WQHT-FM
Encyclopedia
WQHT is a high-profile American radio station
in New York City under the corporate ownership of Emmis Communications
. The station broadcasts on 97.1 MHz FM
. WQHT, despited billed as a Rhythmic CHR station on Mediabase
& Nielsen BDS, primarily plays urban contemporary
hits, although WQHT would not play any other urban adult contemporary
song that had not been played by Rhythmic Contemporary
stations. The urban adult contemporary
playlist, however, belongs to its WRKS (98.7 Kiss FM) sister station.
for a full history of the 103.5 frequency. This page is for a history of WQHT only.
In 1986, Emmis Broadcasting bought rock formatted 103.5 WAPP New York from Doubleday Broadcasting. There was speculation in the industry as to what Emmis was going to do with WAPP since their ratings were low. On August 13, 1986 WAPP switched to what appeared to be a classic rock format. The station stunted as "Classic 103."
On August 15, 1986 at 6 pm, The Rolling Stones "It's All Over Now" and a bomb noise rang out WAPP and the classic rock titles. The station debuted as "Hot 103.5" with new call letters WQHT and a new CHR/Dance format. The first song was believed to be 5 Star "R.S.V.P." Nobody in the radio industry expected it, even though Emmis put a similar sounding station KPWR
"Power 106" on the air in Los Angeles earlier in the year.
Then, Emmis VP of Programming Rick Cummings said the company was considering four formats for the old WAPP but were leaning towards the classic rock and CHR/Dance formats. "It was an 11th hour decision." Cummings told Billboard magazine on 8/30/1986.
The Program Director ended up to be Joel Salkowitz (who was first named only as Asst Program Director) and Steve Ellis was Music Director (a hold over from WAPP) Don Kelly was the consultant for both WQHT and KPWR in those early months.
left the air a year earlier. WQHT came on the air with a new improved dance oriented format. Trade magazines of the day called it a hybrid format. The station mixed in CHR hits with Dance and Club music of the day.
Songs that appeared on 103.5 during the first few months were E.G. Daily "Say it Say It," Level 42 "Something About You," Timex Social Club "Rumors," Nice & Wild "Diamond Girl," and Trinere "I'll Be All That You Need."
The station started to play "hotmixes" or extended versions of certain songs. The "hotmixes" were either just the extended versions available commercially on 12" Singles, or mixes that were created by local club DJs, such as "Little" Louie Vega, especially for WQHT. They also aired regular versions of the songs that had longer intros than that of their competitors such as Z100. Noel used the Hot 103 version of his single "Silent Morning" for the music video as evidenced in the video's credits. With the debut of WQHT, some record labels such as Atco and Elektra reportedly started to see a spike in 12 Inch Single Sales in the New York Metropolitan Area as was reported by Billboard Magazine.
Hot 103.5's (the name was later shortened to Hot 103 in the Fall of 1986) imaging sounded similar to that of sister station KWPR "Power 106" as Chuck Riley and Eric Edwards were the voices of the station. Riley mainly voiced the sweepers and Edwards mostly voiced the promos and specialty liners. The two were also the voices for other Emmis stations at the time such as KPWR, WLOL and WAVA.
As September approached Hot 103 started to add more personality to the station. Some of the first DJs or "Hot Jocks" to join WQHT were Deborah Rath from Power 106, Al Bandiero
, "Fast" Freddie Colon and Rufus (who was a hold over from WAPP).
"Broadway Bill Lee" joined Hot 103 around Christmas time and Rick Allen joined as Production Director. Allen would go on to fame as the person who created the famous "From the Top of the World Trade Center" Top of the Hour ID voiced by Chuck Riley for Hot 103. Other radio stations to this day try to duplicate that top of hour ID. Many radio production directors were impressed by Allen's work he ended up releasing some of the production elements and music beds used for Hot 103 into syndication under the brand name "Continuous Climax."
Since Hot 103 was playing music heard primarily in night clubs, the station did a lot of appearances at various night clubs in the tri-state area. Therefore, the station even had "HotSpot" reports with reporters such as Kim Howard phoning in the latest club happenings every Friday and Saturday during the night show so listeners knew where the party was at.
By 1987, Hot 103 was making a name for itself by playing Freestyle
. Artists such as Noel, Safire, Cover Girls and TKA were made famous because they were played in heavy rotation right next to Mainstream Top 40 artists such as Expose, Debbie Gibson and Taylor Dayne. Freestyle and club music from other cities such as Miami wasn't ignored either. Company B & Tiger Moon, who were famous in the Florida club scene, were played on WQHT as well. In fact, Hot 103 pioneered custom station versions of songs, where the artists would change lyrics and sing about the station. Debbie Gibson & Expose recorded special lyrics for Hot 103.
WHTZ
Z100 copied Hot 103's success by adding a few Freestyle titles and Urban Contemporary
stations WBLS
and WRKS were playing long versions of the records they played as well.
To bolster that they were on the club scene, Hot 103 added a local weekly countdown show called "New York Hottracks" hosted by Bill Lee that counted down the top 10 selling 12" Singles of the week in the tri-state area. The show started on Sunday nights and then moved to Fridays at 6 pm and later at 5 pm. The show featured short interview clips and aired sonovox numbers produced by Rick Allen identifying the chart position. (The show was later hosted by Jeff Thomas and was cancelled in 1993.) NYHT was produced for a time by PD Joel Salkowitz and researched by Angie Martinez
, who would go on to dominate PM Drive after the station flipped to Hip-Hop in the 90s.
In July 1987, Hot 103 wanted to devote some airtime to older dance music at the urging of jock Al Bandiero. Management agreed and thus began "The Classics Showcase," which would feature older dance music, which usually had to be at least 7 years old to get played on the show. The show was broadcast for an hour from 8 pm-9 pm on Sunday nights. In 1989, the show was expanded to 2 hours. (Later hosts would be Paco Navarro in 1992 from 92KTU fame and Freddie Colon. The show lasted until 1994.)
During that summer, WQHT celebrated its first anniversary as Hot 103 and released the "Hot 103 Anniversary Album" on cassette, LP or CD on Warlock Records. The album contained four "Hotmixes" of CHR/Dance hits heard on Hot 103 over the past year. Sister station Power 106 also released the same album but under the Power 106 name.
WQHT Jock Line Up Summer 1987:
WQHT Jock Line Up Fall 1987:
By the fall of 1987, Hot 103 was looking for a morning team to round out it's dayparts. It settled on the veteran team of "Walton & Johnson and the Not Ready For Drive Time Players." The show didn't click and was off the air in a couple months.
In 1988, the station brought in the married morning team of Ron Stevens and Joy Grdnic to handle morning drive. Stevens & Grdnic were unique as they were a male/female team rather than the usual male/male morning show. Veteran newsman J. Paul Emmerson joined as the wild newsman with a CKLW
tabloid type delivery. The station added traffic updates via Shadow Traffic and contracted with WNYW
Fox 5 Meteorologist Nick Gregory to provide live weather updates.
The impact of Hot 103 and other similar stations such as WPOW Power 96 and WHQT
Hot 105 in Miami and Power 106 in LA spurred Emmis to join with Westwood One to create a weekly national dance music countdown called "American Dance Traxx." The show debuted the week of March 23, 1987.
The show was groundbreaking as it presented the countdown in long music sweeps rather than just 2-songs in a row and then a commercial break. The 3 hour "American Dance Traxx" was hosted by KPWR PD Jeff Wyatt and produced in NY by WQHT PD Joel Salkowitz. The show used the same music beds that were on WQHT and KPWR and featured short interviews with the artists of the day. American Dance Traxx aired on WQHT Sundays from 9 pm-12 am. WQHT's Deborah Rath would substitute for Wyatt on occasion. (After Jeff Wyatt left Emmis, Deborah Rath was made the permanent host until former MTV
VJ "Downtown" Julie Brown took over in 1992.)
As years went on "Hot Night" got bigger and expanded to more exotic locations such as the Bahamas and Cancun, Mexico. The last known "Hot Night" was in 1993 where it all began at the legendary Palladium and starred SWV
.
As time went on, WQHT was wired into two dozen different clubs around the tri-state area. “The Original Saturday Night Dance Party” would bring The Palladium, The Copacobana, Foxes, Emerald City, The Tunnel, Chicago, Limelight, 1018, The L.I. Exchange, and The Roxy right into New York, Connecticut and New Jersey living rooms, cars and boom boxes.
Other notable club DJs such as Glenn Friscia
, DJ Animal, Roman Ricardo and Mojo were on the turntables for the "Saturday Night Dance Party." Artists such as France Joli, Safire, Cover Girls and others would occasionally perform live on the radio and in the clubs.
, as well as the license of the WNBC-AM
station that was being closed. On Thursday September 22, 1988 at 5:30 pm the stations swapped frequencies. Country 97 WYNY moved to 103.5FM and became Country 103.5. Meanwhile Hot 103 moved to 97.1FM and became Hot 97. After the transition to Hot 97, Stephanie Miller
& Howard Hoffman
were brought in to do the morning show (1988–91), J Paul Emerson stayed on as newsman, with Daniel Ivankovich
, aka Reverend Doctor D, aka Odie Johnson was brought in as producer.
The last song played on Hot 103 was Debbie Gibson's "Stayin' Together" and the first song played on "The All New Hot 97" was M.A.R.R.S.' "Pump Up the Volume." WQHT even had Vanna White
from television's Wheel of Fortune
on hand to change huge plastic letters at a big station switch party in Midtown Manhattan. Freddie Colon was the jock in studio before and after the switch but Bill Lee actually took the listeners through the switch itself.
At 5:30 pm listeners also heard for the first time the new Rick Allen produced Top of Hour ID for the new Hot 97. It was similar to the one used on Hot 103 but was more heavily produced and now said "From the Top of the Empire State Building
" and the Hot 97 name. The change reflected the use of the antenna for 97.1 being at the Empire State Building rather than the World Trade Center as it was while on the 103.5 frequency.
The station made a contest out of the event by giving listeners 97 dollars in cash if they could name the last song played "over there" and the first song played "over here."
Hot 97's ratings fell slightly in 1989. The station started to lean towards Top 40 as the station added artists such as Milli Vanilli
, Bobby Brown
, Paula Abdul
, Taylor Dayne
, MC Hammer
, De La Soul
, New Kids on the Block
, and more. Hot 97 changed their on-air line-up and moved Freddie Colon to middays and brought in Greg Thunder from KDWB
for nights. Thunder brought more of a comical Top 40 approach to nights by rhyming and being more listener interactive with heavy phones. With the addition of Thunder, WQHT had two rhyming jocks back to back everyday: Broadway Bill Lee from 4 pm-8pm & Greg Thunder from 8 pm–12 am.
Another sign of a Top 40 lean was that Hot 97, for the only time, aired jingles from JAM Creative Productions
, Inc. in the fall of 1989. The jingles weren't jingles per se, but they were at the end of ramp music beds that DJs could talk over. Jonathan Wolfert of JAM created the package for WQHT and KPWR and called it "Power Up". By 1990, the jingles at the end of the ramp music beds were replaced with Chuck Riley voicing "Hot 97".
In the summer of 1990, Hot 97 teamed up with MicMac Records and released The Hot 97 MicMac Concert on cassette, LP or CD. The album featured MicMac artists that got airplay on Hot 97 like Johhny O., Cynthia and Tiana.
On July 22, 1990, Hot 97 teamed up with future sister station WRKS 98.7 Kiss-FM for a Unity Walk to promote racial harmony in New York City.
In 1990–1991, the station started to play more house and R&B music (aka New Jack Swing) while cutting back on some of the freestyle records. Artists such as Black Box, The Goodmen, Doug Lazy and Daisy Dee received more airplay.
Around this time Hot 97 added new shows focusing on house music such as the "All Night House Party," which was similar in format to the "Original Saturday Night Dance Party" but focused on house music. WQHT broadcast live from area night clubs such as The Tunnel from 2 am until 4 am Saturday into Sunday morning.
In 1991, "Anything Goes with Clivilles & Cole" debuted, where legendary record producers Robert Clivilles
and David Cole
of C&C Music Factory mixed new house and dance music on Saturday nights from 9 pm to 10 pm. The station also added a show spotlighting new house and dance tracks from overseas such as Europe. London jock Dave Kendall was picked to host Planet Traxx, which would air after American Dance Traxx at 12 midnight.
In the Fall of 1992, Hot 97 added a new station voice, the first time ever since the station signed on in 1986. They added Bobby Ocean (famous from working at KFRC
) to voice some promos and sweepers for "Hot Night Cancun," the station concert held that December. During this time, WQHT replaced the long-running Rick Allen-produced and Chuck Riley-voiced "TTTTTTop of the Empire State Building" top of hour ID. It was replaced with one voiced by Bobby Ocean but without the effects that made the previous ID noteworthy.
, Mad Cobra and Onyx were phased in while some of the traditional freestyle and house music was drastically cut. The station started a gradual two year change towards an Urban Hip-Hop format.
During this time, Hot 97 also made several on-air and imaging changes. Long time station voice Chuck Riley was gone, leaving only Eric Edwards as the station voice. Edwards also changed his delivery style to fit in with the new urban sound of Hot 97. He is still the station voice to this day.
Long-time PD Joel Salkowitx was let go, replaced by Steve Smith. The station axed veteran jocks Al Bandiero
, Jeff Thomas and others. Deborah Rath stayed on the longest but shifted over to sister station CD 101.9 in late 1994.
A new generation of radio personalities began appearing on Hot 97. Among the most famous was the addition of a new morning show of Ed Lover
and Doctor Dre
of Yo! MTV Raps. The ratings rose to number three in one rating period.
In 1993, Funkmaster Flex
joined Hot 97 and was host of the "Friday Night Street Jam" and weekly two hour show where he mixed hip-hop live from the studio. Flex eventually rose up through the ranks and became Hot 97's long time night personality.
Other noteworthy personalities included the addition of Wendy Williams
to PM Drive, Williams used to be the overnight jock back on Hot 103 in 1988. Angie Martinez
, a researcher on "New York Hottracks" in the late 1980s and who previously worked in the promotions department, was promoted to nights. A few years later, the two had a public falling out, resulting in Williams being fired from Hot 97 and Martinez assumig afternoon drive where she remains to this day.
In 1995, Hot 97 again became New York's top station in the Arbitron
ratings. Hot 97 was the only radio station in New York for hip-hop
until mid-1997 when WBLS
reintroduced it on its playlists and moved to urban contemporary
, moving WQHT to its current rhythmic contemporary
format. In March 2002, Clear Channel Communications launched WWPR-FM
(Power 105.1 FM) to challenge Hot 97, and went to number-five in the ratings. In the fall of 2005 Power 105.1 edged slightly ahead of Hot 97 for the first time ever during the same period of time as the Tsunami song parody. Most recently the station resurged back to the top of the ratings, although WLTW
(106.7 Lite FM) is still the top-rated radio station in New York City.
In May 2007, R&R
and BDS
moved WQHT back to the Rhythmic Airplay panel after a long tenure as an Urban reporter; however the station was always a rhythmic reporter per Mediabase
. More recently, Hot 97 has begun to play more late 90's and early 2000s throwbacks. While the majority of the songs played on the station are current Hip-Hop and R & B Hits, classic hits by artists such as the Notorious B.I.G and Tupac have begun to receive more airplay.
In the fall of 2008, WQHT served as the home of the nationally syndicated Big Boy's Neighborhood, produced by ABC Radio and based from WQHT's sister station, KPWR Power 106
in Los Angeles. However by July 2009 WQHT dropped the program and instead expanded their local morning show hosted by Cipha Sounds
& Rosenberg.
By 2010
, due to rivals WXRK (92-3 Now) & Clear Channel Communications
' WKTU
moving towards rhythmic top 40 directions, Hot 97 switched to Urban Contemporary
, ending the longtime rhythmic top 40 format at the station. Mediabase
& Nielsen BDS still report the station as a rhythmic top 40. However, the rhythmic contemporary
format has since resurfaced at Hot 97 with WXRK reverting to contemporary hit radio
.
In April 2011
, WQHT is now New York City
's only rhythmic contemporary
station with the reverting of rival WKTU
back to rhythmic adult contemporary
.
. The format is comparable to Sirius XM Radio's BackSpin
, but censored and a few R&B songs.
On September 9, 2008, Emmis announced a programming partnership with WorldBand Media
and will be using WQHT's HD-3 signal to produce programming for the South Asian communities in 3 major cities including New York City. In June 2009, WorldBand Meida was removed from WQHT and placed on sister station WRKS's HD2.
Hot 97 has seen many controversies. Citing a litany of recorded complaints and controversies, including violence and disagreements over station security, the N.Y.C. District Council of Carpenters
, the landlord of Hot 97's Greenwich Village studios in May 2006 moved to evict the station. The case is pending in the courts.
's latest single "Black or White" back to back with a early version of Jermaine Jackson
's then-single "Word to the Badd!" The single contained Jermaine criticizing Michael's selfishness and even insisting Michael was ashamed to be black. Jermaine issued a statement and released a re-written version on his 1991 album You Said
.
nose-dived during take off, killing all nine people aboard. The following Monday morning (August 27, 2001), host Star, played sound effects of a woman screaming in a crashing airplane to mock the death of Aaliyah. One member of the Morning show cast, Miss Jones, thought that it was done in poor taste and walked out of the studio, refusing to work further with DJ Star. Hot 97's broadcast drew criticism and the Hot 97 morning team, including DJ Miss Jones
, were suspended without pay for two weeks.
provoked a controversy by airing a song entitled "USA for Indonesia
" a month after approximately 187,000 people died in the Asian tsunami caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
. The song, a parody sung to the 1985 tune "We Are the World
", was criticized for overtly racist mocking of the Asian and East African victims; the song lyrics contain the racially derogatory word "Chinamen," and calls the drowning victims "bitches." Some of the lyrics included the words "Go find your mommy. I just saw her float by, a tree went through her head. And now your children will be sold. Child slavery".
Miss Info
, a fellow on-air colleague of Korean descent, was outraged and spoke against the song on the station. She excluded herself from producing the song and said it was wrong for it to be played. Miss Info immediately found herself subjected to a four-minute, on-air lambasting from the other DJs. Miss Jones accused Miss Info of always distancing herself from the antics of the others, and of acting superior because she is Asian
. Another jock on the show named Todd Lynn muttered "I'm gonna start shooting Asians."
Following angry protests from the Asian-American community, bloggers, and networking sites, and other New Yorkers, Miss Jones, DJ Envy
, and Tasha Hightower were suspended for two weeks while Todd Lynn and song writer Rick Del Gado
were fired. The station issued an apology on its website. Newsday
, Sprint, McDonald's
, and Toyota all pulled their advertising from the station. The suspended employees' pay was diverted to charities helping victims of the tsunami.
and Foxy Brown in front of the offices of Hot 97 on Hudson Street
, which led to one of Lil' Kim's bodyguards being injured. In February 2005, gunfire erupted in front of the same place between 50 Cent
's entourage and The Game
's entourage. The Game was quickly met by 50 Cent's crew after being notified he was at the front entrance of the building. A friend of 50 Cent pulled a gun and shot at The Game and his entourage. A bullet hit a member of The Game's entourage in the leg. Both incidents also led to the nickname "Shot 97" by Wendy Williams.
Other controversies have included Hot 97 on broadcasts in which women slapped each other on the air for money and prizes (This was called Smackfest and was the brainchild of DJ Miss Jones), three shootings, and two false bomb threats. In 2004, as a result of continued indecency complaints, Hot 97's corporate owner Emmis Communications, signed a consent decree
with the FCC and paid the US government $300,000.
On May 2, 2006, the labor union that owns the building that houses Hot 97 filed a lawsuit demanding the station's eviction. The lawsuit came after the shooting of rapper Gravy a week earlier, and amid concerns by the New York City District Council of Carpenters, the landlord, about the safety of those in the building's neighborhood.
In an episode of the NBC
show 30 Rock
, Tracy Jordan remarks that, "shooting people at the Source Awards is a tradition, like shooting people outside Hot 97."
, had a running on-air feud with Hot 97's DJ Envy
, whose real name is Raashaun Casey.
In a May 3, 2006 broadcast, Torain mentioned DJ Envy's wife and two children and threatened to find and sexually abuse Casey's 4-year old daughter. Torain said he would pay $500 to any listener who told him where the girl attended school. Torain, who is black, also used racial and sexual epithets about DJ Envy's wife, Gia Casey, who is part Asian.
After protests by the New York City Council, detectives from the New York City Police Department's Hate Crimes Unit charged Torain with endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, and required him to surrender his target pistol license and 9-millimeter handgun. The charges were later dropped.
made shout-outs to the airstaffers of Hot 97, but neglected to mention Miss Jones
. On her morning show on June 6, 2006, Jones lashed out against the singer by calling Blige a "bitch".
appeared as a guest on Hot 97 of Angie Martinez
. While talking about his upcoming album and other artists, Angie informed 50 that there were people on the line calling in to talk to 50. One of these people was Styles P
. After the Styles P conversation ended mostly peacefully Angie informed 50 that more people were calling in. The next person who came onto the air was Cam'Ron
. The conversation started out peacefully but soon escalated into argument as 50 claimed that Koch Records
was a 'graveyard'. After some incipient tension, the conversation precipitously changed into an argument about the quantity of record sales from their respective artists Lloyd Banks
and Jim Jones
. Cam'Ron ridiculed Banks for selling only 300,000 records on a major label when Jones sold as much while having a lesser fan base and being on an independent label. Martinez later had to cut Cam'Ron off from the conversation due to his frequent use of profanity.
----
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...
in New York City under the corporate ownership of Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
. The station broadcasts on 97.1 MHz FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
. WQHT, despited billed as a Rhythmic CHR station on Mediabase
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
& Nielsen BDS, primarily plays urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
hits, although WQHT would not play any other urban adult contemporary
Urban Adult Contemporary
Urban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
song that had not been played by Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
stations. The urban adult contemporary
Urban Adult Contemporary
Urban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
playlist, however, belongs to its WRKS (98.7 Kiss FM) sister station.
WAPP Becomes WQHT
See WKTUWKTU
WKTU is a radio station based in New York City that plays an upbeat, gold-based CHR format. The station's broadcast transmitter is located on the top of the Empire State Building and its city of license is Lake Success, New York, with offices formerly in the "Newport" section of Jersey City, New...
for a full history of the 103.5 frequency. This page is for a history of WQHT only.
In 1986, Emmis Broadcasting bought rock formatted 103.5 WAPP New York from Doubleday Broadcasting. There was speculation in the industry as to what Emmis was going to do with WAPP since their ratings were low. On August 13, 1986 WAPP switched to what appeared to be a classic rock format. The station stunted as "Classic 103."
On August 15, 1986 at 6 pm, The Rolling Stones "It's All Over Now" and a bomb noise rang out WAPP and the classic rock titles. The station debuted as "Hot 103.5" with new call letters WQHT and a new CHR/Dance format. The first song was believed to be 5 Star "R.S.V.P." Nobody in the radio industry expected it, even though Emmis put a similar sounding station KPWR
KPWR
KPWR is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on an analog signal and in HD Radio...
"Power 106" on the air in Los Angeles earlier in the year.
Then, Emmis VP of Programming Rick Cummings said the company was considering four formats for the old WAPP but were leaning towards the classic rock and CHR/Dance formats. "It was an 11th hour decision." Cummings told Billboard magazine on 8/30/1986.
The Program Director ended up to be Joel Salkowitz (who was first named only as Asst Program Director) and Steve Ellis was Music Director (a hold over from WAPP) Don Kelly was the consultant for both WQHT and KPWR in those early months.
Hot 103
Hot 103.5 played a different variety of music than what was on the New York radio dial at that time. There was no CHR/Dance station in the market since 92KTU WKTUWKTU
WKTU is a radio station based in New York City that plays an upbeat, gold-based CHR format. The station's broadcast transmitter is located on the top of the Empire State Building and its city of license is Lake Success, New York, with offices formerly in the "Newport" section of Jersey City, New...
left the air a year earlier. WQHT came on the air with a new improved dance oriented format. Trade magazines of the day called it a hybrid format. The station mixed in CHR hits with Dance and Club music of the day.
Songs that appeared on 103.5 during the first few months were E.G. Daily "Say it Say It," Level 42 "Something About You," Timex Social Club "Rumors," Nice & Wild "Diamond Girl," and Trinere "I'll Be All That You Need."
The station started to play "hotmixes" or extended versions of certain songs. The "hotmixes" were either just the extended versions available commercially on 12" Singles, or mixes that were created by local club DJs, such as "Little" Louie Vega, especially for WQHT. They also aired regular versions of the songs that had longer intros than that of their competitors such as Z100. Noel used the Hot 103 version of his single "Silent Morning" for the music video as evidenced in the video's credits. With the debut of WQHT, some record labels such as Atco and Elektra reportedly started to see a spike in 12 Inch Single Sales in the New York Metropolitan Area as was reported by Billboard Magazine.
Hot 103.5's (the name was later shortened to Hot 103 in the Fall of 1986) imaging sounded similar to that of sister station KWPR "Power 106" as Chuck Riley and Eric Edwards were the voices of the station. Riley mainly voiced the sweepers and Edwards mostly voiced the promos and specialty liners. The two were also the voices for other Emmis stations at the time such as KPWR, WLOL and WAVA.
As September approached Hot 103 started to add more personality to the station. Some of the first DJs or "Hot Jocks" to join WQHT were Deborah Rath from Power 106, Al Bandiero
Al Bandiero
Al Bandiero is an American award-winning film and television actor, known for playing Peter Evans in the TV series Desire.-Biography:...
, "Fast" Freddie Colon and Rufus (who was a hold over from WAPP).
"Broadway Bill Lee" joined Hot 103 around Christmas time and Rick Allen joined as Production Director. Allen would go on to fame as the person who created the famous "From the Top of the World Trade Center" Top of the Hour ID voiced by Chuck Riley for Hot 103. Other radio stations to this day try to duplicate that top of hour ID. Many radio production directors were impressed by Allen's work he ended up releasing some of the production elements and music beds used for Hot 103 into syndication under the brand name "Continuous Climax."
Since Hot 103 was playing music heard primarily in night clubs, the station did a lot of appearances at various night clubs in the tri-state area. Therefore, the station even had "HotSpot" reports with reporters such as Kim Howard phoning in the latest club happenings every Friday and Saturday during the night show so listeners knew where the party was at.
By 1987, Hot 103 was making a name for itself by playing Freestyle
Freestyle music
Freestyle or Latin freestyle, sometimes referred to as Latin hip hop, is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in the early 1980s. Mostly popular during the mid 80s to the early 90s...
. Artists such as Noel, Safire, Cover Girls and TKA were made famous because they were played in heavy rotation right next to Mainstream Top 40 artists such as Expose, Debbie Gibson and Taylor Dayne. Freestyle and club music from other cities such as Miami wasn't ignored either. Company B & Tiger Moon, who were famous in the Florida club scene, were played on WQHT as well. In fact, Hot 103 pioneered custom station versions of songs, where the artists would change lyrics and sing about the station. Debbie Gibson & Expose recorded special lyrics for Hot 103.
WHTZ
WHTZ
WHTZ — branded Z100 — is a commercial pop/contemporary hit radio radio station licensed to Newark, New Jersey serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
Z100 copied Hot 103's success by adding a few Freestyle titles and Urban Contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
stations WBLS
WBLS
WBLS is an urban adult contemporary FM radio station in New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz. WBLS is owned by Inner City Broadcasting Corporation along with sister station WLIB...
and WRKS were playing long versions of the records they played as well.
To bolster that they were on the club scene, Hot 103 added a local weekly countdown show called "New York Hottracks" hosted by Bill Lee that counted down the top 10 selling 12" Singles of the week in the tri-state area. The show started on Sunday nights and then moved to Fridays at 6 pm and later at 5 pm. The show featured short interview clips and aired sonovox numbers produced by Rick Allen identifying the chart position. (The show was later hosted by Jeff Thomas and was cancelled in 1993.) NYHT was produced for a time by PD Joel Salkowitz and researched by Angie Martinez
Angie Martinez
Angela "Angie" Martinez is an American radio personality and occasional rapper.-Radio career:Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT . There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé...
, who would go on to dominate PM Drive after the station flipped to Hip-Hop in the 90s.
In July 1987, Hot 103 wanted to devote some airtime to older dance music at the urging of jock Al Bandiero. Management agreed and thus began "The Classics Showcase," which would feature older dance music, which usually had to be at least 7 years old to get played on the show. The show was broadcast for an hour from 8 pm-9 pm on Sunday nights. In 1989, the show was expanded to 2 hours. (Later hosts would be Paco Navarro in 1992 from 92KTU fame and Freddie Colon. The show lasted until 1994.)
During that summer, WQHT celebrated its first anniversary as Hot 103 and released the "Hot 103 Anniversary Album" on cassette, LP or CD on Warlock Records. The album contained four "Hotmixes" of CHR/Dance hits heard on Hot 103 over the past year. Sister station Power 106 also released the same album but under the Power 106 name.
WQHT Jock Line Up Summer 1987:
- 5:30-9AM Rufus
- 9AM-12 pm Deborah
- 12 pm-3PM Big John Monds
- 3PM-6PM Al Bandiero
- 6PM-10 pm Bill Lee
- 10 pm-2AM Fast Freddie Colon
- 2AM-5:30 am Vanessa Scott
WQHT Jock Line Up Fall 1987:
- 5:30-9AM Big John Monds
- 9AM-12 pm Deborah
- 12 pm-4PM Al Bandiero
- 4PM-8PM Bill Lee
- 8PM-12 am Fast Freddie Colon
- 12 am-5:30 am Yo! Sunny Joe
Morning Drive
Since the station signed on the air, it presented a music intensive morning show with only two stopsets of commercials an hour. Mornings were first hosted by Rufus Hunt with news by Judy Hernandez (another hold over from WAPP where she went by the name Judy Herron.) After Rufus left, Big John Monds took over.By the fall of 1987, Hot 103 was looking for a morning team to round out it's dayparts. It settled on the veteran team of "Walton & Johnson and the Not Ready For Drive Time Players." The show didn't click and was off the air in a couple months.
In 1988, the station brought in the married morning team of Ron Stevens and Joy Grdnic to handle morning drive. Stevens & Grdnic were unique as they were a male/female team rather than the usual male/male morning show. Veteran newsman J. Paul Emmerson joined as the wild newsman with a CKLW
CKLW
CKLW is a 50,000 watt AM radio station broadcasting on 800 kHz and located in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and serving Windsor and Detroit. Additionally, its signal can be heard as far west as Belding, Michigan; as far east as Batavia, New York; as far south as Edgewood, Kentucky; and as far...
tabloid type delivery. The station added traffic updates via Shadow Traffic and contracted with WNYW
WNYW
WNYW, virtual channel 5 , is the flagship television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in New York City. The station's transmitter is atop the Empire State Building and its studio facilities are located in the Yorkville section of Manhattan...
Fox 5 Meteorologist Nick Gregory to provide live weather updates.
Hot 103's Impact
In February 1987, Billboard magazine created a new "Crossover 30" chart in response to Hot 103 and the rise in popularity of other CHR/Dance stations and the type of music that they played. The chart was based solely on airplay from stations that reported to it. Radio trade magazine "Radio and Records" created a similar chart and started reporting the weekly music adds by Hot 103 and others.The impact of Hot 103 and other similar stations such as WPOW Power 96 and WHQT
WHQT
WHQT, Hot 105FM, is an Urban Adult Contemporary-formatted radio station owned by Cox Media Group that serves the South Florida region. WHQT is licensed to Coral Gables, but its studios are located in Hollywood along with its sister stations WEDR, WFLC, and WFEZ...
Hot 105 in Miami and Power 106 in LA spurred Emmis to join with Westwood One to create a weekly national dance music countdown called "American Dance Traxx." The show debuted the week of March 23, 1987.
The show was groundbreaking as it presented the countdown in long music sweeps rather than just 2-songs in a row and then a commercial break. The 3 hour "American Dance Traxx" was hosted by KPWR PD Jeff Wyatt and produced in NY by WQHT PD Joel Salkowitz. The show used the same music beds that were on WQHT and KPWR and featured short interviews with the artists of the day. American Dance Traxx aired on WQHT Sundays from 9 pm-12 am. WQHT's Deborah Rath would substitute for Wyatt on occasion. (After Jeff Wyatt left Emmis, Deborah Rath was made the permanent host until former MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
VJ "Downtown" Julie Brown took over in 1992.)
Hot Night
In February 1987 the tradition started with the first of several "Hot Night" concerts. Hot Night consisted of the top CHR/Dance artists of the day and the only way in to the concert was by winning on WQHT. Hot Night 1 was held 2/4/1987 at the Palladium and starred Shiela E. and The Cover Girls. Hot Night 2 was held at the same place starring The Jets and Debbie Gibson.As years went on "Hot Night" got bigger and expanded to more exotic locations such as the Bahamas and Cancun, Mexico. The last known "Hot Night" was in 1993 where it all began at the legendary Palladium and starred SWV
SWV
Sisters with Voices, better known as SWV, is an American female R&B trio from New York. Formed in 1990 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B groups of the 1990s. They had a series of hits, including "Weak", "Right Here/Human Nature", "I'm So Into You", and "You're the One"....
.
The Original Saturday Night Dance Party
In June 1987 Hot 103 debuted the "Hot 103 Original Saturday Night Dance Party" live from 4D NightClub in Manhattan from 10 pm-2am with no commercials and limited interruption. Sometimes 20 minutes would go by without a station identification. Everything on the radio was live from the club as WQHT plugged right into the DJ booth mixer. The mixing, the WQHT jock host, and sometimes even the crowd could be heard over the air. Scott Blackwell was the first DJ to spin for the Saturday Night Dance Party, where he would mix with 4 Technics 1200ML Turntables. There was even a cart machine on hand to play the Hot 103 sweepers over the air and inside 4D.As time went on, WQHT was wired into two dozen different clubs around the tri-state area. “The Original Saturday Night Dance Party” would bring The Palladium, The Copacobana, Foxes, Emerald City, The Tunnel, Chicago, Limelight, 1018, The L.I. Exchange, and The Roxy right into New York, Connecticut and New Jersey living rooms, cars and boom boxes.
Other notable club DJs such as Glenn Friscia
Friscia & Lamboy
Friscia & Lamboy are an electronic music duo. In 2003, they did a remix for Cher's single "Love One Another", in 2004 they remixed Britney Spears's single "Outrageous" and in 2007 remixed Ashley Tisdale's single "He Said She Said"...
, DJ Animal, Roman Ricardo and Mojo were on the turntables for the "Saturday Night Dance Party." Artists such as France Joli, Safire, Cover Girls and others would occasionally perform live on the radio and in the clubs.
Hot 97
In the fall of 1988, Emmis purchased 97.1 WYNY from NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, as well as the license of the WNBC-AM
WNBC (AM)
WNBC was a radio station that operated in New York City from 1922 to 1988. For most of its history, it was the flagship station of the NBC Radio Network...
station that was being closed. On Thursday September 22, 1988 at 5:30 pm the stations swapped frequencies. Country 97 WYNY moved to 103.5FM and became Country 103.5. Meanwhile Hot 103 moved to 97.1FM and became Hot 97. After the transition to Hot 97, Stephanie Miller
Stephanie Miller
Stephanie Catherine Miller is an American comedienne and host of The Stephanie Miller Show, a progressive talk radio program produced in Los Angeles and syndicated nationally by Dial Global. Talkers magazine ranked her as the 24th most important radio talk show host in America for 2010.-Early...
& Howard Hoffman
Howard Hoffman
Howard Hoffman is a voice actor and a radio imaging producer in Los Angeles, CA. He also operates the internet radio station . He was previously a host of Top 40 radio shows in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Providence, Phoenix and Houston....
were brought in to do the morning show (1988–91), J Paul Emerson stayed on as newsman, with Daniel Ivankovich
Daniel Ivankovich
Daniel Anthony Ivankovich MD is an orthopedic surgeon and blues musician/producer from Chicago, Illinois, who specializes in traumatology, joint replacement and spinal disorders...
, aka Reverend Doctor D, aka Odie Johnson was brought in as producer.
The last song played on Hot 103 was Debbie Gibson's "Stayin' Together" and the first song played on "The All New Hot 97" was M.A.R.R.S.' "Pump Up the Volume." WQHT even had Vanna White
Vanna White
Vanna White is an American television personality and film actress best known as the hostess of Wheel of Fortune since 1982.-Early life:...
from television's Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show)
Wheel of Fortune is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin, which premiered in 1975. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes determined by spinning a large wheel. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that...
on hand to change huge plastic letters at a big station switch party in Midtown Manhattan. Freddie Colon was the jock in studio before and after the switch but Bill Lee actually took the listeners through the switch itself.
At 5:30 pm listeners also heard for the first time the new Rick Allen produced Top of Hour ID for the new Hot 97. It was similar to the one used on Hot 103 but was more heavily produced and now said "From the Top of the Empire State Building
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
" and the Hot 97 name. The change reflected the use of the antenna for 97.1 being at the Empire State Building rather than the World Trade Center as it was while on the 103.5 frequency.
The station made a contest out of the event by giving listeners 97 dollars in cash if they could name the last song played "over there" and the first song played "over here."
Hot 97's ratings fell slightly in 1989. The station started to lean towards Top 40 as the station added artists such as Milli Vanilli
Milli Vanilli
Milli Vanilli was a pop/dance music project formed by Frank Farian in Germany in 1988, visually fronted by Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus. The group's debut album achieved international success and earned them a Grammy Award for Best New Artist on Feb. 21, 1990. Milli Vanilli became one of the most...
, Bobby Brown
Bobby Brown
Robert Barisford "Bobby" Brown is an American R&B singer-songwriter, occasional rapper, and dancer. After success in pop group New Edition, Brown began his solo career in 1987 and had a string of Top 10 Billboard hits, culminating in a Grammy Award. He was a pioneer of New Jack Swing music, a...
, Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul
Paula Julie Abdul is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, choreographer, actress and television personality.In the 1980s, Abdul rose from cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers to highly sought-after choreographer at the height of the music video era before scoring a string of pop music-R&B hits...
, Taylor Dayne
Taylor Dayne
Taylor Dayne was born Leslie Wunderman on March 7, 1962 before later adopting her current stage name. She is an American pop vocalist, songwriter, and dance artist. Overall, she has had eighteen individual hit songs reach the top ten in Billboard magazine...
, MC Hammer
MC Hammer
Stanley Kirk Burrell , better known by his stage name MC Hammer , is an American rapper, entertainer, business entrepreneur, dancer and actor. He had his greatest commercial success and popularity from the late 1980s until the mid-1990s...
, De La Soul
De La Soul
De La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres...
, New Kids on the Block
New Kids on the Block
New Kids on the Block are an American boy band from Boston, Massachusetts, assembled in 1984 by producer Maurice Starr. The band currently consists of brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood.New Kids on the Block enjoyed success in the late 1980s and...
, and more. Hot 97 changed their on-air line-up and moved Freddie Colon to middays and brought in Greg Thunder from KDWB
KDWB
KDWB-FM is an American commercial radio station broadcasting in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota, the radio format was known for over fifty years as a major contemporary hit radio Top 40 pop music outlet. Its transmitter is located in Shoreview, Minnesota. It broadcasts in 5.1 cinema-quality...
for nights. Thunder brought more of a comical Top 40 approach to nights by rhyming and being more listener interactive with heavy phones. With the addition of Thunder, WQHT had two rhyming jocks back to back everyday: Broadway Bill Lee from 4 pm-8pm & Greg Thunder from 8 pm–12 am.
Another sign of a Top 40 lean was that Hot 97, for the only time, aired jingles from JAM Creative Productions
JAM Creative Productions
JAM Creative Productions, Inc., is an American company that produces radio jingles, promo music for television, and commercial jingles for advertisers. It has made more radio jingles than any other jingle company and has become part of American pop culture....
, Inc. in the fall of 1989. The jingles weren't jingles per se, but they were at the end of ramp music beds that DJs could talk over. Jonathan Wolfert of JAM created the package for WQHT and KPWR and called it "Power Up". By 1990, the jingles at the end of the ramp music beds were replaced with Chuck Riley voicing "Hot 97".
In the summer of 1990, Hot 97 teamed up with MicMac Records and released The Hot 97 MicMac Concert on cassette, LP or CD. The album featured MicMac artists that got airplay on Hot 97 like Johhny O., Cynthia and Tiana.
On July 22, 1990, Hot 97 teamed up with future sister station WRKS 98.7 Kiss-FM for a Unity Walk to promote racial harmony in New York City.
In 1990–1991, the station started to play more house and R&B music (aka New Jack Swing) while cutting back on some of the freestyle records. Artists such as Black Box, The Goodmen, Doug Lazy and Daisy Dee received more airplay.
Around this time Hot 97 added new shows focusing on house music such as the "All Night House Party," which was similar in format to the "Original Saturday Night Dance Party" but focused on house music. WQHT broadcast live from area night clubs such as The Tunnel from 2 am until 4 am Saturday into Sunday morning.
In 1991, "Anything Goes with Clivilles & Cole" debuted, where legendary record producers Robert Clivilles
Robert Clivillés
Robert Clivillés is a record producer, songwriter, arranger, music video director most noted for his work with C+C Music Factory, a group he founded with musical partner David Cole...
and David Cole
David Cole
David Cole may refer to:* David Cole , music producer* David D. Cole, American law professor* David R. Cole, senior lecturer at the University of Technology, Sydney* David Cole * David N. Cole, American music producer...
of C&C Music Factory mixed new house and dance music on Saturday nights from 9 pm to 10 pm. The station also added a show spotlighting new house and dance tracks from overseas such as Europe. London jock Dave Kendall was picked to host Planet Traxx, which would air after American Dance Traxx at 12 midnight.
In the Fall of 1992, Hot 97 added a new station voice, the first time ever since the station signed on in 1986. They added Bobby Ocean (famous from working at KFRC
KFRC
KFRC may refer to:* KFRC-FM, a radio station carrying a simulcast of KCBS and licensed to San Francisco, California, United States* KZDG, a radio station licensed to San Francisco, California, United States, which used the call sign KFRC from January 2009 to August 2011* KFRC , a radio station ...
) to voice some promos and sweepers for "Hot Night Cancun," the station concert held that December. During this time, WQHT replaced the long-running Rick Allen-produced and Chuck Riley-voiced "TTTTTTop of the Empire State Building" top of hour ID. It was replaced with one voiced by Bobby Ocean but without the effects that made the previous ID noteworthy.
From Dance to Hip-Hop and R&B
Towards the end of 1992 and early 1993, Hot 97's ratings hit an all-time low. In response, WQHT started to add more R&B and Rap product. Artists such as Positive KPositive K
Darryl Gibson, better known by his stage name Positive K , is an American emcee from the Bronx, New York City, New York, and is one of the original artists of the First Priority Music camp...
, Mad Cobra and Onyx were phased in while some of the traditional freestyle and house music was drastically cut. The station started a gradual two year change towards an Urban Hip-Hop format.
During this time, Hot 97 also made several on-air and imaging changes. Long time station voice Chuck Riley was gone, leaving only Eric Edwards as the station voice. Edwards also changed his delivery style to fit in with the new urban sound of Hot 97. He is still the station voice to this day.
Long-time PD Joel Salkowitx was let go, replaced by Steve Smith. The station axed veteran jocks Al Bandiero
Al Bandiero
Al Bandiero is an American award-winning film and television actor, known for playing Peter Evans in the TV series Desire.-Biography:...
, Jeff Thomas and others. Deborah Rath stayed on the longest but shifted over to sister station CD 101.9 in late 1994.
A new generation of radio personalities began appearing on Hot 97. Among the most famous was the addition of a new morning show of Ed Lover
Ed Lover
James Roberts , better known as Ed Lover, is an African-American rapper, actor, musician, radio personality, and former MTV VJ.-Biography:...
and Doctor Dre
Doctor Dre
André "Doctor Dré" Brown is an African American radio personality and former MTV VJ.-Career:Doctor Dré is best known for being the co-host of MTV's hip hop music specialty program Yo! MTV Raps with partner Ed Lover. The duo also starred in the 1993 film Who's the Man?...
of Yo! MTV Raps. The ratings rose to number three in one rating period.
In 1993, Funkmaster Flex
Funkmaster Flex
Aston George Taylor, Jr. better known as Funkmaster Flex is an American hip hop DJ, rapper, musician and producer on New York City's Hot 97 radio station and host of the hit MTV show Funk Flex Full Throttle....
joined Hot 97 and was host of the "Friday Night Street Jam" and weekly two hour show where he mixed hip-hop live from the studio. Flex eventually rose up through the ranks and became Hot 97's long time night personality.
Other noteworthy personalities included the addition of Wendy Williams
Wendy Williams
Wendy Williams may refer to:* Wendy O. Williams, former Plasmatics singer* Wendy Williams , British actress* Wendy Williams , American radio and television personality...
to PM Drive, Williams used to be the overnight jock back on Hot 103 in 1988. Angie Martinez
Angie Martinez
Angela "Angie" Martinez is an American radio personality and occasional rapper.-Radio career:Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT . There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé...
, a researcher on "New York Hottracks" in the late 1980s and who previously worked in the promotions department, was promoted to nights. A few years later, the two had a public falling out, resulting in Williams being fired from Hot 97 and Martinez assumig afternoon drive where she remains to this day.
Arbitron
Arbitron is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio audiences. It was founded as American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by merging with L.A. based Coffin, Cooper and Clay in the early 1950s...
ratings. Hot 97 was the only radio station in New York for hip-hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
until mid-1997 when WBLS
WBLS
WBLS is an urban adult contemporary FM radio station in New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz. WBLS is owned by Inner City Broadcasting Corporation along with sister station WLIB...
reintroduced it on its playlists and moved to urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
, moving WQHT to its current rhythmic contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
format. In March 2002, Clear Channel Communications launched WWPR-FM
WWPR-FM
WWPR-FM, also known as "Power 105.1", is an urban contemporary radio station that features hip hop and R&B licensed to New York City that serves the Greater New York area....
(Power 105.1 FM) to challenge Hot 97, and went to number-five in the ratings. In the fall of 2005 Power 105.1 edged slightly ahead of Hot 97 for the first time ever during the same period of time as the Tsunami song parody. Most recently the station resurged back to the top of the ratings, although WLTW
WLTW
WLTW is a radio station with an Adult Contemporary format in New York City.The station is often number one or close to it in Arbitron ratings for New York City. From 2002 to 2004, the station generated more revenue than any other radio station in the New York market...
(106.7 Lite FM) is still the top-rated radio station in New York City.
In May 2007, R&R
R&R (magazine)
R&R was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes...
and BDS
Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems
Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, better known as BDS, is a service that tracks monitored radio, television and internet airplay of songs based on the number of spins and detections...
moved WQHT back to the Rhythmic Airplay panel after a long tenure as an Urban reporter; however the station was always a rhythmic reporter per Mediabase
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
. More recently, Hot 97 has begun to play more late 90's and early 2000s throwbacks. While the majority of the songs played on the station are current Hip-Hop and R & B Hits, classic hits by artists such as the Notorious B.I.G and Tupac have begun to receive more airplay.
In the fall of 2008, WQHT served as the home of the nationally syndicated Big Boy's Neighborhood, produced by ABC Radio and based from WQHT's sister station, KPWR Power 106
KPWR
KPWR is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on an analog signal and in HD Radio...
in Los Angeles. However by July 2009 WQHT dropped the program and instead expanded their local morning show hosted by Cipha Sounds
Cipha Sounds
Cipha Sounds is an American radio and television personality of Puerto Rican descent...
& Rosenberg.
By 2010
2010 in radio
The following events occurred in radio in 2010.-Events:*Date Unknown: CHOI/Quebec City flips from Alternative Rock to News/Talk.*January 4: KJCS/Lufkin, Texas goes silent....
, due to rivals WXRK (92-3 Now) & Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
' WKTU
WKTU
WKTU is a radio station based in New York City that plays an upbeat, gold-based CHR format. The station's broadcast transmitter is located on the top of the Empire State Building and its city of license is Lake Success, New York, with offices formerly in the "Newport" section of Jersey City, New...
moving towards rhythmic top 40 directions, Hot 97 switched to Urban Contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
, ending the longtime rhythmic top 40 format at the station. Mediabase
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
& Nielsen BDS still report the station as a rhythmic top 40. However, the rhythmic contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
format has since resurfaced at Hot 97 with WXRK reverting to contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
.
In April 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,...
, WQHT is now New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
's only rhythmic contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
station with the reverting of rival WKTU
WKTU
WKTU is a radio station based in New York City that plays an upbeat, gold-based CHR format. The station's broadcast transmitter is located on the top of the Empire State Building and its city of license is Lake Success, New York, with offices formerly in the "Newport" section of Jersey City, New...
back to rhythmic adult contemporary
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...
.
HD Radio Operations
In early 2006, Hot 97 launched an HD2 station called Hot 97 Throwbacks. Hot 97 Throwbacks, located at 97.1-2, uses the format of Classic Hip-HopHip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
. The format is comparable to Sirius XM Radio's BackSpin
BackSpin
BackSpin is a classic Hip-Hop radio station on Sirius XM Radio. On 2008-11-12 this channel went on hiatus, however, on 2008-12-16, due to subscriber demand, Sirius XM Radio announced that this channel and The Strobe would return to the service on 2009-01-15.The channel features the best of old...
, but censored and a few R&B songs.
On September 9, 2008, Emmis announced a programming partnership with WorldBand Media
WorldBand Media
WorldBand Media Inc. is a North American media company specializing in the production and distribution of ethnic based media content. It currently owns and operates HumDesi Radio, a national South Asian radio network broadcasting in The United States and on a number of digital platforms across...
and will be using WQHT's HD-3 signal to produce programming for the South Asian communities in 3 major cities including New York City. In June 2009, WorldBand Meida was removed from WQHT and placed on sister station WRKS's HD2.
Controversies
Under the corporate ownership by Emmis CommunicationsEmmis Communications
Emmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
Hot 97 has seen many controversies. Citing a litany of recorded complaints and controversies, including violence and disagreements over station security, the N.Y.C. District Council of Carpenters
N.Y.C. District Council of Carpenters
The N.Y.C. District Council of Carpenters maintains jurisdiction over all carpentry work and exhibition work in the New York City area. The council is under UBC Trusteeship, after the firing of the current Executive Secretary-Treasurer, which is the highest position in the union, Michael J Forde...
, the landlord of Hot 97's Greenwich Village studios in May 2006 moved to evict the station. The case is pending in the courts.
Word to the Badd!
In early November 1991, deejay Freedie Cohen stirred up controversy when he played Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
's latest single "Black or White" back to back with a early version of Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine Jackson
Jermaine La Jaune Jackson is an American singer, bassist, composer, a member of The Jackson 5, older brother of American pop stars Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson and occasional film director...
's then-single "Word to the Badd!" The single contained Jermaine criticizing Michael's selfishness and even insisting Michael was ashamed to be black. Jermaine issued a statement and released a re-written version on his 1991 album You Said
You Said
You Said is an album by Jermaine Jackson. It was his debut and only album for LaFace Records. The entire album was produced by The LaFace Family You Said is an album by Jermaine Jackson. It was his debut and only album for LaFace Records. The entire album was produced by The LaFace Family You Said...
.
Mocking death of Aaliyah
On August 25, 2001, a charter plane with R&B superstar AaliyahAaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton , who performed under the mononym Aaliyah , was an American R&B recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside...
nose-dived during take off, killing all nine people aboard. The following Monday morning (August 27, 2001), host Star, played sound effects of a woman screaming in a crashing airplane to mock the death of Aaliyah. One member of the Morning show cast, Miss Jones, thought that it was done in poor taste and walked out of the studio, refusing to work further with DJ Star. Hot 97's broadcast drew criticism and the Hot 97 morning team, including DJ Miss Jones
Miss Jones
Tarsha Jones, better known as Miss Jones, is a former R&B artist and radio personality. Miss Jones is currently the host of the Power 99 morning show "Jonesy In The Morning" after previously working for Hot 97 until 2008.-Early life:...
, were suspended without pay for two weeks.
Tsunami Song and racial epithets
On January 17, 2005, Hot 97 Miss JonesMiss Jones
Tarsha Jones, better known as Miss Jones, is a former R&B artist and radio personality. Miss Jones is currently the host of the Power 99 morning show "Jonesy In The Morning" after previously working for Hot 97 until 2008.-Early life:...
provoked a controversy by airing a song entitled "USA for Indonesia
USA for Indonesia
"USA for Indonesia" is a parody sung to the 1985 tune "We Are the World," which was performed by USA for Africa. A parody of charity supergroup songs, it mocks the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake disaster and its victims. "USA for Indonesia" was aired on WQHT-FM , a New York City radio station,...
" a month after approximately 187,000 people died in the Asian tsunami caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...
. The song, a parody sung to the 1985 tune "We Are the World
We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a song and charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World...
", was criticized for overtly racist mocking of the Asian and East African victims; the song lyrics contain the racially derogatory word "Chinamen," and calls the drowning victims "bitches." Some of the lyrics included the words "Go find your mommy. I just saw her float by, a tree went through her head. And now your children will be sold. Child slavery".
Miss Info
Miss Info
Minya Oh, known by the stage name Miss Info, is a radio presenter.Formerly a writer and reporter for BET, Miss Info is currently an on-air radio personality at the New York hip hop and R&B station Hot 97. She is also a journalist who has worked for the notable hip hop industry publication The Source...
, a fellow on-air colleague of Korean descent, was outraged and spoke against the song on the station. She excluded herself from producing the song and said it was wrong for it to be played. Miss Info immediately found herself subjected to a four-minute, on-air lambasting from the other DJs. Miss Jones accused Miss Info of always distancing herself from the antics of the others, and of acting superior because she is Asian
Asian people
Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
. Another jock on the show named Todd Lynn muttered "I'm gonna start shooting Asians."
Following angry protests from the Asian-American community, bloggers, and networking sites, and other New Yorkers, Miss Jones, DJ Envy
DJ Envy
DJ Envy is a mixtape DJ from New York. He is known as New York's leading mixtape gardener. He currently serves as the President & CEO of BLOK Entertainment, his own management and production company that has already produced tracks for such artist like DMX, Murderers, Funkmaster Flex, Foxy...
, and Tasha Hightower were suspended for two weeks while Todd Lynn and song writer Rick Del Gado
Rick Del Gado
Rick Del Gado is a radio producer. He was fired from WNEW-FM, along with hosts Opie & Anthony, after the 'Sex for Sam' incident, in which a couple were encouraged to have sex in St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York, and the results broadcast on the Opie & Anthony Show. He then joined the Preston and...
were fired. The station issued an apology on its website. Newsday
Newsday
Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area...
, Sprint, McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, and Toyota all pulled their advertising from the station. The suspended employees' pay was diverted to charities helping victims of the tsunami.
Fights and shootings
In February 2001, a shootout erupted between the entourages of rappers Lil' KimLil' Kim
Kimberly Denise Jones , better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper and actress who was a member of the group Junior M.A.F.I.A.....
and Foxy Brown in front of the offices of Hot 97 on Hudson Street
Hudson Street (Manhattan)
Hudson Street is a north/south oriented street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Running from TriBeCa to Greenwich Village and through Hudson Square, Hudson Street has two distinct one-way traffic patterns that meet at Abingdon Square, at the street's intersection with Eighth Avenue and...
, which led to one of Lil' Kim's bodyguards being injured. In February 2005, gunfire erupted in front of the same place between 50 Cent
50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
's entourage and The Game
The Game (rapper)
Jayceon Terrell Taylor , better known by his stage name Game, formerly The Game, is an American rapper and actor. As a member of G-Unit, he rose to fame in 2005 with the success of his debut album, The Documentary, which earned him two Grammy Award nominations...
's entourage. The Game was quickly met by 50 Cent's crew after being notified he was at the front entrance of the building. A friend of 50 Cent pulled a gun and shot at The Game and his entourage. A bullet hit a member of The Game's entourage in the leg. Both incidents also led to the nickname "Shot 97" by Wendy Williams.
Other controversies have included Hot 97 on broadcasts in which women slapped each other on the air for money and prizes (This was called Smackfest and was the brainchild of DJ Miss Jones), three shootings, and two false bomb threats. In 2004, as a result of continued indecency complaints, Hot 97's corporate owner Emmis Communications, signed a consent decree
Consent decree
A consent decree is a final, binding judicial decree or judgment memorializing a voluntary agreement between parties to a suit in return for withdrawal of a criminal charge or an end to a civil litigation...
with the FCC and paid the US government $300,000.
On May 2, 2006, the labor union that owns the building that houses Hot 97 filed a lawsuit demanding the station's eviction. The lawsuit came after the shooting of rapper Gravy a week earlier, and amid concerns by the New York City District Council of Carpenters, the landlord, about the safety of those in the building's neighborhood.
In an episode of the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
show 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
, Tracy Jordan remarks that, "shooting people at the Source Awards is a tradition, like shooting people outside Hot 97."
DJ Envy and DJ Star feud
Radio personality Star (whose real name is Troi Torain), who previously worked at Hot 97 before switching to rival hip hop station Power 105WWPR-FM
WWPR-FM, also known as "Power 105.1", is an urban contemporary radio station that features hip hop and R&B licensed to New York City that serves the Greater New York area....
, had a running on-air feud with Hot 97's DJ Envy
DJ Envy
DJ Envy is a mixtape DJ from New York. He is known as New York's leading mixtape gardener. He currently serves as the President & CEO of BLOK Entertainment, his own management and production company that has already produced tracks for such artist like DMX, Murderers, Funkmaster Flex, Foxy...
, whose real name is Raashaun Casey.
In a May 3, 2006 broadcast, Torain mentioned DJ Envy's wife and two children and threatened to find and sexually abuse Casey's 4-year old daughter. Torain said he would pay $500 to any listener who told him where the girl attended school. Torain, who is black, also used racial and sexual epithets about DJ Envy's wife, Gia Casey, who is part Asian.
After protests by the New York City Council, detectives from the New York City Police Department's Hate Crimes Unit charged Torain with endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, and required him to surrender his target pistol license and 9-millimeter handgun. The charges were later dropped.
Miss Jones vs. Mary J. Blige
Another controversy heated up on June 4, 2006 at the stations' annual Summer Jam, where performer Mary J. BligeMary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
made shout-outs to the airstaffers of Hot 97, but neglected to mention Miss Jones
Miss Jones
Tarsha Jones, better known as Miss Jones, is a former R&B artist and radio personality. Miss Jones is currently the host of the Power 99 morning show "Jonesy In The Morning" after previously working for Hot 97 until 2008.-Early life:...
. On her morning show on June 6, 2006, Jones lashed out against the singer by calling Blige a "bitch".
50 Cent's February 1, 2007 visit
On February 1, 2007 50 Cent50 Cent
Curtis James Jackson III , better known by his stage name 50 Cent, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, investor, record producer, and actor. He rose to fame with the release of his albums Get Rich or Die Tryin and The Massacre . Get Rich or Die Tryin has been certified eight times platinum by...
appeared as a guest on Hot 97 of Angie Martinez
Angie Martinez
Angela "Angie" Martinez is an American radio personality and occasional rapper.-Radio career:Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT . There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé...
. While talking about his upcoming album and other artists, Angie informed 50 that there were people on the line calling in to talk to 50. One of these people was Styles P
Styles P
David Styles better known by his stage name, Styles P, is an American rapper, author, and entrepreneur. He is prominently known as a member of Hip Hop group The LOX and is also a part of the Ruff Ryders hip-hop group, and in addition has released multiple albums and mixtapes as a solo...
. After the Styles P conversation ended mostly peacefully Angie informed 50 that more people were calling in. The next person who came onto the air was Cam'Ron
Cam'ron
Cameron Giles , better known by his stage name Cam'ron or "Killa Cam", is a Grammy-nominated American actor. He is the founder of the hip-hop group The Diplomats , and also of The U.N. group....
. The conversation started out peacefully but soon escalated into argument as 50 claimed that Koch Records
Koch Records
E1 Music , the primary subsidiary of E1 Entertainment LP, is the largest independent record label in the United States. It is also distributed by the Universal Music Group in Europe under the name E1 Universal...
was a 'graveyard'. After some incipient tension, the conversation precipitously changed into an argument about the quantity of record sales from their respective artists Lloyd Banks
Lloyd Banks
Christopher Charles Lloyd , better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper and member of the rap group G-Unit. Raised in South Jamaica, Queens, he dropped out of high school in 1998. G-Unit released two albums, Beg for Mercy in 2003 and T.O.S. in 2008...
and Jim Jones
Jim Jones (rapper)
Joseph Guillermo Jones II , better known by his stage name Jim Jones, is an American rapper and original member of The Diplomats, also known as Dipset. He is Co-CEO of Diplomat Records...
. Cam'Ron ridiculed Banks for selling only 300,000 records on a major label when Jones sold as much while having a lesser fan base and being on an independent label. Martinez later had to cut Cam'Ron off from the conversation due to his frequent use of profanity.
On-air
- Cipha SoundsCipha SoundsCipha Sounds is an American radio and television personality of Puerto Rican descent...
- Peter Rosenberg
- K. Foxx
- Big Dennis Rivera
- DJ Camilo
- Angie MartinezAngie MartinezAngela "Angie" Martinez is an American radio personality and occasional rapper.-Radio career:Angie Martinez got her first break in radio at the age of 16 answering hot lines at the urban radio station WQHT . There she met popular DJ Funkmaster Flex, and began working as his protégé...
- Funkmaster FlexFunkmaster FlexAston George Taylor, Jr. better known as Funkmaster Flex is an American hip hop DJ, rapper, musician and producer on New York City's Hot 97 radio station and host of the hit MTV show Funk Flex Full Throttle....
- Monse
- Miss InfoMiss InfoMinya Oh, known by the stage name Miss Info, is a radio presenter.Formerly a writer and reporter for BET, Miss Info is currently an on-air radio personality at the New York hip hop and R&B station Hot 97. She is also a journalist who has worked for the notable hip hop industry publication The Source...
- Lisa EversLisa EversLisa Evers is an American general assignment reporter for FOX 5 News in New York City. She covers a wide variety of stories, but specializes in crime and counter-terrorism, breaking news and exclusives.-Journalism:...
- J. Medina
Mixshow DJs
- Big Ben
- DJ Absolut
- DJ Bobby Trends
- DJ C-Lo
- DJ EnuffDJ EnuffDJ Enuff is a DJ and radio personality from the United States. He mixes on-air during "The Angie Martinez Show" from 4:30 to 6pm. He also was The Notorious B.I.G's official road DJ and also helped break acts like 50 Cent and Kanye West.-Early career:DJ Enuff was raised in the Lower East Side of...
- DJ Green LanternDJ Green LanternJames D'Agostino , better known by his stage name DJ Green Lantern, is an American-Italian-Puerto Rican DJ and hip hop music producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by Eminem to become the official DJ for Shady Records after DJ Head stepped down for undisclosed reasons...
- DJ Jazzy JoyceDJ Jazzy JoyceDJ Jazzy Joyce is an American hip hop DJ and producer on New York City's radio station Hot 97. She is best known for her collaboration with rapper Sweet Tee on the 1986 single "It's My Beat". In 1994, she was featured on "9th Wonder ", the first single from "Blowout Comb", the second album from...
- DJ Kast One
- DJ Kay SlayDJ Kay SlayDJ Kay Slay is an American hip hop deejay. He was referred to by the New York Times as "Hip Hop's One-Man Ministry of Insults". He has sold 350,000 copies of his two official albums.-Early life:...
- DJ Magic
- DJ Spynfo
- DJ Wallah
- DJ Young Chow
- L. Boogs
- Massive B Sound System (Bobby Konders & Jabba)
- Mister CeeMister CeeCalvin LeBrun better known as Mister Cee or DJ Mister Cee, is an American hip hop DJ, radio personality on New York's Hot 97 FM, and a respected record producer. LeBrun is best known as the DJ for hip hop artist Big Daddy Kane during the late 1980s and early 1990s...
Former DJs
- Sunny AndersonSunny AndersonSunny Anderson is an African American Food Network personality. She began hosting How'd That Get On My Plate? in July 2008...
(now hosts Cooking for RealCooking for Real-External links:*...
on Food NetworkFood NetworkFood Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
) - Al "Nouveau" BandieroAl BandieroAl Bandiero is an American award-winning film and television actor, known for playing Peter Evans in the TV series Desire.-Biography:...
(now at 103.5 WKTU in New York, NY) - Scott Blackwell (Hot 103 Saturday Night Dance Party mixer using 3 turntables)
- Yo! Sunny Joe (now at Movin' 100.3 / 96.5 FM in Syracuse, NY)
- Fred "Bugsy" Buggs ("The Mic Wrecker")
- Tim Byrd "The Byrd Man" (now at Sunny 104.3, W. Palm Beach, FL)
- DJ Animal
- DJ Clue? (now at WWPR-FM 105.1 in New York, NY)
- DJ EnvyDJ EnvyDJ Envy is a mixtape DJ from New York. He is known as New York's leading mixtape gardener. He currently serves as the President & CEO of BLOK Entertainment, his own management and production company that has already produced tracks for such artist like DMX, Murderers, Funkmaster Flex, Foxy...
(now at WWPR-FM 105.1 in New York, NY) - DJ Louie Styles ("The Hightstown Heavy Hitter")
- DJ SkribbleDJ SkribbleDJ Skribble is an Italian-American DJ, producer, remixer, radio personality and actor.In the early 1990s he teamed up with Kamron, ATA, Firstborn, and Tommy Never in Young Black Teenagers, who released two albums before splitting up.In 1996 he worked with Bill Irwin on the musical Hip Hop Wonderland...
- DJ Whoo KidDJ Whoo KidDJ Whoo Kid is a hip hop DJ and of Haitian descent raised in Queens Village, New York but with strong roots to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti. He is currently signed to G-Unit Records and its subsidiary label, Shady Ville Entertainment...
- DJ Red AlertDJ Red AlertDJ Red Alert is a disc jockey on 98.7 Kiss-FM, N.Y.C., and has been recognized as a hip hop pioneer...
(now at 98.7 Kiss FM (WRKS) in New York, NY) - Doctor DréDoctor DreAndré "Doctor Dré" Brown is an African American radio personality and former MTV VJ.-Career:Doctor Dré is best known for being the co-host of MTV's hip hop music specialty program Yo! MTV Raps with partner Ed Lover. The duo also starred in the 1993 film Who's the Man?...
(not to be confused with the rap artist Dr. DreDr. DreAndre Romelle Young , primarily known by his stage name Dr. Dre, is an American record producer, rapper, record executive, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is the founder and current CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and a former co-owner and artist of Death Row Records...
) - Rufus
- "Fast" Freddie Colon (now at KNTI in Denver, CO)
- Vanessa Scott
- Fatman ScoopFatman ScoopIsaac Freeman III, better known by his stage name Fatman Scoop is a hip hop promoter and radio personality famed for his on-stage rough, raw, loud voice....
- Glenn FrisciaFriscia & LamboyFriscia & Lamboy are an electronic music duo. In 2003, they did a remix for Cher's single "Love One Another", in 2004 they remixed Britney Spears's single "Outrageous" and in 2007 remixed Ashley Tisdale's single "He Said She Said"...
(now at Pulse 87.7 (WNYZ-FM) in New York, NY) - Howard HoffmanHoward HoffmanHoward Hoffman is a voice actor and a radio imaging producer in Los Angeles, CA. He also operates the internet radio station . He was previously a host of Top 40 radio shows in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Providence, Phoenix and Houston....
- Jimmy HowesJimmy HowesJimmy Howes is a radio disc jockey and talk show host, stand-up comic. New York City On-Air Radio Host under dozens of different synonyms. Morning Show Host on Jukebox Radio, New York City, Mid-Day host with WVNJ, Program Director and a morning show host of WGHT...
- "Broadway" Bill Lee (now at 101.1 WCBS-FM in New York, NY)
- Vic LatinoVic LatinoVic Latino is an American radio and television personality of Puerto Rican descent. Latino can be heard on WPTY weekdays from 7:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m...
(now at WPTY-FM 105.3 in Long Island, NY) - The Legendary Paco (Navarro)
- Lisa G.Lisa GlasbergLisa Glasberg is a radio News person. Glasberg was born on June 6, 1956 and grew up in Woodmere, Long Island, New York. She graduated from Hewlett High School in 1974...
- Paco Lopez (now at WNUE 98.1FM La Mega in Orlando, Florida) as an Account Executive
- Ed LoverEd LoverJames Roberts , better known as Ed Lover, is an African-American rapper, actor, musician, radio personality, and former MTV VJ.-Biography:...
(now at Power 105.1 (WWPR-FM) in New York, NY) - Raqiyah MaysRaqiyah MaysRaqiyah Mays is an American actress and former hip-hop journalist. a co-host on The Kiss Wake Up Club, and weekend personality on Emmis Communications-owned station, 98.7 Kiss FM...
- DJ MegatronDJ MegatronCorey McGriff , better known as DJ Megatron, was a DJ, record producer, rapper, radio and television personality.-Career:...
- Stephanie MillerStephanie MillerStephanie Catherine Miller is an American comedienne and host of The Stephanie Miller Show, a progressive talk radio program produced in Los Angeles and syndicated nationally by Dial Global. Talkers magazine ranked her as the 24th most important radio talk show host in America for 2010.-Early...
- Miss JonesMiss JonesTarsha Jones, better known as Miss Jones, is a former R&B artist and radio personality. Miss Jones is currently the host of the Power 99 morning show "Jonesy In The Morning" after previously working for Hot 97 until 2008.-Early life:...
(now at 98.9 (WUSL-FM) in Philadelphia, PA) - Mojo
- "Big" John Montell
- Sue O'Neil (now at 101.1 WCBS FM in New York, NY)
- Star & Buc Wild (now at Pulse 87.7 (WNYZ-FM) in New York, NY)
- Deborah Rath (now at WQCD CD 101.9 in New York)
- Roman Ricardo
- Ray Rossi (now at WKXW / WXKW New Jersey 101.5)
- Gary Spears (now at WJMK 104.3 FM K-Hits in Chicago, IL)
- Howard SternHoward SternHoward Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
- Stevens & Grdnic
- Mary Thomas
- Greg Thunder (now doing mornings on KS95)
- DJ Uncut
- La La Vasquez
- Wendy WilliamsWendy WilliamsWendy Williams may refer to:* Wendy O. Williams, former Plasmatics singer* Wendy Williams , British actress* Wendy Williams , American radio and television personality...
(now at The Wendy Williams ShowThe Wendy Williams ShowThe Wendy Williams Show is a syndicated talk show hosted by Wendy Williams that premiered on July 14, 2008, as six-week sneak peek, in Detroit, Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York City. The test run was picked up for a full season that began its run on July 13, 2009 in over 70% of the country in...
on BETBetBet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
) - Steph Lova
- Lil' Nat (now at 98.7 Kiss FM (WRKS) in New York, NY)
- Ralph McDanielsRalph McDanielsRalph “Uncle Ralph” McDaniels is a hip-hop culture pioneer, entrepreneur, and visionary who created Video Music Box, the first music video show focused exclusively to an urban market—broadcast on public television...
- DJ Cocoa ChanelleDJ Cocoa ChanelleDJ Cocoa Chanelle is an American hip hop DJ, rapper and producer on New York City's radio station Kiss FM.-Early life:Chanelle was born in Brooklyn, New York but raised in Bluefield, West Virginia by her grandmother after the death of both of her parents...
(now at 98.7 Kiss FM (WRKS) in New York, NY)
Films and television
- In the 30 Rock30 Rock30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
episode called "The Source AwardsThe Source Awards (30 Rock)"The Source Awards" is the sixteenth episode of the first season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock. It was written by Robert Carlock and Daisy Gardner, and directed by one of the season's supervising producers, Don Scardino. The episode originally aired on the National Broadcasting...
", Tracy JordanTracy JordanOgbert Jordan, better known by his stage name, Tracy, is a fictional character on the American television series 30 Rock, based on and played by Tracy Morgan.-Brief overview:...
mentions Hot 97 as a traditional place to get shot.
- The Sklar Brothers riff on Hot 97 in their Comedy Central PresentsComedy Central PresentsComedy Central Presents is a half-hour long stand-up show that features various stand-up comedians in each episode.-DVDs:Starting in 2008, Comedy Central started releasing "Best of" compilation DVDs, with uncensored audio...
special.
- In the Family GuyFamily GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
episode called "Mother TuckerMother Tucker"Mother Tucker" is the second episode of the fifth season of the animated comedy series Family Guy. It originally aired on Fox on September 17, 2006. The episode follows Peter's mother, Thelma, divorcing from Peter's father, Francis, and dating news anchorman Tom Tucker...
", the "Weenie and the Butt" radio stall appear to be airing on WQHT 97.1, many sound effects are played mentioning the radio station during the scene.
- In the SeinfeldSeinfeldSeinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
episode called "The Pool GuyThe Pool Guy"The Pool Guy" is the 118th episode of NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the eighth episode of the seventh season. It aired on November 16, 1995. The end credit states "In Memory of our Friend Rick Bolden"; Rick Bolden was one of the musicians who worked on the show's theme song.-Plot:Elaine befriends...
", KramerCosmo KramerCosmo Kramer, usually referred to as simply "Kramer", is a fictional character on the American television sitcom Seinfeld , played by Michael Richards...
mentions Hot 97 as one of the sponsors to his MoviefoneMoviefoneMoviefone is an American-based movie listing and information service. Moviegoers can obtain local showtimes, theatre information, film reviews, or advance tickets...
information line.
- In the movie World Trade CenterWorld Trade Center (film)World Trade Center is a 2006 American disaster-drama film directed by Oliver Stone and based on the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center. It stars Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello, Michael Peña, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Michael Shannon. The film was shot from October 19, 2005 - February 10, 2006...
, one of the officers says that his wife heard on Hot 97 that a second plane had hit the towers, to which another officer replies: "Who gets their news from Hot 97?"
Games
- In Rockstar's video game Grand Theft Auto IVGrand Theft Auto IVGrand Theft Auto IV is a 2008 open world action video game published by Rockstar Games, and developed by British games developer Rockstar North. It has been released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles, and for the Windows operating system...
, The Beat 102.7 radio station is a replication of Hot 97, playing contemporary hip-hop and featuring Hot 97 personality DJ Green LanternDJ Green LanternJames D'Agostino , better known by his stage name DJ Green Lantern, is an American-Italian-Puerto Rican DJ and hip hop music producer from Rochester, New York. In 2002, D'Agostino was signed by Eminem to become the official DJ for Shady Records after DJ Head stepped down for undisclosed reasons...
. The parody also pokes fun that any rapper can get famous for "getting shot outside our building!". It also uses the same imaging voice as Hot 97, Eric Edwards.
Music
- In Puff Daddy'sSean CombsSean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
song "All About The Benjamins", he says, "...Ain't nobody's hero, but I wanna be heard on your Hot 9-7 everyday, that's my word..."
- In Jay-ZJay-ZShawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010...
's song "Death of Auto-tune (D.O.A)" he mentions the radio station, saying "This is for Hot 9-7" and mentions the station's former disc jockey, DJ Clue?
- In Black Star'sBlack Star (hip hop group)Black Star is a hip hop duo composed of Mos Def and Talib Kweli.-History:Black Star arose from the underground movement of the late 1990s, which was in large part due to Rawkus Records, an independent record label stationed in New York City. They released one self titled album...
song "What's Beef", Mos DefMos DefDante Terrell Smith is an American actor and Emcee known by the stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey. He started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, which...
says: "Beef ain't the summer Jam on Hot Ninety-Seven".
External links
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