CJFM-FM
Encyclopedia
CJFM-FM is an English language
Canadian
radio station
located in Montreal
, Quebec
. Owned and operated by Astral Media
, it broadcasts on 95.9 MHz with an effective radiated power
of 41,200 watt
s (class C1) using an omnidirectional antenna
.
The station airs a hot adult contemporary format
, and was the only hot AC station licensed in Montreal until 2008
, when CKOI-FM
shifted to its current hot AC format. The station competes with Cogeco's CKBE-FM, a Rhythmic-leaning
Adult Contemporary station and the sister station of CKOI. It also competes with two other Top 40 outlets in the market: sister station CKMF, the market's Francophone CHR, and WYUL
, an American
station focused on the Greater Montreal Area
market.
CJFM has always been the sister station
of CJAD. It is the last FM radio station in Montreal to still be related to its original AM sister station.
of Montreal's AM station CJAD. CJAD-FM was short-lived and went off the air in the 1950s.
The station was revived in 1962. Although initially intending to sign as CJAD-FM, it finally signed on with the CJFM call and separate programming - an innovation at the time. CJFM on 95.9 MHz. was one of four FM stations which came on the air in the first half of the 1960s using common transmitting facilities on the new Mount Royal tower. The other stations were CFCF-FM on 92.5, CJMS-FM on 94,3 and CKGM-FM on 97.7.
"CJFM 96" or "FM 96" had an album-oriented rock, pop and variety format throughout the 1980s. By 1992
, CJFM-FM changed as Mix 96 to a more top 40-leaning hot AC format (of which it remains as of today), and going head-to-head up against Q92, an adult contemporary station that signed on under that branding a year earlier.
From 1962 to 2007, CJFM was owned by Standard Broadcasting
. Standard Broadcasting sold the station to Astral Media
in 2007.
On December 4, 2008, Astral announced that CJFM, as with sister stations CKQB-FM
in Ottawa
and CKZZ-FM
in Vancouver
, would be rebranded as a Virgin Radio
station effective January 12, 2009. This is in addition to an existing Virgin Radio station, CKFM-FM
in Toronto
.
On January 12, Mix 96 went to an uninterrupted music broadcast from noon until 4 PM. Nat Lauzon was the last DJ on air for the last Mix 96 broadcast. The last song played on Mix 96 was "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
" by Great Big Sea
. At 4 PM, the station began broadcasting as Virgin Radio 96. The first DJ on Virgin Radio 96 was Mark Bergman
. The first song played on Virgin Radio 96 was Madonna
's "Like a Virgin
". CJFM kept the hot AC format and most of its on-air staff it held while it was Mix 96, albeit with several programming changes.
Since CIDC-FM
in Toronto
went exclusively top 40, CJFM-FM is the only radio station in Canada
playing dance top 40
music as the station airs dance shows nightly Sundays to Thursdays from midnight to 3am, and Fridays and Saturdays from 7pm to 5am.
Even though CHUM-FM
Toronto
, CKZZ-FM
Vancouver
, CISS-FM
Ottawa
and CKCE-FM
Calgary
dropped almost all modern adult contemporary artists, CJFM-FM continued to support these artists and classic hits
music. Rap music is less common at CJFM, but rap songs played from other adult contemporary stations can be played there. As of 2011
, the station began resembling Sirius XM's The Pulse, dropping any other pre-1989
title from the station, but continuing to lean rhythmic; this follows the pattern of CHUM-FM Toronto, CKZZ-FM Vancouver & CISS-FM Ottawa. Only the 80s/'90s On Demand show aired @ noon was phased out.
Virgin Festival
is held every summer in Montreal.
The Top 96 songs of the year are played every year, on New Years Day.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
located in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. Owned and operated by Astral Media
Astral Media
Astral Media Inc. is a Canadian media corporation. It is Canada's largest radio broadcaster with 83 radio stations in eight provinces, and is a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, including The Movie Network, Super Écran, Family, Teletoon, Canal D, Canal Vie, VRAK.TV,...
, it broadcasts on 95.9 MHz with an effective radiated power
Effective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
of 41,200 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s (class C1) using an omnidirectional antenna
Omnidirectional antenna
In radio communication, an omnidirectional antenna is an antenna which radiates radio wave power uniformly in all directions in one plane, with the radiated power decreasing with elevation angle above or below the plane, dropping to zero on the antenna's axis. This radiation pattern is often...
.
The station airs a hot adult contemporary format
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
, and was the only hot AC station licensed in Montreal until 2008
2008 in radio
Several events occurred in radio in 2008.- Events :* January 2: WWFT finished Christmas music stunting, rolling out the red carpet for Adult contemporary music branded as "Warm."...
, when CKOI-FM
CKOI-FM
CKOI-FM is a French-language Canadian radio station located in Montreal, Quebec.Owned and operated by Cogeco, it broadcasts on 96.9 MHz from the roof of the CIBC Tower in Downtown Montreal with an effective radiated power of 307,000 watts using an omnidirectional antenna...
shifted to its current hot AC format. The station competes with Cogeco's CKBE-FM, a Rhythmic-leaning
Rhythmic Adult Contemporary
Rhythmic adult contemporary is a format used on stations in the United States and Canada. It usually gears toward an older audience, ages 25 to 54. Stations using this format play disco from the 1970s and early 1980s, dance/pop music, adult-friendly hip hop/old school tracks, R&B, dance/freestyle...
Adult Contemporary station and the sister station of CKOI. It also competes with two other Top 40 outlets in the market: sister station CKMF, the market's Francophone CHR, and WYUL
WYUL
WYUL is a contemporary hit radio music formatted radio station licensed in Chateaugay, New York.Though the station serves nearby communities in New York State and the Ontario city of Cornwall, it primarily targets the much larger market of Montreal, Quebec...
, an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
station focused on the Greater Montreal Area
Greater Montreal Area
Greater Montreal is one of the two metropolitan communities of Quebec.Greater Montreal is the most populous metropolitan area in Québec. As of 2009, Statistics Canada identifies Montréal's Census Metropolitan Area as Canada's second most populous with a population of 3,859,318...
market.
CJFM has always been the sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
of CJAD. It is the last FM radio station in Montreal to still be related to its original AM sister station.
History
The station originally went on the air in 1948 as CJAD-FM. It was a simulcastSimulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
of Montreal's AM station CJAD. CJAD-FM was short-lived and went off the air in the 1950s.
The station was revived in 1962. Although initially intending to sign as CJAD-FM, it finally signed on with the CJFM call and separate programming - an innovation at the time. CJFM on 95.9 MHz. was one of four FM stations which came on the air in the first half of the 1960s using common transmitting facilities on the new Mount Royal tower. The other stations were CFCF-FM on 92.5, CJMS-FM on 94,3 and CKGM-FM on 97.7.
"CJFM 96" or "FM 96" had an album-oriented rock, pop and variety format throughout the 1980s. By 1992
1992 in radio
The year 1992 in radio involved some significant events.-Events:* January 22 - Rebel forces occupy Zaire's national radio station in Kinshasa and broadcast a demand for the government's resignation.* February 12 - Washington, D.C...
, CJFM-FM changed as Mix 96 to a more top 40-leaning hot AC format (of which it remains as of today), and going head-to-head up against Q92, an adult contemporary station that signed on under that branding a year earlier.
From 1962 to 2007, CJFM was owned by Standard Broadcasting
Standard Broadcasting
Slaight Communications is a Canadian radio broadcasting company. The company was first formed as Slaight Broadcasting in 1971, when owner J. Allan Slaight acquired CFGM in Richmond Hill...
. Standard Broadcasting sold the station to Astral Media
Astral Media
Astral Media Inc. is a Canadian media corporation. It is Canada's largest radio broadcaster with 83 radio stations in eight provinces, and is a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, including The Movie Network, Super Écran, Family, Teletoon, Canal D, Canal Vie, VRAK.TV,...
in 2007.
Virgin Radio
CKQB-FM
CKQB-FM is a Canadian radio station, which broadcasts an active rock format at 106.9 FM in Ottawa and 99.9 FM in Pembroke...
in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and CKZZ-FM
CKZZ-FM
CKZZ-FM is a Canadian radio station in the Greater Vancouver region of British Columbia. It broadcasts at 95.3 MHz on the FM band with an effective radiated power of 71,300 watts from a transmitter on Mount Seymour, and its studios are located in Richmond. The station has had a hot adult...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, would be rebranded as a Virgin Radio
Virgin Radio
Absolute Radio is one of the UK's three Independent National Radio stations. The station rebranded to its current name at 7.45am on 29 September 2008.The station is based in London and plays popular rock music...
station effective January 12, 2009. This is in addition to an existing Virgin Radio station, CKFM-FM
CKFM-FM
CKFM-FM, branded as 99-9 Virgin Radio , is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 99.9 on the FM dial in Toronto, Ontario. The station is owned by Astral Media...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
.
On January 12, Mix 96 went to an uninterrupted music broadcast from noon until 4 PM. Nat Lauzon was the last DJ on air for the last Mix 96 broadcast. The last song played on Mix 96 was "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
"It's the End of the World as We Know It " is a song by the rock band R.E.M., which appeared on their 1987 album Document, the 1988 compilation Eponymous, and the 2006 compilation And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S Years 1982–1987...
" by Great Big Sea
Great Big Sea
Great Big Sea is a Canadian folk-rock band from Newfoundland and Labrador, best known for performing energetic rock interpretations of traditional Newfoundland folk songs including sea shanties, which draw from the island's 500-year-old Irish, English, and French heritage...
. At 4 PM, the station began broadcasting as Virgin Radio 96. The first DJ on Virgin Radio 96 was Mark Bergman
Mark Bergman
Mark Bergman is a Canadian radio and television personality. He is the Program Director and Brand Director of Montreal's Virgin Radio 96...
. The first song played on Virgin Radio 96 was Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
's "Like a Virgin
Like a Virgin
Like a Virgin is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released on November 12, 1984 by Sire Records. It was re-released worldwide in 1985, with the inclusion of the bonus track "Into the Groove". In 2001, Warner Bros. Records released a remastered version with two bonus...
". CJFM kept the hot AC format and most of its on-air staff it held while it was Mix 96, albeit with several programming changes.
Since CIDC-FM
CIDC-FM
CIDC-FM is a Rhythmic-Leaning CHR radio station that serves Central Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area in Canada. Although the station is licensed to Orangeville, and still has a transmitter there, its studios are located in Toronto. The station is owned by Evanov Communications...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
went exclusively top 40, CJFM-FM is the only radio station in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
playing dance top 40
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
music as the station airs dance shows nightly Sundays to Thursdays from midnight to 3am, and Fridays and Saturdays from 7pm to 5am.
Even though CHUM-FM
CHUM-FM
CHUM-FM is a Canadian radio station licensed to Toronto, Ontario and operated by Bell Media. It broadcasts at 104.5 MHz with a hot adult contemporary format that leans towards rhythmic adult contemporary...
Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, CKZZ-FM
CKZZ-FM
CKZZ-FM is a Canadian radio station in the Greater Vancouver region of British Columbia. It broadcasts at 95.3 MHz on the FM band with an effective radiated power of 71,300 watts from a transmitter on Mount Seymour, and its studios are located in Richmond. The station has had a hot adult...
Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, CISS-FM
CISS-FM
CISS-FM is a Canadian radio station in Ottawa, Ontario. The station broadcasts a hot adult contemporary format at 105.3 on the FM dial, using the brand name 105.3 Kiss FM.-History:...
Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and CKCE-FM
CKCE-FM
CKCE-FM is a Canadian radio station that broadcasts a hot adult contemporary/rhythmic adult contemporary format on 101.5 FM in Calgary, Alberta. The station is owned by Bell Media through its Bell Media Radio division.-History:...
Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
dropped almost all modern adult contemporary artists, CJFM-FM continued to support these artists and classic hits
Classic hits
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format...
music. Rap music is less common at CJFM, but rap songs played from other adult contemporary stations can be played there. As of 2011
2011 in radio
The following events occurred in radio broadcasting in 2011.-Events:*January 1: 2 Knoxville stations change formats as WDLF and WYLV flip to K-LOVE and Air 1 , and a few Pittsburgh station change formats, as ESPN Radio moves from WEAE to WBGG, and Radio Disney moves from WWCS to the renamed WDDZ,...
, the station began resembling Sirius XM's The Pulse, dropping any other pre-1989
1989 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1989.-Events:*January 14 – Paul McCartney releases Снова в СССР exclusively in the USSR...
title from the station, but continuing to lean rhythmic; this follows the pattern of CHUM-FM Toronto, CKZZ-FM Vancouver & CISS-FM Ottawa. Only the 80s/'90s On Demand show aired @ noon was phased out.
Annual events
Shave To Save was a fundraiser conceived in 2001 by the station. Every October, Virgin Radio jocks visit offices and schools, where they shave heads for a minimum $2000 donation. The proceeds go to the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation.Virgin Festival
Virgin Festival
The Virgin Fest is a rock festival held in the United States and Canada, a spin-off from the V Festival held in the UK...
is held every summer in Montreal.
The Top 96 songs of the year are played every year, on New Years Day.
History of #1s
These songs hit #1 on Virgin Radio's Top 96 Songs:- 2004: HoobastankHoobastankHoobastank is an American rock band, best known for their 2004 hit "The Reason" and other hits "Crawling in the Dark" and "Running Away". They formed in 1994 in Agoura Hills, California, with singer Doug Robb, guitarist Dan Estrin, drummer Chris Hesse, and original bassist Markku Lappalainen. They...
- "The ReasonThe Reason (Hoobastank song)"The Reason" is the 2004 hit single by the modern rock band Hoobastank, off their album The Reason. The song is Hoobastank's most commercially successful single, peaking at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart , and #1 on the Modern Rock Tracks. In addition, it topped the singles charts in both...
" - 2005: Green DayGreen DayGreen Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tre Cool...
- "Boulevard Of Broken DreamsBoulevard of Broken DreamsGenerally, "The Boulevard of Broken Dreams" refers to Sunset Boulevard, due to its historically being both the primary location for live entertainment in the Los Angeles, California metropolitan region and a red-light district ."Boulevard of Broken Dreams" may also refer to:-Music:* "Boulevard of...
" - 2006: ShakiraShakiraShakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
- "Hips Don't LieHips Don't Lie"Hips Don't Lie" is a Latin pop song based in a salsa and cumbia performed by Colombian singer Shakira and Haitian rapper Wyclef Jean, released in 2006 as the second single from Shakira's second English album Oral Fixation Vol. 2...
" - 2007: Fergie - "Big Girls Don't CryBig Girls Don't Cry (Fergie song)"Big Girls Don't Cry" is a song written by Fergie and Toby Gad for pop singer Fergie's debut solo album The Dutchess . The song was released as the album's fourth single in 2007 and topped the charts in several countries, most notably in Australia , and in...
" - 2008: Leona LewisLeona LewisLeona Louise Lewis is a British singer and songwriter. Lewis first came to prominence in 2006 when she won the third series of the British television series The X Factor....
- "Bleeding LoveBleeding Love"Bleeding Love" is a pop/R&B ballad co-written by Jesse McCartney and Ryan Tedder and produced by Tedder for British singer Leona Lewis's debut album, Spirit. The song is the album's lead single , released in the United Kingdom and Ireland in October 2007...
" - 2009: Black Eyed Peas - "I Gotta FeelingI Gotta Feeling"I Gotta Feeling" is the second single from The Black Eyed Peas' fifth studio album The E.N.D., produced by the French DJ David Guetta. The song was released on May 21, 2009 and debuted at number two on the Canadian and Billboard Hot 100 on the week of June 27, 2009, behind the group's "Boom Boom...
" - 2010: EminemEminemMarshall Bruce Mathers III , better known by his stage name Eminem or his alter ego Slim Shady, is an American rapper, record producer, songwriter and actor. Eminem's popularity brought his group project, D12, to mainstream recognition...
feat. RihannaRihannaRobyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...
- "Love the Way You LieLove the Way You Lie"Love the Way You Lie" is a song by American rapper Eminem from his seventh studio album, Recovery . It was released as the album's second single on August 9, 2010, by Interscope-Geffen-A&M. The song features vocals by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. According to her, its theme...
"
External links
- Virgin Radio 96
- CJFM-FM history at Canadian Communications FoundationCanadian Communications FoundationThe Canadian Communications Foundation is a history of Canadian broadcasting for radio and television chronicles and documents. It also provides a history of radio and television stations, including networks, programs, broadcasters and many others....