Press Release From Nielsen:The April 2021 PPM survey revealed new gains in radio listening across the aggregate of markets for the second month in a row. As America continues to reopen, consumers are returning to radio in numbers not seen in over half a year.Radio’s weekly reach is now at its highest levels (121 million weekly consumers) since March 2020 when COVID-19’s impact began to take hold. Since the beginning of 2021, radio has added more than 5 million new weekly listeners.Radio’s Average Quarter-Hour (AQH) audience in April 2021 hit its highest levels since the fourth quarter of 2020, prior to this winter’s virus surges and associated restrictions. What’s more, AQH audience levels have jumped 10 percent in the past two months as vaccinations and a gradual return to pre-pandemic routines have proliferated.The year-over-year comparison between the April 2020 and April 2021 PPM stands at a 114 index for weekly reach and a 131 index for AQH. This means that from a weekly reach perspective, the radio audience in April 2021 is 14% larger than the same month from one year ago, while for AQH the audience is now 31% larger.The April listening gains were spread across the day, with all major dayparts at or near their AQH peaks since COVID-19 began. Both morning drive (Mon-Fri 6a-10a) and weekends (Sat-Sun 6a-12m) hit their highest audience levels since the fall.From a format perspective, some routine and seasonal shifts are underway. Country radio is reporting higher shares of audience heading into the summer, following its usual seasonal pattern. Classic Hits is also gaining ground, another annual occurrence. Meanwhile, the return of major league baseball along with other live sports is boosting the All Sports format near its fall football season levels.Notably, the Urban Adult Contemporary | R&B format recorded its highest share of listening in several years in the April survey, which took place from April 1st to April 28th. The national interest in the social justice movement has had far-reaching effects beyond just the usual News and Talk platforms. Specifically, the verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin was announced on April 20th, when millions of Americans tuned in live to hear the decision across live TV and radio. The April gains for Urban AC | R&B stations may have been driven by what was happening between the songs, as much as the music cycle itself during such a milestone moment. […]

Sean ‘Hollywood’ Hamilton will retire from his syndicated “Hollywood Hamilton’s Weekend Top 30”, “Remix Top 30 with Hollywood Hamilton”, and “Weekend Top 30 with DJ Pup Dawg”.The three shows will conclude production and distribution the weekend of June 26.He will continue to host afternoons on iHeartMedia’s 103.5 WKTU New York. Hamilton also notes he will launch “new endeavors” in the Spring of 2022.After an entertaining and successful 35 years of syndication, Radio Hall of Fame inductee, Sean “Hollywood” Hamilton has announced his retirement from all three of his national radio programs – “Hollywood Hamilton’s The Weekend Top30,” “The Remix Top30 with Hollywood Hamilton,” and “The Weekend Top30 with DJ Pup Dawg.” Hamilton’s popular weekday afternoon program continues to be heard on iHeartRadio’s 103.5 KTU in New York City. “It’s time to spend more quality time with my family and continue developing new projects I’ve been passionate about,” said Hamilton. “I’ll be announcing new endeavors in Spring 2022.” Hamilton, known as “Hollywood” since his earliest days working in syndicated radio, first teamed up in the 1980s with Dick Clark and the late Steve Rivers to pioneer one of the first live, pop/mainstream satellite programs called “Hangin’ with Hollywood” on the Transtar/Unistar Radio Network. In 1998, he debuted three iterations of his popular franchise: “The Weekend Top30” and the multiple award-winning, dance music version, “The Remix Top30” for CHR/Top 40-formatted stations, and a CHR/Rhythmic-formatted version of “The Weekend Top30,” most recently hosted by DJ Pup Dawg.“The Weekend Top30” and “The Remix Top30” were first launched into national syndication with Andy Denmark and his team at United Stations before joining Premiere Networks’ national lineup in 2013, where they will conclude the weekend of June 26 and 27, 2021. “First and foremost, I want to give thanks to the more than 150 program directors that stuck with me all these years,” added Hamilton. “You have no idea how much that meant to me. None of this would be possible without the incredible producer/production team of Eric Weiss, Michelle Parisi, DD, Dwayne Crawford, DJ Pup Dawg and my wife, Marina. Without this group, the shows would never have lasted this long, while continuing to stay on top. I also want to thank my enormously talented Premiere Networks family – you’re the best in the business.”“Sean is a tremendous talent, and we had a successful partnership for the past eight years,” said Julie Talbott, President of Premiere Networks. “He will truly be missed on hundreds of stations across the country. We wish him all the best for the future as he takes on this next chapter of his career.” […]

Day 3 of Nielsen Audio’s PPM releases are now available for Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus.All the numbers can be found at RadioInsight.com/Ratings.iHeartMedia Classic Rock “99.7 The Fox” WRFX moves up 5.2 – 6.0 – 7.0 to lead Charlotte. Co-owned Country “96.9 The Kat” WKKT moves up to second with a 6.3 – 6.0 slip. Beasley Hip Hop “Power 98” WPEG jumps up 4.2 – 5.9 to take third. Beasley’s Country 103.7 WSOC slides 6.2 to 5.7 and their Adult R&B “V101.9” WBAV rises 4.6 to 5.0.Beasley AC “K104.7” WKQC falls from first to sixth sliding 7.5 – 6.7 – 4.9. Radio One Hot AC “107.9 The Link” WLNK falls 4.6 to 3.1 prior to its relaunch as “Mix 107.9” on the final day of the survey after morning hosts Bob & Sheri announced their impending departure.Public News/Talk 91.5 KOPB-FM remains on top in Portland despite dropping 10.7 to 9.9. iHeartMedia Classic Hits “106.7 The Eagle” KLTH rises 5.9 to 6.5, while sister AC “K103” KKCW rises 6.2 to 6.4.Trending up in Portland are Alpha Media Country “98.7 The Bull” KUPL (4.2 – 4.4 – 5.1) and Audacy Hot AC “105.1 The Buzz” KRSK (2.1 – 3.6). Trending downward is Audacy Classic Rock 92.3 KGON (5.9 – 5.3 – 4.3).Cox Classic Hits 101.1 KONO-FM remains on top of San Antonio 9.6 to 9.4. Classic Rock “106.7 The Eagle” KTKX holds in second at a 6.2, while Hot AC “Magic 105.3” KSMG rises 5.3 to 5.6 to give Cox the top three spots in the market. Univision Regional Mexican “Que Buena 92.9” KROM and iHeartMedia AC “Q101.9” KQXT both slide 6.0 to 5.2 to tie for fourth.Univision Classic Hip Hop “107.5 The Vibe” KVBH trends up 3.5 – 4.0 – 4.6.iHeartMedia News/Talk 1530 KFBK/93.1 KFBK-FM (8.2 – 8.7) and Bonneville AC “Mix 96” KYMX (8.5 – 8.7) tie for the lead in Sacramento. Audacy Classic Rock “Eagle 96.9” KSEG trends up to third 7.2 – 7.4 – 8.2. Also on the upswing are Bonneville Country 105.1 KNCI (5.5 – 6.2 – 6.6) and iHeartMedia Soft AC “92.5 The Breeze” KBEB (5.0 – 5.3 – 6.5) which Ratings Expert Chris Huff notes is the highest share for the 92.5 frequency since Fall 1994.Also trending up in Sacramento are Audacy Alternative “Alt 94.7” KKDO (3.2 – 3.5 – 4.0) and iHeartMedia Conservative Talk 650 KSTE (1.9 – 2.1 – 3.7). Trending downward are Audacy’s “98 Rock” KRXQ (6.8 – 6.3 – 5.6) and Bonneville Hot AC “Now 100.5” KZZO (3.6 – 3.3 – 3.0).Bonneville takes the top three spots in Salt Lake City. News/Talk 1160 KSL/102.7 KSL-FM rises 6.8 to 8.3 to retake the market lead. Classic Rock “103.5 The Arrow” KRSP surges 5.5 – 6.4 – 7.1 for second tying AC “FM 100” KSFI as it falls 8.4 to 7.1. iHeartMedia Conservative Talk 570 KNRS/105.9 KNRS-FM slips 6.5 to 6.3 and Classic Hits 94.1 KODJ is down 6.9 to 5.8.The biggest gain of the month goes to Classical 89.1 KBYU-FM which jumps from a 1.8 to 4.3 share for what Huff notes is a record high for the station.iHeartMedia CHR “94.9 ZHT” KZHT trends down 4.2 – 3.4 – 3.1 for what Huff notes is a tie for its PPM low set in December 2009.Audacy Classic Hits “105.9 Sunny-FM” WOCL rebounds up 9.2 to 10.2 to continue to sit atop the Orlando market. iHeartMedia CHR “XL 106.7” WXXL rises 7.4 to 7.7 to hold onto second. Cox Adult R&B “Star 94.5” WCFB trends up 6.5 -7.3 – 7.4 for third.With its flip from Spanish Tropical to Christian AC midway through the monthly, 98.1 WNUE drops from a 2.5 to 1.4 share. That and HeartMedia’s “Rumba 100.3” WRUM drop from 5.2 to 4.7 helps Cox’ “Exitos 96.5” WOEX rise 2.2 to 3.1.Beasley Classic Hits 96.3 KKLZ regains the top spot in Las Vegas with a 6.4 to 7.0 gain. iHeartMedia AC “Sunny 106.5” KSNE slides to second down 8.1 – 7.2 – 6.4. Two stations surge up to a third place tie as Audacy Hot AC “Mix 94.1” KMXB rises 5.0 – 6.7 – 6.1 and Christian AC 90.5 KSOS jumps 4.9 – 5.1 – 6.1 for what Huff notes is the highest share in the station’s history. Lotus Regional Mexican “La Buena 101.9” KWID falls to fifth with a 7.3 – 6.8 – 5.3 trend.iHeartMedia’s duo of Classic Hits “94.5 3WS” WWSW (9.5 – 10.5) and Rock 102.5 WDVE (9.7 – 9.6) continue to hold the top two spots in Pittsburgh. Steel City Media Variety Hits “96.9 Bob-FM” WRRK holds in third 8.5 to 8.4.iHeartMedia Alternative “105.9 The X” WXDX rises 4.9 to 5.8 for what Huff notes is its best month since April 2012. Trending downward is Audacy News/Talk 1020/100.1 KDKA (5.3 – 4.7 – 4.2).The return of Reds baseball helps iHeartMedia News/Talk 700 WLW surge 9.1 to 12.7 to retake the Cincinnati lead. Cumulus Classic Hits 103.5 WGRR trends up 8.7 – 9.4 – 9.8 but falls to second. Hubbard CHR “Q102” WKRQ is up 5.5 to 6.2, while their Country “B105” WUBE (7.6 to 6.1) and AC “Mix 94.9” WREW (5.6 to 5.1) both slip.Audacy Classic Rock 98.5 WNCX remains on top in Cleveland up 10.6 to 10.7. Audacy Classic Hits 105.7 WMJI rises 9.5 to 9.7, while News/Talk 1100/106.9 WTAM has an Indians related boost 6.9 to 8.6.iHeartMedia Variety Hits “106.5 The Lake” WHLK trends up 4.9 – 5.8 – 6.4, but sister Country 99.5 WGAR falls 8.3 – 6.8 – 6.6.Cumulus Media’s duo of Classic Hits 94.9 KCMO-FM (8.8 – 9.1) and Classic Rock “101 The Fox” KCFX (7.0 – 7.4) remain on top in Kansas City. Audacy News/Talk 98.1 KMBZ-FM rises 5.6 to 6.0 for third.Audacy’s “610 Sports” KCSP gets a Royals based boost from a 1.5 to 3.5 share, but co-owned Country “106.5 The Wolf” WDAF-FM tumbles 6.3 – 5.4 – 3.8.iHeartMedia Country 92.3 WCOL holds a sizeable lead in Columbus with an 11.3 to 10.6 drop. Saga Classic Rock “QFM 96” WLVQ (up 6.6 to 7.6) and iHeartMedia CHR 97.9 WNCI (falling 9.2 to 7.6) tie for second.Trending upwards in Columbus are iHeartMedia’s Variety Hits “93.3 The Bus” WODC (2.7 – 3.2 – 4.0) and “Columbus Alternative 105.7” WXZX (1.2 – 1.3 – 2.0) which marks the highest share for the signal since September 2016. […]