After stunting with non-stop Taylor Swift since Thursday afternoon, Sun Broadcasting relaunched 93.7 WHEL Sanibel/Fort Myers FL as CHR “Hot 93.7” at 9:00 this morning.
Taking multiple shots at Beasley Media’s crosstown CHR “B103.9” WXKB as being “old and tired” emphasizing the commercial lengths, music choices, and national contests on WXKB, the launch creates a direct format competitor, while also filling the hole created by iHeartMedia’s flip of Hot AC “Y100” WZJZ earlier this month.
The new brand also creates a flanker to sister Rhythmic CHR “Fly 98.5” WFFY against WXKB and iHeart’s Rhythmic CHR “105.5 The Beat” WBTT. WXKB currently ranks ninth in the market with a 3.0 share in the December 2023 Nielsen Audio ratings. WBTT is fifth with a 4.0 share, while WFFY is tenth with a 2.8. The now-defunct WZJZ had a 1.2 share.
The launch of “Hot” follows the move of Country “Hell Yeah 93.7” to translator 94.1 W231DC Fort Myers.
The first hour of the new “Hot 93.7” featured:
- Dua Lipa – Dance The Night
- Teddy Swims – Lose Control
- Bruno Mars – 24K Magic
- Doja Cat – Paint The Town Red
- Harry Styles – As It Was
- Tate McRae – Greedy
- Ed Sheeran – Bad Habits
- Doechii – What It Is (Block Boy)
- Sabrina Carpenter – Feather
- Paul Russell – Lil Boo Thang
- Justin Bieber – Ghost
- Dua Lipa – Houdini
- The Weeknd – Die For You
- Taylor Swift – Cruel Summer
- Imagine Dragons – Enemy
- Kenya Grace – Strangers
- Jack Harlow – Lovin’ on Me
INSTANT INSIGHT: While it’s a great change of pace to see a new Top 40 launch in 2024, what is really gained taking shots at WXKB? The goal now should be to keep listeners, especially younger demos, engaged on the FM band. Attacking one competitor to grow your own cluster, fails to acknowledge that the target demo for Top 40 is quickly abandoning radio for other platforms. That should be who you’re targeting.