Mexico City Radio Coming and Going

The station I heard in the Uber to my hotel in Mexico City was Hot AC XHPOP (Match 99.3). 

The station I heard on the way back to the airport was co-owned Adult Hits XHDFM (Mix 106.5), which means that owner Grupo ACIR owns both “Mix” and “Match.”

The station I saw advertised the most in between was XHINFO (Chilango Radio), a Talk/Alternative hybrid that will probably become a new favorite for many ROR readers.

It wasn’t the only listening I did, but I heard radio on about 65-70% of my rides, and occasionally even in retail. It wasn’t like Portugal, where radio and specifically AC RFM were ubiquitous, but I could have written an article only about stations encountered in the wild on this trip.

The most distinctive thing heard in a ride share were the Sunday morning oldies on public radio XHOF (Reactor 92.3). Those shows usually have an unusual mix, and this one was playing “Leaning on the Lamppost” by Herman’s Hermits when I got in, followed by the CCR LP cut “Soldier’s Lament.” Later I found the show was called La Era del Dinosaurio. 

I often remember international travel by the CHR hits not being played at home. Those were Hugel’s “Movin’ to the Sun” — which would have been that song almost anywhere in the world — and Madonna’s “Danceteria.” Both are songs we could have used here during CHR’s cruel summer (they’ve both been on my Big Hits Energy playlist for a while).

Besides Match 99.3, the English-language station most heard in my travels was heritage XHFAJ (Alfa 91.3). Like Match, and like CHR here, that station felt more gold/recurrent than I’ve known it in the past. (Alfa was the first of several times I encountered “Little Talks” by Of Monsters & Men.) Then there was  Radio Disney, still active as a contemporary brand in Mexico, with a ’90s Alt component, including “The Man Who Sold the World” by Nirvana.

The station that felt the most contemporary was XHEXA (Exa 104.9), the local outpost of the national CHR chain. Exa was primarily Spanish, but with all styles represented, from reggaeton to songs that could have been on AC anytime in the last four decades. Those were punctuated by Olivia Rodrigo’s current hits and Bebe Rexha & David Guetta’s “Sad Girls,” which eventually joined Hugel and Madonna in sounding like an omission by our CHRs.

Grupo ACIR is the Mexican broadcaster most aligned with iHeart Radio. It’s one of the market’s newer stations, having taken over Radio Disney’s previous frequency in 2020. One of the intriguing aspects of Match and Mix is that they both use some version of the “KIIS-FM” jingle. The Match signature is name and frequency. The Mix jingle just sings “Mix, Mix, Mix” to the familiar logo.  

Here’s Match 99.3 at 5 p.m. on August 23:

• Calvin Harris, “How Deep Is Your Love”
• Ariana Grande, “Hate That I Made You Love Me”
• Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars, “Uptown Funk”
• Sombr, “My Body Isn’t Ready”
• Sabrina Carpenter, “Espresso”
• Smash Mouth, “I’m a Believer”
• Alex Warren, “Fever Dream”
• Dua Lipa, “Be the One”
• Zara Larsson, “Lush Life”
• Maneskin, “Beggin’”
• Harry Styles, “Dance No More”
• Djo, “End of Beginning”

Mix 106.5 is one of three outlets I spent time with playing some version of Classic Hits, along with (mostly) older-leaning XHRED (Universal 88.1) and (mostly) Soft AC XHMM (100.1 Stereo Cien). 

Mix bills itself as “’80s, ’90s y mas” but stretches well into the ’00s and occasionally goes back to the edge of that chronology for “Another Brick in the Wall” or “You Shook Me All Night Long.” (The song playing as I stepped out of the car at the airport was “The Final Countdown.”) 

I’ve always appreciated Mexican radio for its more European take on CHR and Classic Hits. Over the years, I’ve felt that international differences between the hits have been diminished, and that the rise of reggaeton has lessened Mexican CHR’s need for dance pop. But there was still plenty that stood out on this trip, whether it was Hugel on CHR or Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys as core artists on Mix. (The current giveaway is Robbie Williams tickets). 

Here’s the station on August 23 at 9 p.m.:

• Michael Jackson, “Beat It”
• Pet Shop Boys, “New York City Boy”
• Bangles, “Manic Monday”
• Haddaway, “What Is Love”
• Alexandra Stan, “Mr. Saxobeat”
• Nirvana, “Numb”
• Ramones, “Blitzkrieg Bop” — seemingly a power, encountered several times on this trip
• Madonna, “La Isla Bonita” — separated from the Ramones by a longer sweeper, so not an awkward segue
• Blondie, “Maria”
• Turtles, “Happy Together” — I’d also heard “It Ain’t Me Babe” on Universal
• Depeche Mode, “Enjoy the Silence”
• Cranberries, “Promises”
• James Blunt, “You’re Beautiful”
• Journey, “Don’t Stop Believin’”

Chilango is an extension of an entertainment/lifestyle publication that is Mexico City’s equivalent to Time Out. Its name began as a derisive term for city slickers by those elsewhere in the country, but eventually became an ironic point of pride for locals. It was the only station I saw advertised, and has been consistently on the rise in recent years. Like some Triple-A stations here, it’s a testimony to the power of marketing but also an increasing foothold for eclectic offerings.

During the day, the music is secondary to talk and personality. During music hours, Chilango belongs to that category of stations that ROR readers often enjoy, such as Pepper 96.6 Athens and Radio Nova Paris, which mix Alternative with the cooler end of the hit-music spectrum. Like Radio Nova, there’s also a Hip-Hop component. The first three acts I heard were Moby, Tyla, and Phoenix. Here’s Chilango on August 22 just after 5 p.m.:

• Boy Harsher, “Jeans”
• Slayyyter, “Dance”
• Daft Punk, “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger”
• Young Miko & Rauw Alejandro, “Aquel Decembre”
• Myke Towers, “Tengo Celos”
• Nilufer Yanya, “Method Actor”
• Vampire Weekend, “This Life”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile”
• Chaka Khan, “I’m Every Woman”
• 2Pac, “Changes”
• Ice Cube f/Das EFX, “Check Yo Self”
• Bad Gyal, “Da Me”