I had a long day-to-day programming career in radio before I had the opportunity to program my first classic hits station. It just so happened to be the biggest one in America, WCBS-FM in New York.
The year was 2012. The most played song when I took over the station was “Everyday People” by Sly and The Family Stone. For the youngsters in the audience, that song was a hit in 1968. The top 25 most-played songs on the station were mostly from the 60s, with only six titles from the 70s. I quickly updated the station, using the theory that you want to be playing songs that were popular when your listeners were in their 20s. Our most-played song in 2013 was “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey. The top 25 titles on the station were equally divided between the 70s and 80s.
A year later, we were fortunate enough to hire the great Scott Shannon, and it was off to the races. We had a few #1 months with Adults 25–54 and total audience 6+ over the next few years. We never totally knocked out WLTW but stayed near the top of the ranker for years. We tried to reflect shorter time spent listening over the years by playing the biggest hits more frequently. In 2013, our most-played song had just over 300 spins.
In 2020, it was almost doubled. But seven years later, the most-played song was still “Don’t Stop Believin’” by Journey. Sure, there were fewer 70s titles. In fact, only one song from the 70s was in our top 25 most-played that year, and it was Queen’s anthem “We Will Rock You.” We were an 80s-dominant radio station and were looking into the future of how we would bring the 90s and 00s into the mix.
The hits of the 90s were very polarizing. The AC ballads from Celine and Whitney, the boy bands and Britney, rock from Nirvana and Green Day, and the passionate hip-hop sounds that caused a cultural revolution. The dilemma was constantly asking how any of these were going to sound next to “Don’t Stop Believin’.”
Fast forward to now. Every Spotify user just got tagged with an age. I work with a social influencer who’s in his 20s, and his listening age was 62. How can a young guy with millions of TikTok followers, hanging with the hippest people in the music business, possibly have a listening age of 62? His answer — he likes Yacht Rock. Heck, I just saw on the New Heights podcast that Jason Kelce’s listening age is 82, and Taylor’s fiancé, Travis, is in his 60s. Which brings me to the point of this posting.
Every song ever recorded is now available for anyone to listen to thanks to radio’s “enemy,” the streaming services. If you heard “Hold On, I’m Comin’” by Sam and Dave in a Starbucks commercial and you want more of it, you can go to Spotify and discover Sam and Dave’s greatest hits. There, you’ll find out that “Soul Man” was a hit long before the Blues Brothers.
And if you spent too much time listening to Sam and Dave on Spotify, your listening age would probably be 82, just like Jason Kelce. BTW, Starbucks’ next campaign used “500 Miles” by the Proclaimers.
Spotify’s listening age is based on the same theory we used in radio programming for years — what were the songs people heard on the radio when they were most passionate about music. The use of streaming services changed all of that. Without peer pressure, in the comfort of an app and earbuds, a 20-something could become a fan of the Beatles, Motown, or even Yacht Rock.
By the very definition of the format, classic hits stations need to play hits. Sirius has it easy — a channel for each decade. We don’t have that luxury. We have one channel and have to find a way to mix the hits together, giving variety without chasing the core away. Updating the era without giving up some of the greatest hits of all time. So, what are the classic hits for those stations today?
As you look around the country, you have more versions of classic hits than probably any other format. The most successful major-market classic hits station is KRTH, so lots of people want to emulate Chris Ebbott’s success by using his playlist. Let’s compare what KRTH is doing with a very successful classic hits station in a very different market, WWSW in Pittsburgh.
On a recent check, the most-played song on both stations was “Take On Me” by A-ha. However, while KRTH is banging titles like “California Love” and Radiohead’s “Creep,” WWSW is giving equal spins to The Beatles’ “Let It Be” and Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine” near the top of their playlist.
My best advice to a classic hits programmer is to be true to the heritage of your station and the music of your market. Don’t use a national playlist or steal what someone else is doing. Don’t use the age-old radio rule of basing your playlist on the age of listeners when they most loved music.
If Starbucks can play hits from 1968 to 1993, why can’t you? Play what is expected from your brand, but also offer a variety that surprises. As Chris Ebbott is doing LA’s classic hits on KRTH, David Edgar is doing the Pittsburgh version, and they’re both a success. Don’t try to force a library on your listeners that they’re not ready for.
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Jim Ryan is a Music Radio columnist for Barrett Media. In addition, he runs Jim Ryan Media LLC, a consulting company which assists major market radio brands and top talent including national radio personality Delilah. Prior to relaunching his consultancy in 2025, Jim spent 15 years with Audacy/CBS Radio, serving as SVP of Programming. Among his responsibilities included programming WNEW-FM and WCBS-FM. His career includes additional programming stops in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Houston. Jim was voted the #2 PD of 2024 in Barrett Media’s Top 20 series in the AC category. He can be reached by email at Jim@JimRyanMedia.com.
