Fresh Listen: Z100 and 96.1 Kiss

This article was originally published at the beginning of summer 2024 when Z100 was remarkable for being in the fives. In the just-published August ratings, it was the market’s No. 2 station, up 5.9-6.5 with its best PPM-era numbers. I’ve added an updated (fresher?) listen to Z100 below.

I become optimistic about the state of Top 40 with relatively little provocation. It often happens in spring when decent new music is flowing more freely and stations are rebounding from shockingly low holiday and winter numbers.

I’ve already written the story two stories in as many months about improving product. The first was about the increased Triple-A influence. Three weeks ago, it was the Song of Summer handicap.

But this week, it’s not just me.

On Tuesday, the ratings started coming out.

WHTZ (Z100) New York has been in the mid-to-high five-share range all year.  In May, it was up 5.3-5.6. 

WKQI (Channel 955) Detroit, which surprised the format with its 7.3-8.3 rise in April ’23, has remained a contender since and was up 6.3-7.2.

WKRQ (Q102) Cincinnati, which reports Hot AC but is effectively its market’s CHR, is never too far from the top, but it’s back up 7.8-8.4.

WKST (96.1 Kiss) Pittsburgh, whose success galvanized CHR radio in the early ’00s, has also been one of 2024’s success stories, holding at a 7.6 this month.

Other noteworthy stories this week:

• KUDD (Mix 105.1) Salt Lake City, 3.9-4.9
• KIIS Los Angeles, 4.5-4.6
• KHKS (Kiss 106.1) Dallas, 4.0-4.6
• KBKS (Kiss 106.1) Seattle, 3.6-4.2

KMVQ (99.7 Now) San Francisco, which you’ve read a lot about in this column, is off from its fall/early winter numbers, but 4.6-4.6 this month and still No. 2 in the published San Jose numbers. WXXL (XL106.7) Orlando, Fla., has fluctuated in recent months, but is still at 5.7.

Also on Tuesday, Billboard’s Elias Leight published a story about the reduced footprint of bringbacks and reissues on the Hot 100, something he attributed to a better flow of major artist product.

On Wednesday, LiveLine’s John Garabedian noted that the majority of host Mason Kelter’s requests on the syndicated night show were suddenly for current product, a change from the previous dominance of throwbacks.

Also that day, the Washington Post’s Chris Richards published a story announcing “The Song of Summer Is Happening Whether You Like It or Not” after years of being “not worth talking about.” (His battle is between Sabrina Carpenter and Tommy Richman, although our readers put Post Malone & Morgan Wallen and Shaboozey on equal footing.)

I should be careful about high-fiving too much about stations in the high fours. That’s especially true when May still finds a lot of CHRs in the 2s and 3s. But having seized on the success of WKQI and KIIS last April based on what could have been one good month, given the vagaries of PPM, it’s nice to still be writing about them. The excitement of any CHR up-cycle has been the unsolicited excitement of one’s friends and colleagues. 

So I’m going to try and enjoy the week.

Meanwhile, here’s a Fresh Listen to Z100 at 5 p.m. on June 12, under recently arrived PD Mark Adams with afternoon hosts Maxwell & Crystal during a two-hour commercial free sweep. The duo was talking about iHeart’s Can’t Cancel Pride event that night, as well as giving away AJR tickets to a caller who could guess three secret letters (which were AJR).

• Metro Boomin f/the Weeknd & 21 Savage, “Creepin’”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Feather”
• Tommy Richman, “Million Dollar Baby”
• Ariana Grande, “We Can’t Be Friends”
• Shakira f/Wyclef Jean, “Hips Don’t Lie”
• Billie Eilish, “Birds of a Feather”
• Hozier, “Too Sweet”
• The Kid Laroi & Justin Bieber, “Stay”
• Post Malone f/Morgan Wallen, “I Had Some Help”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Espresso”
• Chris Brown, “Forever”
• Benson Boone, “Slow It Down”
• Doja Cat, “Agoura Hills”

96.1 Kiss, under PD David Edgar, could have been in this week’s article about stations I should have written about sooner. Here it is in the same hour with Tall Cathy:

• Billie Eilish, “Lunch”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Feather”–led off the hour with a sweeper I haven’t yet encountered on many music stations: “the exclusive audio home of the 2024 Paris Olympics.”
• Wiz Khalifa & Snoop Dogg f/Bruno Mars, “Young Wild & Free”
• Taylor Swift f/Post Malone, “Fortnight”
• Noah Kahan, “Stick Season”
• Jack Harlow, “Lovin’ on Me”
• Billie Eilish, “What Was I Made For?”
• Sean Paul, “Temperature”
• Ariana Grande, “We Can’t Be Friends”
• Sam Smith & Kim Petras, “Unholy”
• Jessie Murph & Jelly Roll, “Wild Ones”
• SZA, “Saturn”
• Post Malone f/Morgan Wallen, “I Had Some Help”
• Doja Cat, “Paint the Town Red”

Update: In light of Z100’s great August numbers, here’s an updated monitor of the station at 7 p.m. with Josh Martinez. During that hour, Martinez both teased an iHeart Music Festival giveaway with Elvis Duran at 9 a.m. the next morning and gave away tickets to see Niki at an upcoming Central Park appearance. There was also a teaser for the upcoming Z100 Jingle Ball lineup announcement, to be made by artist Dasha, as well as a call from a listener streaming the station from Miami who declared that New Yorkers were friendlier than South Floridians.\

• Sabrina Carpenter, “Espresso”
• Dasha, “Austin”
• Dua Lipa, “Houdini”
• Nelly, “Hot In Herre”
• Billie Eilish, “Birds of a Feather”
• Chappell Roan, “Hot to Go!”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Taste” (stream only)
• Post Malone & Morgan Wallen, “I Had Some Help” (stream only)
• Hozier, “Too Sweet”
• Britney Spears, “Womanizer”
• Shaboozey, “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Please Please Please”
• Doja Cat, “Agoura Hills”