Stations sing bilingual tune
Reggaeton format drawing hip-hop auds
They sued.
KXOL's owner, Spanish Broadcasting System, had been leasing transmitter space from Emmis, the conglom behind top-rated hip-hop outfit KPWR-FM ("Power 106"). That was fine when KXOL played soft adult contemporary Spanish tunes.
But young Latinos make up a huge chunk of Power 106's audience -- and when KXOL became L.A.'s first bilingual station, "Latino 96.3," Emmis was less than pleased.
SBS found a new transmitter site, and the suit was dropped. But youth-driven upstarts like "Latino 96.3" have quickly made an impact on both English and Spanish stations.
"Many younger Latinos refused to listen to Spanish-language radio because they felt the programming didn't speak to their interests," says Alfredo Alonso, senior VP of Hispanic radio at Clear Channel. "Latinos who traditionally listened to English radio by default due to the lack of compelling content from Spanish radio finally feel there is a radio format that appeals to their lifestyle."
Most reggaeton stations are actually classified as "Hispanic Urban Contemporary," or "Hurban," and they play a healthy mix of English-language hip-hop tracks along with Afro-Caribbean rhythms.
On reggaeton and Hurban stations, DJs usually speak in English, with Spanish phrases peppered throughout. (Advertisers, slower to catch on to the bilingual nature, still mostly sell their wares in Spanish.)
Clear Channel's KLOL 101 Houston, one of the first stations outside the East Coast to switch to reggaeton programming last November, saw its ranking in its target 18-34 demo shoot up to No. 3 from an abysmal 12 after it switched to an Hurban format. KLOL's 18-34 target aud share spiked 57% between spring of '04 and '05.
"We took a tremendous leap of faith when we switched our programming, and it's great to see others jumping onto the bandwagon," Alonso says.
Clear Channel has rebranded more than 20 stations to Spanish-language formats, four of which are Reggaeton-dominant. Univision has become the biggest proponent of reggaeton, switching several stations to its "La Kalle" format.
Ratings at L.A.'s Latino 96.3 have climbed considerably since SBS launched the station in May. SBS' Puerto Rico station, launched just two days before Latino 96.3, also saw a spike in ratings when it dumped its Spanish pop format for reggaeton.
"Going bilingual, which made Latino 96.3 unique in the L.A. market, has been an advantage, especially in reaching out to our target demo of young Hispanics 18-34," says Bill Tanner, exec VP of programming at SBS.
