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Broadcast area | South Africa, Broadcast In Gauteng |
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Frequency | 99.2(MHz) |
Branding | "99.2 Yfm" |
Programming | |
Format | Urban Contemporary |
Ownership | |
None | |
History | |
First air date | 1997 |
Call sign meaning | "For the Youth" |
Links | |
Webcast | Listen Live |
Website | www |
YFM (99.2 FM) is a "Youth" radio station in Johannesburg, South Africa. Established in 1997, the station is formatted to mostly play urban music genres such as Kwaito, Hip Hop, and R&B along with a minority of its airtime being dedicated to talk shows. As noted by the name, the station's core audience consists of young South Africans.
99.2 YFM is Gauteng’s leading youth radio station.[citation needed]
YFM characterizes their core audience as "young South Africans who are imaginative, curious and ambitious. They are continuously seeking new ways to improve their lives and their communities so that they are able to lead successful and rewarding lives."[1]
YFM describes itself as "the soundtrack to an urban life – fast-paced, energetic and uplifting with a mix of a few quiet moments so that you can catch your breath in the middle of Jozi madness." Hip-Hop, house, kwaito, and R&B form the core of YFM’s sound, with occasional rock or pop music thrown in. YFM devotes 80% of airtime to music, but the rest goes to talk radio.[1]
YFM was one of the first venues for Kwaito artists, and the station owes much of its success to the success of Kwaito. As YFM's DJ Fresh was quoted by BBC World, "A majority of artists who are big right now - we made them they made us."[2]