Edition #42: The latest from SiriusXM.
Storme Warren leaves SXM, what are the best artists channels on SXM, channel happenings, sports, and more.
Friday, May 19th, 2023
Hello all, and welcome back to another edition of the SeriousXM newsletter! After almost a year of doing this, I modified the look a bit to make it a bit fresh around here! But its still the same good weekly newsletter you’ve come to expect every week from me.
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Let’s not waste more time. Here is this week’s news.
The Latest News
Storme Warren has left The Highway.
For nearly much of SiriusXM’s existence, the one constant voice heard on the platform was Storme Warren, especially on country radio stations like The Highway (SXM 56). Well… no more.
After nearly 20 years with the company, Storme has left the building. His final show with SXM and The Highway was actually last week on Friday, May 12th, though reports came about his exit this week.
He’s been in broadcast for 36 years, nearly 20 of them with SiriusXM and mainly as The Highway’s morning show host, most recently with Macie Banks. He was also responsible for the Hot 30 Countdown and conducting Prime Country (SXM 58) interview specials.
Why he has left? No idea other than he has left under his willpower for a new opportunity.
@StormeWarren on Twitter:
I’ve had the greatest run at @siriusxm. To the @SXMTheHighway family, listeners and the staff, THANK YOU! It’s been an honor to wake up with you every morning. Thx for trusting me & our crew! I’ll announce where I’m going very shortly, and trust me… I’ll be seeing you all real soon!
Banks will continue on as the solo host of the morning program on an interim basis until a new permanent co-host can be found.
SXM is one of 🍁’s best-managed companies… again.
So this is a pretty neat honor because it then reflects well when putting out a good product for customers…
For the 14th straight year in a row, SiriusXM Canada has been designated as one of Canada’s best-managed companies. The company is also a 2023 winner of the Platinum Club designation, meaning it has retained its Best-Managed status for more than seven years in a row.
This is an honor only bestowed upon those who showcase leadership in strategy, culture, commitment, capabilities, innovation, governance, and financial performance.
The 25 best artist channels on SXM…
So I’ve never heard of YardBarker until today. However, Jeff Mezydlo came up with a list of the 25 best artist-targeted channels that are available on SXM today.
This is their curated list, which doesn’t mean you have to agree with it, but it is probably a list that’ll get you thinking at the water cooler the next time you’re at work and want to bring up this topic.
So, according to YardBarker’s Jeff Mezydlo, the 25 best artist-targeted channels on SXM are (and going down in order from 25 to one)…
25 = Jon Bon Jovi with Bon Jovi Radio (SXM 709; online-only)
24 = Red Hot Chili Peppers with Whole Lotta Red Hot (SXM 315)
23 = Phish with Phish Radio (SXM 29)
22 = Dave Matthews Band with Dave Matthews Band Radio (SXM 30)
21 = Marky Ramone with his Punk Rock Blitzkrieg (SXM 712; online-only)
20 = LL Cool J with four different channels…
LL Cool J’s Rock The Bells Radio (SXM 43; XL)
LL Cool J’s Rock The Bells Mixdown (SXM 723; XL; online-only)
LL Cool J’s Rock The Bells Clean (Xtra channel; online-only)
LL Cool J’s Rock The Bells B-Sides (Xtra channel; online-only)
19 = The Notorious B.I.G. with his annual limited-run channel, Notorious Radio.
18 = Ozzy Osbourne with Ozzy’s Boneyard (SXM 38)
17 = A tie for Diplo and Steve Aoki.
Diplo has Diplo’s Revolution (SXM 52)
Steve Aoki has his Remix Radio (SXM 735; online-only)
16 = Pitbull and his Globalization (SXM 13)
15 = Dwight Yoakam with Dwight Yoakam and The Bakersfield Beat (SXM 349)
14 = Grateful Dead with the Grateful Dead Channel (SXM 23)
13 = Pearl Jam with Pearl Jam Radio (SXM 22)
12 = Kenny Chesney and his No Shoes Radio (SXM 57)
11 = Eminem with Shade 45 (SXM 45; XL)
10 = Willie Nelson inside his Roadhouse (SXM 59)
9 = U2 with U2 X-Radio (SXM 32)
8 = Tom Petty with two channels of his own:
Tom Petty Radio (SXM 31)
Tom Petty’s Buried Treasure (SXM 711; online-only)
7 = A tie for Miles Davis and B.B. King.
Miles Davis has Miles Davis Radio (SXM 747; online-only)
B.B. King as you step into his Bluesville (SXM 74)
6 = Frank Sinatra as he’s Siriusly Sinatra (SXM 70)
There’s also Perfectly Frank (Xtra channel; online-only)
5 = Bob Marley with three channels of his own:
Bob Marley’s Tuff Gong Radio (SXM 19)
Bob Marley’s Tuff Soca (Xtra channel; online-only)
Bob Marley’s Tuff Beats (Xtra channel; online-only)
4 = Whitney Houston with her annual limited-run channel, The Whitney Channel.
3 = Bruce Springsteen with E Street Radio (SXM 20)
BONUS: E Street Band member Steven Van Zant has two of his own channels, Little Steven’s Underground Garage (SXM 21) and Little Steven’s Coolest Songs (SXM 721; online-only).
2 = Elvis Presley with a longtime channel (dating back almost twenty years), Elvis Radio (SXM 75)
1 = The Beatles with their own channel, of course, The Beatles Channel (SXM 18)
If you agree or disagree with the list, let’s talk about it! Let me know in the comments what YOU think are your favorite artist-targeted channels on SXM. I can’t wait to hear from you!
Channel Changes
There are a few changes you need to know about.
First off, as I told you last week, Duran Duran Future Past Radio is now on SXM 105 for a limited time from right now until Wednesday, May 24th. After that, it will remain on the SXM app until June 2nd.
You also have Rockville Radio this weekend on Octane (SXM 37) starting today and lasting until Tuesday, May 23rd. After that, it will remain on SXM 505 (online-only) until June 3rd.
Mental Health Radio on 104 for the rest of May.
In observance of Mental Health Awareness Month, Mental Health Radio is back on Channel 104 through the end of May.
Powered by NYU Langone Health’s doctors and leading medical experts (a.k.a. Doctor Radio - SXM 110), the channel will also air its top highlights throughout Memorial Day Weekend, which is next weekend.
Featuring content from Doctor Radio, Mental Health Radio is a 24/7 channel that provides listeners with expertise on breaking medical stories and new medical research, plus studies on topics such as substance abuse, psychedelic research, and drug supply issues. The channel has live call-in shows during the week, letting listeners ask the experts their own questions. In addition to the curated content, the channel also airs full broadcasts of Doctor Radio programs “The Psychiatry Show” and “About Our Kids,” the latter of which specifically addresses the mental health topics that impact children and teens.
The channel is available at its 24/7 full-time home on SXM 779 (online only).
Sports
No entertainment events this week so we’re skipping over to… sports! My favorite. Things are really heating up in the sports world now these days and I have everything to tell you about… from the NBA and NHL playoffs to College Softball, Golf, NASCAR, Horse Racing, and IndyCar! So, without further ado, let’s get right to it.
🏀: NBA’s Conference Finals are here!
We’re in the third round of the NBA Playoffs right now and we got four teams in contention: Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics and L.A. Lakers vs. Denver Nuggets.
If it all sounds familiar, its because its the same four teams from that 2020 bubble that made it that far in the Conference Finals.
SiriusXM, of course, has all the action from every single game.
So here’s how this goes down for SiriusXM this year…
During the Eastern Conference Finals… the away team of each game will be on ESPN Xtra (SXM 81) with the home team on SiriusXM NBA Radio (SXM 86).
During the Western Conference Finals… the L.A. Lakers broadcasts will be on ESPN Xtra with the Denver Nuggets telecasts on SiriusXM NBA Radio. This is REGARDLESS of the away/home situation.
All national telecasts will be on ESPN Radio (SXM 80).
All four teams also have their own online-only channels…
Miami Heat on SXM 895.
Boston Celtics on SXM 881.
Los Angeles Lakers on SXM 893.
Denver Nuggets on SXM 887.
Here’s the schedule leading up to the upcoming week ahead, with all games starting at 8:30pm ET (5:30pm PT)…
TONIGHT, Friday, May 19th - Game 2 ECF: Heat vs. Celtics
Tomorrow, Saturday, May 20th - Game 3 WCF: Nuggets vs. Lakers
Sunday, May 21st - Game 3 ECF: Celtics vs. Heat
Monday, May 22nd - Game 4 WCF: Nuggets vs. Lakers
Tuesday, May 23rd - Game 4 ECF: Celtics vs. Heat
Wednesday, May 24th - Game 5 WCF: Lakers vs. Nuggets (if necessary)
Thursday, May 25th - Game 5 ECF: Heat vs. Celtics (if necessary)
🏒: NHL’s Conference Finals are also here!
We’re also in the third round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs with their four teams battling it out for the Stanley Cup: Florida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes and Dallas Stars vs. Vegas Golden Knights.
You know that SiriusXM has all the action down packed for every single game and here’s how they’re doing it this year…
During the Eastern Conference Finals… the Carolina Hurricanes broadcasts will be on SXM 219 with the Florida Panthers telecasts on SXM 220. This is REGARDLESS of the away/home situation.
During the Western Conference Finals… the Vegas Golden Knights broadcasts will be on SXM 219 with the Dallas Stars telecasts on SXM 220. This is REGARDLESS of the away/home situation.
All national telecasts will be on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio (SXM 91).
All four teams also have their own online-only channels…
Florida Panthers on SXM 932.
Carolina Hurricanes on SXM 925.
Dallas Stars on SXM 929.
Vegas Golden Knights on SXM 949.
Here’s the schedule leading up to the upcoming week ahead…
TONIGHT, Friday, May 19th at 8:30pm ET (5:30pm PT) - Game 1 WCF: Stars vs. Golden Knights
Tomorrow, Saturday, May 20th at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - Game 2 ECF: Panthers vs. Hurricanes
Sunday, May 21st at 3:00pm ET (12 Noon PT) - Game 2 WCF: Stars vs. Golden Knights
Monday, May 22nd at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - Game 3 ECF: Hurricanes vs. Panthers
Tuesday, May 23rd at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - Game 3 WCF: Golden Knights vs. Stars
Wednesday, May 24th at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - Game 4 ECF: Hurricanes vs. Panthers
Thursday, May 25th at 8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - Game 4 WCF: Golden Knights vs. Stars
🥎: College Softball is on the mound this weekend too.
SiriusXM’s dedicated sports page on its website mentioned College Softball this week and considering its only five games for today ONLY, why not mention it? Also, only the home team’s telecasts will be aired, none from the away teams’.
1:00pm ET (10:00am PT) - Ole Miss Rebels vs. Baylor Bears (SiriusXM BIG 12 Radio - SXM 375)
3:00pm ET (12 Noon PT) - Seton Hall Pirates vs. Texas Longhorns (SiriusXM BIG 12 Radio - SXM 375)
5:00pm ET (2:00pm PT) - Hofstra Pride vs. Oklahoma Sooners (SiriusXM College Sports Radio - SXM 84)
6:00pm ET (3:00pm PT) - Prairie View A&M Panthers vs. LSU Tigers (SiriusXM SEC Radio - SXM 374)
7:30pm ET (4:30pm PT) - Texas State Bobcats vs. Texas A&M Aggies (SiriusXM College Sports Radio - SXM 84)
⛳: The PGA Championship is this weekend.
For golf this weekend, SiriusXM is LIVE in New York State for this year’s PGA Championship. I covered this extensively in last week’s edition so go here. All the details there including play-by-play coverage, special programming for the week, new and regular programs on the channel, and a new podcast debuting in time for this week called The Smylie Podcast, hosted by Smylie Kaufman. All of it is on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio (SXM 92).
Just go back to last week’s edition for details on this week’s Championship play. The reason why I mentioned it last week was because the details involving SiriusXM’s coverage were released last week.
🏁: NASCAR’s All-Star Weekend!
This weekend, the best of the best from NASCAR will duel it out in their annual all-star race as they approach the halfway point in the regular season.
They’ll be at the North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, N.C. for this year’s event, which is actually a full-circle moment since it hasn’t hosted any type of event or NASCAR race… since September 29th, 1996 (nearly 27 years ago). Yours truly was less than a year old at the time of that race and Jeff Gordon won that race (he’s now seven years into retirement).
SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (SXM 90) will have all of it of course this weekend. It actually starts later today too.
Today, Friday, May 19th
4:00pm ET (1:00pm PT) - NASCAR Cup Series: The Pit Crew Challenge (an All-Star event)
Tomorrow, Saturday, May 20th
1:30pm ET (10:30am PT) - NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series: Tyson 250
Sunday, May 21st
8:00pm ET (5:00pm PT) - NASCAR Cup Series: The All-Star Race
This week’s Driver2Driver in-race audio channels are…
Chase Elliot #9 - SXM 980.
Ross Chastain #1 - SXM 981.
Kyle Larson #5 - SXM 982.
🏎️: Final tune-ups before the Indy 500.
This week is nothing but making sure you practice and perfect your craft before next weekend’s grand spectacle of them all… the Indianapolis 500.
That’s where the IndyCar season is currently at and SiriusXM IndyCar Nation (SXM 160) has all the practice and qualifying sessions this weekend as the final tune-ups before next week’s biggest IndyCar racing event of the calendar season.
So for this weekend, here’s what to expect…
Today, Friday, May 19th
12 Noon ET (9:00am PT) - First Practice
Tomorrow, Saturday, May 20th
8:30am ET (5:30am PT) - Second Practice
11:00am ET (8:00am PT) - First Qualifying
Sunday, May 21st
11:30am ET (8:30am PT) - Third and Final Practice
2:00pm ET (11:00am PT) - Second and Final Qualifying
🏇: Halfway towards the Triple Crown race…
This weekend is also the second leg of Horse Racing’s Triple Crown race… the Preakness Stakes from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore.
Will this year’s Kentucky Derby winner Mage continue the chase for the Triple Crown or will another horse spoil the fun and the chase for the crown for another year? We will find out tomorrow, Saturday, May 20th at 4:30pm ET (1:30pm PT) with LIVE coverage available on NBC Sports Audio (SXM 85).
And that’s it for this week. Not much happening, especially on the events side, so its good to cover lots of sporting events this weekend since its usually a busy time of the year in the sports world.
As for everything else, all is calm in the SXM universe for this week but it may not be so next week so come back then and check us out. The ONLY newsletter that covers SiriusXM from the inside and out, every single week.
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So until next week, thank you for reading and supporting my newsletter and have a great and safe weekend!
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