First air date 6 February 2004 ERP 500 mW Website retrohitradio.co.nz | Format Retro, Old School Owner private | |
Retro Hit Radio is a radio station based in Auckland, New Zealand. Retro Hit Radio has a diverse music playlist predominantly from the 1980s and 1990s. The first broadcast date was 6 February 2004 and the final broadcast date was 25 April 2010.
Contents
History
Retro Hit Radio was developed as an idea in 1996, when the building of the music library began. It began trial broadcasts in 2001, then started as a test broadcast on Waitangi Day, February 2004 on the frequency 106.9 FM in Otahuhu, and continued until a frequency change to 88.1 FM after securing a broadcast site at Goodwood Heights in November of that year, and began broadcasting to Manukau City.
On 1 October 2007, the 88.1 transmission in Manukau was switched off, and relocated to Kohimarama on the same frequency, where it was broadcasting until 10 February 2008.
The station then became a dedicated online radio station, which was based in Grey Lynn until 25 April 2010.
2013 Relaunch
The social media accounts of Retro Hit Radio have suddenly become active and sporting a new logo (pictured), suggesting a relaunch is imminent.
Format and Branding
Retro Hit Radio enjoys a diverse music playlist centered around the 1980s and 1990s. The music heard is mostly upbeat, and plays a genre-crossing mix of CHR music of the time, including pop, rock, soul, dance and early electronic, old school hip hop, power ballads, post-punk, new wave, grunge, college rock, brit-pop, indie, disco, and breakdance. Whilst this marks a similarity toward being a Jack format, the span of decades is less broad and measurably more hits-based in comparison.
The music library and music playlists reflect what was played on New Zealand, Australian, United Kingdom, and American radio stations of the era, and are key to the library of 'hits'. Promotional radio edits were sourced and used for broadcast, to present an accurate re-creation of the era. The energy and presentation of the station was loosely modeled on that of the then top rating Auckland radio stations Radio Hauraki, 89FM and Magic 91FM circa 1985 - 1992.
The radio station was identified on air by a mix of short produced elements. There are also jingles, sung by Auckland-based singer Charene Clarke. Retro Hit Radio also branded itself by employing a corporate voice for Promotional Trailers. Phil Braithwaite (Counties-Manukau Radio/Times FM) was the original corporate voice from 2004 to mid-2006, and Dan Bernstone (ZM Network/More FM) from 2006 onward. These promotional trailers detailed features - such as time specific shows (appointment listening), website information, music branding and contact information.
Broadcast license and coverage
Retro Hit Radio originally broadcast in stereo on 88.1 FM, which is one of 16 New Zealand Government licensed LPFM frequencies (GURL) available only in New Zealand. Broadcast power is restricted to 500 mW EIRP. The Manukau broadcast site for Retro Hit Radio was elevated at 140m above sea level at Goodwood Heights (near Manurewa), and provided a radius of approx 8–12 km of coverage in any direction. This is due to the flat local geography and well-serviced transmission equipment - including a PLL PRO III 4W NRG transmitter and J-pole antenna. The Kohimarama transmission was from Rawhitiroa Road which overlooks Kohimarama and St Heliers.
Internet Streaming
Retro Hit Radio streams on the internet in the aacPlus format, in stereo at 32kbit/s.
Retro Hit Radio was also an early adopter of mobile streaming. FStream was an early iOS app that made it possible to listen to the aacPlus stream with an iPhone. You could also listen online with a regular mobile phone through the Moodio directory. Tuner 2, now known as TuneIn was bundled with the aacPlus plugin by Orban for Windows Media Player.
Lineup
The weekday lineup consisted of Mark Smith (6-10am), and Richard Phelps (10-5pm). Previous announcers included David Gray, Greg Prebble, and Aidan Tavendale.
Regular Features
Daily, or regular features included the popular podcast Stuck In The 80's, hosted by Steve Spears, The Hot 9 at 9, The 80s Lunch, e-Quest Afternoons and the 90s at Night.
Saturday broadcast features included: Hotmix with DJ Fresh (start Fri from 10pm - Sat 4am), Long Player "The 12 Inches" (6-7pm) and The Retro Rave (7-10pm)
Sunday broadcast features included Hotmix with DJ Fresh (from 10pm Sat - 4am Sun), Retro Reborn (6-7pm), The Breakdown: Breakdance (7-8pm), The Breakdown: Disco Classics (8-9pm), Front Row Live! (2004-2006) (9-10pm), Guilty Pleasures (2006-2010) (9-10pm) and Sunday Crush (10pm-12mn).
Specialty Programming
Retro Hit Radio become synonymous with pre-recorded programming features, including "Guilty Pleasures", "Every Single Ever Released" and "The Top 100 #1 Hits of the 1980s". Intense research and production time was put into these shows, and were often repeated in full.
Guilty Pleasures
Guilty Pleasures was a series of pre-recorded one-hour shows hosted by Richard Phelps and guests, which showcased the "lost music" of the era, and attended to obscure listener requests.
Every Single Ever Released
Every Single Ever Released was the hallmark feature that was produced and hosted by Richard Phelps that was typically played during summer, or as a promotional tool to direct attention to an upcoming tour or album release from a core artist that was frequently played. Each show was presented as a musical documentary that followed the timeline of the artist or band, as each single was released throughout their career. These shows varied in duration, with the longest (profiling U2) at just over 4 hours. Each show grew in length, when each artist released new material. For example, with the February 2008 release of Thriller 25 by Michael Jackson, the two new remix singles released The Girl Is Mine and Wanna Be Startin' Somethin. This show was also repeated in full for the release of MJ50 on 29 August 2008. Each New Zealand summer, Every Single Ever Released was presented as a summer series, during the new year holiday break, which may include any mix of previous shows and/or new shows. Artists profiled through Every Single Ever Released have so far included Madonna, Michael Jackson, Simply Red, U2, INXS, Janet Jackson, Eurythmics, Bon Jovi, George Michael, Duran Duran, The Cure, Def Leppard, Cheap Trick, John Mellencamp and Kylie Minogue. Some or all of these shows were repeated over the New Zealand summer holidays.
2009 Shows
Other Features
"The Top 100 Retro Covers Countdown" was the final feature show broadcast on Sunday 18 April 2010 which was just 8 days before the station closure. The 100 songs were subject to research analysis coupled with audience votes via the Polldaddy website and the Facebook Group set up for the feature. The show lasted 10.5 hours in its entirety, which was by far the longest running feature that had ever been broadcast on the station.
The Top 100 #1 Hits of the 1980s was an exclusive 4-hour show hosted by Mark Smith, and was produced in October and November 2005. This show was presented in the style of an end of year featurette, with iconic audio clips of the era, and in-depth detail of the music, and how the culture and headlines were received in New Zealand during the 1980s.
The methodology behind the show's title and the music included, was based on music research and reflects New Zealand year end charts between 1980 and 1989. With this basis, a simple week by week points system determined song positions. A lot of New Zealand and Australian artists were included in this list of 100 singles, as a result of the localism of the music during this era.
"The Top 100 Retro Reggae Tracks" was first aired on 17 February 2008 and was scheduled as a yearly event on the second to last Sunday of every February. This features was compiled by audience vote, via a polling system through Polldaddy.
"The Great Kiwiana Bash" was a music feature broadcast every year on 6 February, since 2008. Only New Zealand music of the 80s and 90s is played throughout the day, to celebrate the national holiday Waitangi Day. While a 24-hour New Zealand music station currently exists, this feature is particularly notable as New Zealand-made music in the 80s and 90s received very little radio airplay at the time. This feature showcased the abundance of single releases available at the time.
"The Great ANZAC Bash" was a music feature that commemorates Anzac_Day, and was subsequently broadcast on 25 April 2009. The musical content was similar to The Great Kiwiana Bash (above), by featuring New Zealand made music of the 80s and 90s, but also including Australian-made music of the same musical period, as a gesture pointing to the ANZAC ties between the two countries.
"The Top 10 Native Retro Hits" was a featurette that showcased ten songs that were sung entirely in a mother tongue. In other words, the songs were not in the English language. The order of these songs were determined by vote however the list of songs were nominated by music research. Shortly after the broadcast of the show, an edited podcast was available for download from the website for a limited time.