However, R&B and hip hop artists, such as Usher, Mary J Blige, Destiny's Child, Jay-Z, Ja Rule, Will Smith, and Mya, would soon become the station's focus. The station was also most notorious for their mix shows, aired throughout the day (and night), providing its listeners with obscure remixes of hit songs, as well as lesser-known gems.īy 1998, B96's primary playlist eliminated much of the 'dance' component and focused more on the Top 40 'pop' format, ranging from the teen pop acts, such as Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, N'Sync, Christina Aguliera, Robyn, and the Spice Girls to rock-leaning artists such as Jewel, Aerosmith, Third Eye Blind, Sugar Ray, Hanson, and the Goo Goo Dolls. However, it was extremely rare for B96 to hard rock or alternative tracks that were hits at the time. Occasionally, B96 would play ballads, ranging from pop, R&B, & freestyle, in addition to Adult Contemporary artists, such as Celine Dion and Bryan Adams. Finally, traditional pop artists like Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Mariah Carey, and Whitney Houston were also represented. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Coolio, TLC, Bobby Brown, Blackstreet, Brandy, 2pac, the Notorious BIG, Boyz II Men, among others also received airplay on B96 as well. In addition to dance music, crossover R&B and rap artists like SWV, Dr.
to find success with that formula during that decade.
Under this direction B96 would see ratings skyrocket out of nowhere and through most of the decade would set the standard as a cutting-edge leader regarding dance acts, making it one of the rare major market, full signal commercial stations in the U.S. Even local talent, such as Fast Eddie, LaTour, Dajae, Cajmere, Max-a-Million, 20 Fingers, and the Outhere Brothers received heavy airplay on B96. Throughout most of the decade, B96 focused largely on dance artists, such as Black Box, Technotronic, Dee-Lite, CeCe Peniston, Real McCoy, Lil Suzy, La Bouche, Rozella, Crystal Waters, Culture Beat, Corona, Cathy Dennis, Daft Punk, and many others.
The station provided an enjoyable balance of R&B, Hip Hop, Freestyle, Euro-Dance, House, Techno, and Rhythmic-leaning Pop music. Arguably, B96's most successful period occurred during the 1990s after evolving from a standard top 40 station a decade earlier to a very dance-leaning Rhythmic CHR station.