Radio Guide

1

Why is radio important for the Billboard charts?

Most major music charts incorporate radio as a primary ranking metric besides streams and sales. The more a song is played across various radio stations, the higher its potential for climbing the charts. Airplay also plays a crucial role in determining the longevity of a song on the charts.

Most songs nowadays on the Hot 100 can see a decline in streaming or sales, but consistent airplay can keep it charting for weeks or even months.

2

Can you just request any song on radio?

Not really. The artist has to pick a track to "service" to radio. That just means a track is submitted to radio personnel and then usually they decide to play it or not. It's the primary way to be heard by a diverse audience.

Some DJs curate playlists for specific songs and put those songs in it. They can be popular songs or fresh new tracks that can receive exposure.

For example, Lover Girl is Megan's most recent song to receive airplay. It's mostly played on Rhythmic or Urban stations—basically, any station that plays Hip-Hop/Rap or R&B.

3

How can I request Megan on the radio?

You can download the iHeart Radio app and have your location set. Then you'll see your nearest radio station. You can request by clicking the microphone on the top right and request Lover Girl.

iHeart Radio owns most of the radio stations in the US. They currently own over 860+ radio stations in 160 markets in the US.

See all iHeart Radio stations here

→ Look up your local stations! You can generally find a studio line or a number to text when requesting a specific song.

4

How can I see how a song is doing on radio?

Check airplay charts like the Billboard Radio Songs chart and Mediabase for spins and audience impressions.

Use Kworb Radio for daily spins, audience, and station adds.

See AllAccess Mediabase for station-by-station data.

Check Shazam Radio Spins for trending songs on radio by region and format.

Follow US Radio Updater on X/Twitter or visit their website for daily updates on spins, adds, and audience impressions for songs on US radio.

Headline Planet (website and X/Twitter) posts updates on the most added songs to stations from Mediabase and airplay gainers.

5

How does Shazam help?

Shazam uses its music recognition technology to identify and rank music being played on over 40,000 radio stations worldwide. That includes both radio stations who still transmit music the conventional style and internet radio stations. Shazam often sends its data to radio stations to determine the popularity of a song and can have an impact on whether a song should be played. (Shazam is owned by Apple.)

You can Shazam a song by downloading the mobile app on the App Store or Google Play, then playing the song and opening the Shazam app to identify it. If you're on an iOS device, you can also play the song and use the Shazam button in your Control Center. Both options work.

→ Android users can Shazam the same song as many times as you want if you clear data. Otherwise, Shazams on the same song will count once per 24 hours.

→ iOS users can Shazam only one song per day, and only one Shazam per Apple device will count.

→ USA radio stations have access to data from worldwide Shazams. It's highly encouraged to turn on location tracking for regional charts so your Shazams can count there as well.

→ Radio stations all over the world factor in Shazam counts to determine the popularity of a song and whether the track will be played.

6

RateTheMusic

RateTheMusic gives YOU the power to directly influence what music plays on your favorite radio station! By joining RateTheMusic (it’s free!), you’ll be a part of the radio and music industry’s #1 national testing service for music, which artists, record labels, radio stations and other media count on. - ratethemusic

Make sure to sign up on the RateTheMusic website to be sent surveys to your email that help determine what songs can be played on radio stations. For example, you can sign up for the Rhythmic Radio survey and you'll see "Lover Girl" in the survey. It will ask you 3 questions—make sure to put yes for "familiar with the song", like it a lot for rating, and no for "tired of hearing the song".