April ’23 PPM Ratings
We were dealing with a lot of stuff in APRIL. The class clown in your office played the fool a day early, and we ripped through Passover, Good Friday and Easter in a four-day span; dealt with the taxman; and even celebrated Mother Earth – all while dealing with a lot of odd weather. It’s a wonder we have the energy left to parse the data. But when duty calls, The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. – in a tight formation with the number crunchers from XTRENDS – are ready to parse. This survey ran from MARCH 30TH through APRIL 26th and went something like this:
NEW YORK: Flat Works
iHEARTMEDIA AC WLTW (106.7 LITE FM) was in maintenance mode as it cruised to another 6+ victory, the station’s sixth in a row. It was also flat (7.6-7.6). iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock WAXQ (Q104.3 FM) repeated as the second-place finisher (6.1-6.0), while MEDIACO Urban AC WBLS was up two slots to #3 with its best showing since Grandma had an unfortunate accident (5.2-5.8). AUDACY Classic Hits WCBS slipped to #4 (6.1-5.6), while iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WHTZ (Z100) advanced two spaces to #5 (4.9-5.0). AUDACY Hot AC WNEW (NEW 102.7) moved up to #6 with its highest mark in over a year (4.2-4.6). SBS Tropical WSKQ (MEGA 97.9) slumped to #8 with its smallest share in over a year (5.3-4.3). However, the blow was softened a bit as the station picked up a 0.7 share from its stream. WLTW padded its cume lead, thanks to a 6.9% increase (3,474,700-3,712,800). The market was up 2.4%.
WLTW may have ended a two-book 25-54 surge, but the station remained #1 by a wide margin. WHTZ was back at #2 with a small loss and was nearly two shares off the pace. WCBS stepped up to #3, despite a small decrease. It was partnered with WNEW, which rose from #5 with its largest share in over a year. WSKQ dipped to #5 – the station’s lowest rank in over a year. Knocking on the door of the top five was WBLS, which ended a five-book slide as it moved up a couple of places to #6.
Last month WHTZ dropped from first to fourth 18-34. The station regained much of that lost share as it returned to the top spot. WNEW had a share of first place in the last survey. The station dipped to #2 this time as it ended a strong three-book surge. It was still in sharing mode as WLTW moved up from #5 to #2, halting a three-book slide. WSKQ was the other co-leader last month. It slid to #4 with its lowest score since SEPTEMBER. It was joined in that space by WBLS, which had a down book.
Though it was not able to match last month’s double-digit 18-49 share, WLTW coasted to its sixth win in a row. WHTZ remained at #2 with a small loss, while WNEW stepped up to #3 with – once again – its best outing in over a year. WSKQ dipped to #4, while iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKTU repeated at #5. While it was not a threat to enter the top five, NEW YORK PUBLIC RADIO Public Radio WNYC had an impressive book. The station rose from #12 to #6 with its highest share in over a year.
LOS ANGELES: The Good Earth
AUDACY Classic Hits KRTH (K-EARTH 101FM) retained its lead over the rest of the 6+ field as it captured the market for the second book in a row (5.8-5.7). The next eight – count ’em – eight stations were separated by a mere share. iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KBIG (104.3 MYFM) stepped up to #2 (4.5-4.6). iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KIIS (102.7 KISS FM) slipped to #3 as it returned a good portion of last month’s big increase (5.0-4.4). iHEARTMEDIA Talk KFI-A inched up to #4 with its first up book since DECEMBER (4.1-4.3). Last month three stations were tied at #5. We have that same figure this time but with some new players. iHEARTMEDIA AC KOST remained in place (4.1-4.0), while AUDACY Urban AC KTWV (94.7 THE WAVE) stepped down from #4 (4.4-4.0). ESTRELLA Regional Mexican KBUE (QUE BUENA 105.5/94.3) advanced from #8 by just showing up (4.0-4.0). TELEVISAUNIVISION Spanish Contemporary KLVE (K-LOVE 107.5) slid to #9 with its lowest total in over a year (4.1-3.6). KRTH was back as the cume champ with a 5.2% increase (2,213,700-2,328,900). The market gained 1.9%.
The top four 25-54 stations were the same as before. KRTH was #1 for the third book in a row but with its lowest share of that span. KIIS was back at #2 and was a bit less than a share off the lead. A flat KBIG repeated at #3, while KLVE maintained its #4 position with a slight decrease. It was given a new partner as a flat KOST moved up from #6. KBUE slid from a tie at #4 to #6 as it ended a strong three-book surge.
The 18-34 competition has evolved into a two-station race. KIIS halted a monstrous three-book surge but won the demo for the fourth book in a row. It had about a share lead over #2 iHEARTMEDIA Urban KRRL (REAL 92.3) which, in turn, had a two-share lead over KBIG, which stepped up to #3 with its highest mark since NOVEMBER. KRTH was just a tick behind as it dipped to #4 with a noticeable loss of share. iHEARTMEDIA Alternative KYSR (ALT 98.7) repeated at #5 as its five-book slide ground to a halt.
While KIIS won the 18-49 contest for the second book in a row, the station did see its two-share lead shrink a bit, thanks to a share loss. KRTH repeated at #2 with a slight decrease and was paired with KBIG, which stepped up thanks to a slight increase. KRRL inched up to #4 as it regained some of last month’s large share loss. KBUE dropped from #2 to #5 as it ended a very strong three-book surge. KLVE stepped down to #6 with its smallest share in over a year.
CHICAGO: Lucky Number Seven
That is how many books in a row that iHEARTMEDIA AC WLIT (93.9 LITE FM) has been #1 with the 6+ crowd. The station was up slightly (6.7-6.8). HUBBARD Classic Rock WDRV (97.1 THE DRIVE) was still idling in second place but gained some ground, thanks to its best book since SEPTEMBER (5.6-6.5). AUDACY AAA WXRT was back at #3 but with its third down book in a row (4.9-4.6). AUDACY News WBBM-A remained at #4 but with its smallest share in over a year (4.8-4.4). TELEVISAUNIVISION Regional Mexican WOJO (QUÉ BUENA 105.1) inched up to #5 (4.3-4.3), which forced iHEARTMEDIA Urban AC WVAZ (V103) to step down to #6 (4.4-4.1). WLIT maintained cume control with a 6.9% increase (1,446,300-1,545,900). The market grew by 1.1%.
WLIT made it six 25-54 wins in a row but was forced to share the moment with WOJO, which stepped up from #2 with its best performance since NOVEMBER. Speaking of bests, CUMULUS Classic Hits WLS had its highest score in over a year to rise from #6 to #3. The station has been on a roll as it was sitting at #14 in JANUARY. AUDACY Country WUSN (US99) was back at #3 with a slight decrease. It narrowly defeated two stations at #5. WDRV moved up from #8 as it rebounded from a down book, while iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M WKSC (103.5 KISS FM) advanced from #10 with a solid increase. Two stations exited the top five. HUBBARD Hot AC WTMX (101.9 THE MIX) fell from #3 to #7 with its lowest score since AUGUST. AUDACY Rhythmic AC WBMX (104.3 JAMS) dropped four places to #9 as it returned all of last month’s small share increase.
There was quite the commotion among the 18-34 ranks as the top four stations all moved up the chart. WOJO had its best showing since OCTOBER as it leapt from #3 to #1. WLIT was up two slots to #2 with its best Frosty-free share in over a year. WKSC advanced two spaces to #3 with a strong increase, while WDRV motored from #7 to #4 as it regained a good chunk of last month’s large share loss. WUSN had been the demo leader for the last two books. It dropped to #4 with its smallest share since NOVEMBER. WLS returned half of last month’s huge increase as it fell from #2 to #6.
WOJO had its third straight up book with 18-49 year-old people and captured the demo for the second straight survey. WLIT was off slightly but remained #2 and was about a share off the lead. WDRV raced from #7 to #3 as it regained all of last month’s lost share. WLS stepped up to #4 with its highest mark since SEPTEMBER, while WUSN slid to #5 with its first down book since OCTOBER. WBMX dropped three places to #7.
SAN FRANCISCO: A Pair Of Aces
Last month BONNEVILLE AC KOIT saw its four-book 6+ winning streak come to an end at the hands of AUDACY News KCBS-A. This survey found the two stations cheek-by-jowl at the top of the leaderboard. KCBS-A returned a chunk of last month’s huge increase (8.0-7.3) while KOIT was up slightly (7.2-7.3). iHEARTMEDIA AC KISQ (98.1 THE BREEZE) repeated at #3 (6.4-6.9), while KQED INC N/T KQED was back at #4 (5.3-5.2). iHEARTMEDIA Hot AC KIOI (STAR 101.3) landed as the #5 station again as it ended a three-book surge (4.7-4.5). Despite a 7.6% decrease, KOIT remained the cume leader (1,249,600-1,154,700). The market was up 1.7%.
KOIT bounced back from a down book to extend its 25-54 winning streak to eight surveys. KISQ moved up to #2 with its highest mark in over a year but still trailed the leader by better than a share and a half. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KYLD (WiLD 94.9) slipped to #3 with a small share loss, while a flat BONNEVILLE Top 40/M KMVQ (99.7 NOW) inched up to #4. iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/R KMEL got back most of last month’s large share loss and stepped up to #5. KIOI slid to #6 as it – once again – ended a solid three-book surge.
KOIT has been the #1 18-34 station for over a year. That streak remained active, and the station was back in double digits for the fifth time in the last six books. KMEL remained a strong #2 with its best showing since ELTON JOHN asked you to hop on the turntable. Only a QRK could handle that weight. The next closest station was KYLD, which remained at #3 but was more than three shares behind the leaders. KMVQ moved up to #4 with a small increase, while BONNEVILLE Urban AC KBLX took two steps upward to #5 with its third up book in a row. When this streak began, the station was languishing at #13. KIOI slipped two places to #6.
As with the previous demo, KOIT extended its long string of #1 18-49 books. KMEL stepped up to #2 with its best performance in over a year and still trailed KOIT by two shares. KYLD slipped to #3 as it returned most of last month’s big increase. KMVQ repeated at #4 while KISQ remained at #5. Both stations had small share losses.
DALLAS-FT. WORTH: The Leader Of The Pack
The 6+ leaderboard was quite interesting. There was one clear winner, then eight stations within a share of each other. For the fourth book in a row, CUMULUS Sports KTCK (1310 & 96.7 THE TICKET) was in first place (5.6-5.6). AUDACY Classic Hits KLUV (98.7 K-LUV) stepped up to #2 with its highest mark since DECEMBER (4.4-4.9). iHEARTMEDIA Classic Rock KZPS (LONE STAR 92.5) dipped to #3 (4.9-4.6), while iHEARTMEDIA Top 40/M KHKS (106.1 KISS FM) moved up to #4 (4.2-4.5). Two stations found their way up the chart and formed a partnership at #5. CUMULUS Country KPLX (99.5 THE WOLF) was up from #7 with its best book in exactly a year (3.9-4.4). iHEARTMEDIA AC KDGE (STAR 102.1) advanced from #8 with its best Frosty-free number since SEPTEMBER (3.8-4.4). CUMULUS Country KSCS fell four slots to #8 (4.3-4.0). KLUV jumped from #3 to #1 in cume, thanks to a 6.5% increase (963,200-1,026,100). The market rose by 1.8%.
As recently as the HOLIDAY book, KTCK was sitting at #16 with the 25-54 folk. The station just landed its largest share in over a year to capture the demo for the second straight survey. KHKS repeated at #2 as it ended a two-book slide and was about a half share behind the leader. TELEVISAUNIVISION Regional Mexican KLNO (QUÉ BUENA 94.1) bounced back from a down book to move up to #3, while KSCS remained at #4 as it ended a strong three-book surge. KDGE leapt from #14 to #5 with a rather large share increase. KZPS fell from #2 to #8 and was tied with KLUV.
KHKS dominated the 18-34 space for the fourth book in a row. Though it was off slightly, it easily outpaced URBAN ONE Top 40/R KBFB (97.9 THE BEAT), which moved up to #2 with its best book in over a year. SERVICE Urban KKDA (K104) dipped to #3 despite a slight increase. KZPS advanced four squares to #8 with its highest score in over a year. Last month three stations were tied at #3. That coalition was disbanded. KDGE slipped to #5 with a small share loss, while AUDACY Alternative KVIL (ALT 103.7) dropped to #8 with its lowest number in exactly a year. AUDACY Regional Mexican KMVK (LA GRANDE 107.5) ended up at #10 and was tied with KPLX.
Last survey we saw a three-way tie at #1 18-49. Two of those stations were still there. This was the second straight #1 book for KTCK, while KLNO was on top for the fourth month in a row. The other member of that triumvirate was KSCS. It dropped to #5 as it returned most of last month’s large increase. KHKS inched up to #3 and was as close as was mathematically possible to being a co-leader. KDGE was up three slots to #4 as it got back a good portion of last month’s huge share loss. AUDACY Adult Hits KJKK (100.3 JACK FM) and KMVK had been tied at #5. KJKK was flat and dipped to #6, while KMVK landed at #7 with a slight decrease.
So ended phase one of the APRIL survey review with commentary. Thank you for playing along. The Ratings Experts from RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. will return after a brief pause. Phase two will feature HOUSTON, ATLANTA, WASHINGTON D.C., PHILADELPHIA and BOSTON. Don’t miss it!
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