Classic Hits Are Hot In Summer, And July PPMs Bring The Heat.

Exclusive

Three words for classic hits stations looking for a summer ratings boost? Don’t stop believin’.

Journey’s format mainstay is helping classic hits stations in 12 of the 20 non-embedded markets reporting on Days 1 and 2 of Nielsen’s PPM July survey (covering activity from June 20 to July 17) with share gains, top-five rankings, and in four markets, leading all other stations.

The latter is the case in Los Angeles, Dallas, San Diego, and St. Louis, while classic hits outlets are in the top five and/or seeing June-to-July growth in New York, Atlanta, Boston, Miami, Seattle, Phoenix, Minneapolis and Denver. In the eight markets where classic hits stations are seeing share gains, they’re up nearly five (4.8) share points from June’s survey.

For Days 1 and 2, the leaderboard shows AC and classic hits with four crowns each, news/talk with three, two each for classic rock, contemporary Christian and urban AC, and one each for news, sports and soft AC.

Washington, DC (8)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WTOP‑FM  NewsHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.8.29.510.7
2WAMU‑FM  News/TalkAmerican University10.711.310.4
3WHUR‑FM  Urban ACHoward University7.47.66.7
4WASH‑FM  Adult Cont.iHeartMedia, Inc.5.54.44.8
5WWDC‑FM  Mod/Alt RockiHeartMedia, Inc.4.34.24.5
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

For the first time since 2021’s Holiday survey, there’s a new champ in D.C., as Hubbard Radio’s all- news WTOP, the runner-up for the entire first half of 2024, pushes American University news/talk WAMU out of the top spot, with a very close 0.3 lead over the former leader. As for the rest of the top five, Howard University urban AC 96.3 WHUR spends an eighth book ranked third, while iHeartMedia AC WASH — which was the last No. 1 in the market prior to WAMU’s 32-win streak — returns to the region, placing fourth, and modern/alternative rock sister “DC101” WWDC-FM makes a rare top five appearance at No. 5.

Boston (10)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WBZ‑FM  SportsBeasley Media Group11.09.97.7
2WWBX‑FM  Hot ACAudacy5.66.97.0
3WROR‑FM  Classic HitsBeasley Media Group5.76.36.8
4WMJX‑FM  Adult Cont.Audacy4.95.56.0
5WBUR‑FM  News/TalkBoston University5.45.45.1
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

With the NBA champion Celtics’ season done, and the Red Sox games on Boston’s other sports station, Audacy’s WEEI-FM, Beasley Media Group “98.5 The Sports Hub” WBZ-FM’s share comes back down to Earth, even as it still leads the market, keeping a 0.7 edge over Audacy hot AC “Mix 104.1” WWBX. Overall, Boston’s top five stay in the same order as in June, with Beasley classic hits sister WROR, Audacy AC sister “Magic 106.7” WMJX, and news/talk pubcaster WBUR still at 3-4-5.

Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood (12)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WHQT‑FM  Urban ACCox Media Group9.28.39.6
2WAMR‑FM  Adult Cont.TelevisaUnivision, Inc6.45.45.5
3WLYF‑FM  Adult Cont.Audacy6.26.95.3
4WFEZ‑FM  Soft ACCox Media Group6.35.24.9
5WMIA‑FM  Adult Cont.iHeartMedia, Inc.5.05.64.8
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

It’s an 18th straight victory for Cox Media Group urban AC “Hot 105” WHQT, holding a comfy 4.1-share-point lead over Univision Spanish AC “Amor 107.5” WAMR, which moves up from fourth to second. Except for Hot 105, it’s the same top five as in June, just in a slightly different order, with Audacy AC “101.5 Lite FM” WLYF, CMG soft AC sister “Easy 93.1” WFEZ, and iHeart Spanish-language gold AC “Magic 93.9” WMIA-FM coming in third, fourth, and fifth, respectively.

Seattle-Tacoma (11)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KUOW‑FM  News/TalkThe University of Washington7.36.67.7
2KZOK‑FM  Classic RockiHeartMedia, Inc.8.07.76.6
3KISW‑FM  RockAudacy5.25.96.4
4KJEB‑FM  Classic HitsiHeartMedia, Inc.4.84.65.3
5KKWF‑FM  CountryAudacy6.25.34.8
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

News/talk pubcaster KUOW-FM, last the champ in February, returns to the top, as iHeart classic rock KZOK, the leader from March to June, places second, 1.1 share points behind KUOW. Audacy’s “Rock 99.9” KISW holds at third while iHeart classic hits “95.7 The Jet” KJEB moves back into the top five at fourth, with Bonneville news/talk KIRO-FM again fifth-ranked.

Phoenix (13)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KESZ‑FM  Adult Cont.iHeartMedia, Inc.9.58.99.5
2KSLX‑FM  Classic RockHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.5.97.48.3
3KYOT‑FM  Adult HitsiHeartMedia, Inc.5.76.65.3
4KOOL‑FM  Classic HitsAudacy4.54.24.2
5KDKB‑FM  Mod/Alt RockHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.4.24.04.0
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

No change in the top three, with iHeart AC “99.9 K-EZ” KESZ racking up an 11th straight win, while seven-time runner-up Hubbard classic rock KSLX makes another share gain to trim KESZ’s lead to 1.2. iHeart adult hits sister “95.5 The Mountain” KYOT spends a fourth survey in third place, while Audacy classic hits “Big 94.5” KOOL-FM and Hubbard modern/alternative rock “93.3 Alt AZ” KDKB return to the top five after a five- and six-month absence, respectively.

Detroit (14)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WNIC‑FM  Adult Cont.iHeartMedia, Inc.8.38.18.2
2WXYT‑FM  SportsAudacy8.27.57.8
3WYCD‑FM  CountryAudacy6.87.27.6
4WCSX‑FM  Classic RockBeasley Media Group6.97.16.4
5WMXD‑FM  Urban ACiHeartMedia, Inc.5.56.06.4
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

The top three remain the same as in June, with iHeart AC WNIC again neck-and-neck with Audacy sports “97.1 The Ticket” WXYT-FM — the former ahead of the latter by just 0.4 — and Audacy country sister WYCD still third-ranked. Beasley classic rock WCSX ties for fourth with iHeart urban AC “Mix 92.3” WMXD, which re-enters the top five.

Minneapolis-St. Paul (15)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KTIS‑FM  Cont. Christ.University of Northwestern St. Paul11.011.49.3
2KSTP‑FM  Hot ACHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.6.88.08.3
3KQQL‑FM  Classic HitsiHeartMedia, Inc.7.36.57.0
4KFXN‑FM  SportsiHeartMedia, Inc.8.46.76.7
5KNOW‑FM  News/TalkMinnesota Public Radio6.06.06.7
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

There’s been just one No. 1 station in the Twin Cities in 2024-to-date, as contemporary Christian pubcaster KTIS-FM stays ahead of Hubbard hot AC “KS95” KSTP-FM by a single share point, a slimmer lead than June’s 3.4. iHeart classic hits “Kool 108” KQQL steps up from fifth to third, while sports sister “K-FAN” KFXN moves from third into a tie for fourth with Minnesota Public Radio news/talk KNOW, up from eighth in June.

San Diego (19)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KXSN‑FM  Classic HitsAudacy7.27.18.3
2KPBS‑FM  News/TalkSan Diego State University6.67.47.2
3KMYI‑FM  Hot ACiHeartMedia, Inc.5.35.06.2
4XHRM‑FM  Hot ACCOMUNICACIÓN XERSA, S.A. DE C.V.6.45.45.0
5KFBG‑FM  Adult HitsLocal Media of San Diego4.04.34.7
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

It’s Sunny again in San Diego, as Audacy classic hits “Sunny 98.1” KXSN, the March-April-May leader, takes over for news/talk pubcaster KPBS, which finishes second, 1.1 share points behind Sunny. iHeart hot AC “Star 94.1” KMYI adds 1.2 points to move from fifth to third, followed by Comunicacion XERSA hot AC “Magic 92.5” XHRM and Local Media of San Diego adult hits “100.7 Big FM” KFBG, the latter making its first appearance in the top five since last November.

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater (17)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WDUV‑FM  Soft ACCox Media Group10.812.110.4
2WQYK‑FM  CountryBeasley Media Group5.56.26.6
3WMTX‑FM  Adult Cont.iHeartMedia, Inc.6.35.76.2
4WTBV‑FM  Urban ACCox Media Group5.65.86.1
5WXGL‑FM  Classic RockCox Media Group6.15.65.4
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

There’s just no stopping CMG soft AC WDUV, racking up its 37th straight win with a 3.8-point advantage over Beasley country WQYK, which moves from third to the runner-up spot. iHeart AC “Mix 100.7” WMTX claims third, while CMG’s urban AC “101.5 The Vibe” WTBV and classic rock “The Eagle 107.3” WXGL touch down at fourth and fifth.

Denver-Boulder (18)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KRFX‑FM  Classic RockiHeartMedia, Inc.6.17.07.1
2KYGO‑FM  CountryBonneville International5.85.76.9
3KXKL‑FM  Classic HitsKSE Radio Ventures6.36.36.8
4KOSI‑FM  Adult Cont.Bonneville International6.47.36.5
5KALC‑FM  Hot ACAudacy4.65.15.2
6KBCO‑FM  Adult Alt.iHeartMedia, Inc.5.45.65.2
7KTCL‑FM  Mod/Alt RockiHeartMedia, Inc.5.95.05.2
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

For the second time this year, iHeart classic rock “103.5 The Fox” KRFX is Denver’s top station, last on top in February when it tied with Bonneville country KYGO, now up 1.2 from June to finish two-tenths of a point behind The Fox. KSE Radio Ventures classic hits “Kool 105” KXKL sticks at third while Bonneville AC KOSI, the champ in May and June, drops to fourth. Just below, there’s a three-way tie at fifth between iHeart’s adult alternative KBCO and modern/alternative rock “Channel 93.3” KTCL, and Audacy hot AC “Alice 105.9” KALC.

Baltimore (23)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1WLIF‑FM  Adult Cont.Audacy8.66.67.5
2WWIN‑FM  Urban ACRadio One / Urban One7.56.86.7
3WPOC‑FM  CountryiHeartMedia, Inc.7.98.76.6
4WIYY‑FM  RockHearst Television, Inc.5.15.76.5
5WERQ‑FM  Urban Cont.Radio One / Urban One5.86.86.4
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

After getting knocked down to fourth in June, Audacy AC “Today’s 101.9” WLIF rebounds to No. 1, where it had put down roots since last September. It’s just 0.8 in front Urban One urban AC “Magic 95.9” WWIN-FM, which has spent most of 2024 second-ranked. June’s champ, iHeart country WPOC, slides down to third, losing 2.1 share points, while Hearst’s “98 Rock” WIYY and Urban One urban contemporary sister “92Q Jams” WERQ place fourth and fifth.

St. Louis (24)
   MAY 24JUN 24JUL 24
1KLOU‑FM  Classic HitsiHeartMedia, Inc.9.89.99.0
2WARH‑FM  Adult HitsHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.7.96.97.9
3KSHE‑FM  RockHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.8.69.17.5
4KPNT‑FM  Mod/Alt RockHubbard Broadcasting, Inc.6.66.16.5
5KEZK‑FM  Adult Cont.Audacy5.86.05.8
6KSD‑FM  CountryiHeartMedia, Inc.5.55.95.8
7WFUN‑FM  Urban ACAudacy6.96.15.8
Nielsen JUL 24, 6+ Metro ShareStationRatings.com

iHeart classic hits KLOU notches a third consecutive win, 1.1 share points ahead of Hubbard adult hits “106.5 The Arch” WARH, itself up a full point. Hubbard’s rock and modern/alternative rock sisters, KSHE and “105.7 The Point” KPNT, finish third and fourth, while Audacy’s AC KEZK and urban AC “96.3 R&B” WFUN-FM tie for fifth along with iHeart country sister “93.7 The Bull” KSD-FM.