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Adult hits (sometimes also called variety hits) is a radio format that draws from a wide variety of different musical genres. Most adult hits stations play a mix of rock, pop, pop rock, soft rock, classic rock, adult contemporary, and new wave hits as well as select oldies hits, predominantly drawing on music from the late 1960s through the present day. Adult hits is akin to classic hits, although the classic hits format uses a slightly older and often narrower playlist (1960s to 1980s).

Companies associated with the format in Canada include NewCap, Rogers, Bell Media, Corus Entertainment, and other various companies. Companies in the United States include iHeartMedia, CBS Radio, Cumulus Media, Newsweb radio, and Entercom.

History

Forerunners of the adult hits format appeared on radio during the 1970s. At the time, enough of a backlog of popular music from the rock and roll era had developed to support a format based on them; oldies stations, however, were still very rare, and instead, stations that did not want to bind themselves to the current top 40 playlist would mix in current hits with the hits of the past two decades. This hybrid format began to fall out of favor in the 1980s as self-contained oldies stations rose to prominence. The Adult Hits format dates back to 1990 when 98.9 WMMO was launched in Orlando, Florida.^{[citation needed]} Adult hits stations target adults 25-54, and more specifically at 35- to 44-year-olds.

A large number of adult hits stations utilize male names as their branding. The practice was popularized by the franchised Jack FM and Bob FM brands, and has been widely imitated with other common male names.

Related formats

A variation of adult hits, known within the industry as Traditional Country, has made inroads into the country format, typified by the "Hank FM" and "Nash Icon" stations. A Spanish-language version, "Jose FM", is syndicated by Entravision.

Formatting

The adult hits format draws from a wide playlist of broad appeal, consisting primarily of adult contemporary, pop, and rock hits spanning from the 1970s to present. The size of their music library and their focus on older music provide a contrast to other stations, which may heavily play certain popular songs throughout the day.

Due to its relatively free-form nature, the adult hits format can be easily automated. This means that the station can be run with little to no on-air personalities, leaving only staff involved in station operations, advertising sales, and promotional presences. An adult hits station may openly promote that it features "less talk" and more music than other stations in their market.

Radio stations

Note: the below listing of radio stations is subject to change.

Canada

United States

Mexico

Philippines

Europe

• 
  Oxfordshire, England – Jack FM


• 
  Cambridgeshire, England – Affinity


• West Leicestershire, England – Oak FM
  


• 
  Coventry, England – Touch FM
  


• 
  North Yorkshire, England – Coast & County Radio
  


• 
  The Netherlands – Jack FM


• 
  Gdynia, Poland – Jack FM


• 
  Berlin, Germany – Jack FM


• 
  Vienna, Austria – Radio 88.6

New Zealand

• 
  New Zealand (Nationwide) – Classic Hits FM

Russia

• 
  Moscow, Russia – KEKC 89.9


• 
  Saint Petersburg, Russia – KEKC 91.1

Satellite Radio

• 
  Sirius Satellite Radio – Sirius Super Shuffle channel 12


• 
  XM Satellite Radio – Pink channel 24

See also

• Adult album alternative


• Adult contemporary music


• Classic hits


• Freeform (radio format)


• Oldies

External links

• 
  Billy Anderson's Jack & Bob FM Guide - A comprehensive listing of all U.S. stations that currently use the adult hits format (Archived 2009-10-24)


• VarietyHits.com - Information about the adult hits format and the stations that carry it


• List of adult hits radio stations from radio-locator.com