Classic hits

Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes songs from the top 40 music charts from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, with music from the 1980s serving as the core of the format. Music that was popularized by MTV^[1] in the early 1980s and the nostalgia behind it^[2] is a major driver to the format. It is considered the successor to the oldies format,^[3] a collection of top 40 songs from the late 1950s through the late 1970s that was once extremely popular in the United States and Canada. The term is sometimes incorrectly used as a synonym for the adult hits format, which uses a slightly newer music library stretching from all decades to the present with a major focus on 1990s and 2000s pop, rock and alternative songs.^[4] In addition, adult hits stations tend to have larger playlists, playing a given song only a few times per week, compared to the tighter libraries on classic hits stations. For example, KRTH, a classic hits station in Los Angeles, and KSPF, a classic hits station in Dallas, both play power songs up to 30 times a week or more, which is another differentiator compared to other formats that share songs with classic hits libraries.

The classic hits format saw growth in the 2010s, with stations like KRTH, WCBS-FM in New York, WLS-FM in Chicago, WROR-FM in Boston and Greatest Hits Radio in the UK having successful ratings with this model.^[5] Classic hits was named "format of the summer of 2018"^[6] by Nielsen Audio's research team emphasizing the huge popularity of the format. In addition, the Millennial generation is listening to this format in record numbers, according to a Nielsen report.^[7] As of December 2019, there are now over 1,100 classic hits stations in the United States, the largest amount in format history.^[8]