| CKZZ-FM | |
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| City of license | Vancouver, British Columbia |
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| Broadcast area | Metro Vancouver |
| Branding | Virgin Radio 953 |
| Slogan | It's On |
| Frequency | 95.3 MHz (FM) |
| First air date | May 23, 1991 |
| Format | Hot AC |
| ERP | 71.3 kilowatts |
| HAAT | 686 metres |
| Class | C |
| Transmitter coordinates | 49°21′27″N 122°57′14″W / 49.357365°N 122.953776°WCoordinates: 49°21′27″N 122°57′14″W / 49.357365°N 122.953776°W |
| Callsign meaning | C K Z Z95.3 (reference to old station branding) |
| Owner | Astral Media (Astral Media Radio G.P.) |
| Sister stations | CISL |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | Virgin Radio 953 |
CKZZ-FM (95.3 FM, "Virgin Radio 953") is a Canadian radio station in the Greater Vancouver region of British Columbia. It broadcasts at 95.3 MHz on the FM band with an effective radiated power of 71,300 watts from a transmitter on Mount Seymour, and its studios are located in Richmond. The station has had a hot adult contemporary format since 2004, and is owned by Astral Media. Between June 3 and June 5, 2007, the station changed branding from Z953, to "95 Crave," retaining the same hot AC format with many of the same characteristics as Z953. At 4 pm PST January 8, 2009 the station changed branding once again, this time to "Virgin Radio 953".
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History
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approved an application for a new commercial FM radio station at Vancouver on the frequency 95.3 MHz. [1]
CKZZ signed on air at 8 a.m. on May 23, 1991, and ran commercial-free until May 27. The first song played was Here We Go (Let's Rock & Roll) by C&C Music Factory. Founded by South Fraser Broadcasting and controlled by Michael Dickinson, it shares studio and office space with sister station CISL AM650. The station's format was authorized by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) as dance music, and quickly gained popularity among younger audiences in the market.
In 1995, CKZZ and CISL were sold to Standard Radio. The $18 million CAD purchase was approved by the CRTC in 1996. Following this sale, Z95.3 began to move from the dance format it was licensed for to a contemporary hit radio format.
The station's success continued into 2001, and ranked number two overall among radio stations in the Vancouver market in the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement ratings for much of the year. Its website also ranked 28th on the list of the "50 Best Radio Station Websites in the World", compiled by U.S. trade publication "Radio Ink". In addition, Z95.3 was named "Station of the Year" by Canadian Music Week in March 2002.
In August 2002, the station changed formats again, edging away from its "contemporary hits" format and using the slogan "The Best of the Nineties and Today".
In February 2004, the station started playing an uninterrupted stream of hit music from its 13-year history, in preparation for another format change. The station switched to a "Hot Adult Contemporary" format in March, with the slogan "Zed Ninety-Five Three, Your Music Your Zed, with the Best of the 80s, 90s and Now". Ironically, the station was named "CHR Station of the Year" by Canadian Music Week a few days before its format switch.
Another format tweak came in September 2005, with the station dropping most of its eighties and nineties playlist and moving towards an adult top 40 format. The slogan, "Today's Best Music", was first used on sister station CJFM Montreal, and both CKZZ and CJFM had identical playlists.
In the spring of 2007, the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement, released its yearly reports indicating that Z953 had a 3.6% share of the Vancouver radio market and finishing as the 12th most listened to radio station. During the 1990s the station constantly remained in the top three Vancouver radio stations. Such a drop in ratings over the years prompted the end of Z953 and the creation of 95 Crave.
95 Crave
Before midnight on June 3, 2007, Z95-3 played its last song, Walk Away by Kelly Clarkson. The hot AC format was temporarily dropped, and the station began in stunting mode playing a mix of comedy/novelty songs, TV show and movie bits, etc. The station was re-named "95 Crave", retaining the same adult top 40 sound as Z95-3. The first song was Music by Madonna.
In October 2007, Astral Media acquired Standard Broadcasting's terrestrial radio and television assets, including CKZZ.
The final song played on Crave was Amanda Marshall's Beautiful Goodbye.
Virgin Radio
On January 8, 2009, CKZZ switched brandings yet again, and was rebranded as a Virgin Radio station, joining sister stations CKFM-FM (Toronto). This move had been announced December 4, 2008.[2]
Formats
- 1991-1996: Dance
- 1996-2002: Contemporary hit radio
- 2002-2004: "'90s & Today"
- 2004-Present: Hot AC
References
- ^ Decision CRTC 90-1094
- ^ Astral press release, December 4, 2008
External links
- Virgin Radio 953
- CKZZ-FM history at Canadian Communications Foundation
- Query the REC's Canadian station database for CKZZ-FM
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