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Will Chicago get a true AC station especially with SHE 100.3?

TheM1ghtyBear

TheM1ghtyBear

Ever since SHE 100.3 rebranded twice within the past four years, do you think we’ll have a Mainstream AC station anytime soon in Chicago? Especially with SHE 100.3 because that station is one of the lowest-rated stations in the city.
 
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I'd call WLIT a Mainstream AC. Lack of currents in the playlist is not a disqualifier for usage of that term. WLIT has picked up the tempo a bit and is not quite as soft as it once was.

In hindsight, it was a mistake for She 100.3 to abandon Mainstream AC for 90s & 00s pop hits. I'd be surprised if 100.3 doesn't make a significant programming change at some point this year.
 
100.3 has been Mainstream AC several times. It was most successful in around 1999 when Country crossover and movie soundtrack songs were big hits. Successful enough that it made WLIT rebrand out of it's original presentation of DJs just reading the songs without imaging. Last time 100.3 was Mainstream AC was years ago. They also did several variations of Adult Hits.

March 2nd, 2015 was the day the WSHE calls launched there. They were a doing somewhat of a Modern AC format but it was Mainstream AC again a few months later
 
WLIT before it went Soft AC struggled to find its identity. Now I guess they found it. They are at the top.

On the other hand, I wonder why Sunny 99.1 in Houston, another iHeart AC station, is doing so well. Are more younger families living in Houston and demographics are just significantly different? I have no idea but am curious to see why AC doesn’t do as well in Chicago than it does in Houston, comparatively speaking.

Maybe WBBM-FM should go AC and give that a try. That or Adult Hits. Could chip away some numbers from WLIT and WDRV-FM, respectively.
 
Alex_0490 said:
WLIT before it went Soft AC struggled to find its identity. Now I guess they found it. They are at the top.

On the other hand, I wonder why Sunny 99.1 in Houston, another iHeart AC station, is doing so well. Are more younger families living in Houston and demographics are just significantly different? I have no idea but am curious to see why AC doesn’t do as well in Chicago than it does in Houston, comparatively speaking.

Maybe WBBM-FM should go AC and give that a try. That or Adult Hits. Could chip away some numbers from WLIT and WDRV-FM, respectively.
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WLIT's identity was Soft AC for many years until the 2000s. They're basically playing what they were known for. It was "Lite FM" for years, then they tried "Lite Rock 93.9" and for a long time "93.9 WLIT" as they shifted toward Mainstream AC. A lot of what they did was out of reaction over what 100.3 did. Then 100.3 would tweak again.
 
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Can you call 100.3 an AC when they’re playing Snoop Dogg’s Gin and Juice? When I was Chicago for Thanksgiving, it sounded borderline hot AC.

What if Bonneville were to do something totally different, like active rock, or (dare I say) FM sports or news/talk?
 
golden eagles97 said:
Can you call 100.3 an AC when they’re playing Snoop Dogg’s Gin and Juice? When I was Chicago for Thanksgiving, it sounded borderline hot AC.

What if Bonneville were to do something totally different, like active rock, or (dare I say) FM sports or news/talk?
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100.3 has not been AC since 2019. Basically Adult Hits, then they started doing weekend features with a focus on 90s and 2000s. That's how they got to the current format.

Bonneville doesn't own 100.3 anymore. Hubbard has owned the cluster for almost 13 years.

Doubt anybody will do Active Rock. Bad track record in Chicago. Sports, only if they lease it. News/Talk and run what? Aside from WGN, that format also does not get the greatest ratings in Chicago either.
 
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100.3 has had an Adult Hits format since at least 2019, 2020, one of several in the last two decades. They're simply doing a variation with a 90s and 2000s lean. The variation they had prior to this one was also heavy on the 90s and 2000s, but it also had a lot more 80s. They still have 80s, not much. They removed currents at some point prior to the current variation. Early 2022 maybe. Earlier possible.

The station does subtle format tweaks without any other major changes all the time. Been that way for 30+ years
 
Alex_0490 said:
WLIT before it went Soft AC struggled to find its identity. Now I guess they found it. They are at the top.

On the other hand, I wonder why Sunny 99.1 in Houston, another iHeart AC station, is doing so well. Are more younger families living in Houston and demographics are just significantly different? I have no idea but am curious to see why AC doesn’t do as well in Chicago than it does in Houston, comparatively speaking.

Maybe WBBM-FM should go AC and give that a try. That or Adult Hits. Could chip away some numbers from WLIT and WDRV-FM, respectively.
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B96 is a thing of the past but I don’t really see it going towards AC. I can see it tweak towards Hot AC or simulcast their sister station 670.
 
Alex_0490 said:
On the other hand, I wonder why Sunny 99.1 in Houston, another iHeart AC station, is doing so well. Are more younger families living in Houston and demographics are just significantly different? I have no idea but am curious to see why AC doesn’t do as well in Chicago than it does in Houston, comparatively speaking.
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Sunny really doesn’t have anyone going after them. Houston has one AC, one hot AC, one very adult leaning CHR, and one adult hits. No classic hits. No rhythmic AC. No soft AC. No AAA. And given how ownership has been split up, it’s hard to see them getting more competition in either AC or any of those other categories.
 
Why do you think WDRV could/should rebrand? Seems like they are doing well and format changes don’t come without risk. And “AC” seems trickier than ever to program.
 
Bear is talking about Cities 97 in Minneapolis, not WDRV.

I suspect everyone knows The Drive is highly successful, and that there's zero reason for them to rebrand or change formats.
 
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