has also decided to give different programming identities to each month. For this, the channel will be employing different themes every month to highlight the programming and content. To begin with, January is planned to be "Action month" and the programming includes in-depth interviews of experts in martial arts, stunt masters, action heroes and fitness/ adventure lovers.

As part of its ground event initiatives, SS Music will be organising various events and cultural shows in several parts of Tamil Nadu, starting January 2005. SS Music president BD Ramesh Babu told indiantelevision.com that the events, targeted at the youth, is meant to popularise the channel in Tamil Nadu's rural areas.

"The idea is to increase brand recall and brand loyalty in the interior parts of Tamil Nadu", he offers.

The lifestyle show Style, to be hosted by VJ Shriya, will introduce viewers to the South Indian fashion and movie industry. The primetime show will be launched on 14 January. The weekly will be repeated thrice a week.

The career show Career File, which will be a fortnightly show with 3 repeatsis, is made to showcase various industries to the students to make their choices easier for further studies. The show is made up of two segments - the first, in which college and universities are profiled and the second is more of an interaction with a professional from the industry to understand the dynamics of the job, informs the channel.

The maiden music video from the winners of the channel's talent hunt, The SS Music Voice Hunt, will release on 14 February. The Tamil album, composed in association with Tamil music director Pravin Mani, will also have a Hindi version. SS Music is releasing the album in association with Sony Music. The channel has already launched a "Name your Band" contest in association with Music World outlets across South India.

"We want the involvement of the audience. We want to know what they would name the band", says Babu.

Quoting TAM ratings the music channel lays claims to the market leader's position in the South. According to the channel, is holds a market share of over 50 per cent in the TG of 15-34 years during prime time.

"Overall we have some exciting plans for the New Year. Watch out for some surprises and some good content on SS Music," Babu sums up.