KRTH (K-Earth 101) Los Angeles is one of the Classic Hits format’s most-admired radio stations. In the August PPMs, it led one of radio’s most-competitive markets with a 6.8 share, down only slightly from a 7.1. KRTH plays its power ’80s songs up to 34x a week, according to Mediabase. KRTH’s strategy goes back to the early ’90s on that station when power rotation meant “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and not “Take on Me.”
CHBM (Boom 97.3) Toronto is also one of the Classic Hits format’s most-admired and consistently successful stations. Boom’s top-spun song played 10x last week; this week, the top song played only 9x. Canada’s PPM numbers aren’t made public to the trades, so if you need American examples, the two highest-rated Classic Hits stations in PPM this month, each with an 11.1 share, are WGRR Cincinnati (powers 9x) and WOCL (105.9 Sunny FM) Orlando (11x).
For the week ending Sept. 14, there were six PPM-market stations on the KRTH template of about 15 songs playing more than 4x a day (29-34x). Four of the others are co-owned Audacy outlets. There were another 13 stations playing songs at least 2x a day (14-23x). Mega-rotations haven’t had the same impact for every station that has tried them. But sister KXSN (Sunny 98.1) San Diego also leads its market, going 8.3-7.8 in August. That station is currently comfortably ahead of an Adult Hits competitor, KXBG (Big 100.7), which emphasizes variety.
The mega-spins issue is ongoing among Classic Hits PDs. As we did several years ago for CHR, we decided to analyze 39 stations in PPM markets doing a mainstream Classic Hits format. The goal wasn’t to write a brief for either fast or slower spins, since both have their success stories, as much as to add insight to programmers’ decisions. Here’s how we chose our panel:
- We didn’t include those stations doing an older ‘60s/’70s-skewing version of the format.
- We didn’t include stations that were positioned to listeners as the industry as Classic Hits but are essentially Classic Rock—e.g., WSRV (The River) Atlanta.
- We didn’t include most Adult Hits stations, with their lower spin template, except in a few cases where those stations had effectively become the only Classic Hits station for their market: KKHH (The Spot) Houston, WCJK [Jack FM] Nashville, WSMW (Simon 98.7) Greensboro, WQSR (Jack FM) Baltimore.
- We did include a few stations that blurred the line between Classic Hits and gold-based AC, particularly WDUV Tampa and WKQC (K104.7) Charlotte, N.C. Those stations aren’t far on the format landscape from an acknowledged Classic Hits leader, KOLA Riverside, Calif.
As with the choices that go into coding music, we realize that readers’ decisions might have been different. It should also be noted that all ratings here are based on the available 6-plus numbers, raising the possibility that a station could be doing better in its target demo. As stations ponder their own rotations, here is what we found:
Most Classic Hits rotations have been static over the last two years. Looking at rotations from October 2022 vs. the week ending Sept. 14, 2024, most stations are still within 3-4 spins of where they were on power rotation two years ago. By that time, KRTH was already phenomenal and many stations had made their decision. Since that time:
- WLS-FM Chicago has become the only non-Audacy station to go with mega-powers, as one of a package of changes. The station is up 3.9-4.2 in our two-year window.
- Audacy’s KSPF (The Spot) Dallas, formerly KLUV (K-Love), went from 31x to a still hit-driven 23x. That station is tied for first in the market and at the same 4.8 share of the previous analysis.
- WOCL went from 19 spins two years ago to 11x on powers now and is actually up sharply, 5.1-11.1.
- Two other stations that reduced spins are currently looking for their footing in the market. KOSF San Francisco has just rebranded as “Classic Hits 103.7.” WMXJ (The Beach) Miami (34x-17x) is down 4.2-3.6 from when its spins were higher. That market has been disrupted by the phenomenon of bilingual gold-based Soft AC WMIA (Magic 93.9).
As a group, shares are higher for stations with lower spin-counts. While it should immediately be noted that the stations playing mega-powers are in larger, more competitive markets, these are average shares calculating August PPM numbers against the top spin number on the top power-rotation song:
- 29-34 spins, 5.0 share
- 20-23 spins, 5.4 share — there’s nobody between 23 and 29 this week
- 15-18 spins, 5.8 share
- 11-14 spins, 7.2 share
- 9-11 spins, 7.5 share
That correlation holds in reverse, when you start with the stations with the highest shares, and look at how many times they’re spinning their powers.
- 10+ shares, average of 10 spins a week on powers
- 8-9 shares, average of 14x
- 6-7 shares, average of 16x
- 4-5 shares, average of 16x
- 2-3 shares, average of 21x
Market situation matters. Most Classic Hits stations are up against both Classic Rock and Mainstream AC competition, where 2x a day or less on powers is more standard. Some are also in markets where there is an Adult Hits station. Both KRTH and co-owned KSPF have the advantage of having a Jack-FM in the building, meaning that the cluster can provide its own relief button if you’re not looking for a mega-hit at the moment. Conversely, stations like WOCL, CHBM, and WSMW have the advantage of covering both Adult and Classic Hits for their markets.
That said, WWSW (3WS) Pittsburgh has a 9 share, moderate spins (13x), and a Classic Hits rival. KQQL (Kool 108) Minneapolis has an 8.4 share, a similar competitive situation, and also tops out at 13x. (Adult hits KZJK (Jack FM) actually has comparable top spins.) There are also those successful Classic Hits stations with lower shares that don’t have an Adult Hits competitor because they outlasted them, such as WGRR or KCMO-FM Kansas City (10x). Classic vs. Adult Hits is a pending column unto itself, although one complicated now by how close the formats have gotten over 20 years.
On the national and local level, there are other factors at play. While rotations have stayed stable for most stations, other things have changed around Classic Hits in the last two years. Many stations have pushed further into the ‘90s and early ‘00s, sometimes seemingly helping the older-skewing Classic Rock. Country and even CHR have been able to create a little more excitement around current music.
Even among the stations with mega-spiclns, there are only two consensus mega-hits. Of the six stations doing mega-spins, there are only two songs that all agree on: the Police, “Every Breath You Take,” and Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer.” Even format signatures like “Don’t Stop Believin’” and “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” fail to achieve total consensus.
Mega-spins have considerable impact on the overall Classic Hits chart. While “Don’t Start Believin’” has only five of the six PPM stations we looked at, it also receives mega-spins in a diary market at Cox’s WZLR (The Eagle) Dayton, Ohio. Those six stations comprise 176 spins on a song that received 987 total spins this week. While all of the songs receiving mega-spins at the six stations we looked at are reliable testers, that airplay is likely having an impact on stations not able to do local research.
Your thoughts on Classic Hits mega-spins are welcome.