Reach Media Pulls the Plug on 'The Ed Lover Morning Show'

The Reach Media-syndicated Ed Lover morning show will be discontinued at the end of the year. Launched two years ago and placed on a number of Radio One classic hip-hop stations, the program was down to two FM and one AM affiliates, along with a number of HD Radio-fed translator outlets.

Lover, who came to fame as host of “Yo! MTV Raps,” will continue his weekend program available through the syndicator.

The morning show was placed on a number of stations that were part of the explosion of classic hip-hop stations that sprouted up a few years ago, many of which have since adjusted to a more throwback R&B focus. Mitch Henry, manager of network operations for Reach Media, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Lover will broadcast his last live show Friday, with reruns planned for Christmas week.

The paper is also speculating that Lover’s Atlanta affiliate “Boom 102.9,” which airs on the Decatur, GA-licensed translator W275BK at 102.9, may adjust from classic hip-hop to an “old-school R&B format” and place Tom Joyner in mornings. Joyner, who announced his retirement effective at the end of 2019, was recently dropped from Cox Media crosstown urban AC “Kiss 104-1” WALR.

Also opening up a hole for the throwback R&B format in the market was the recent move of The Steve Hegwood-owned “Old School 87.7” to “Mix 87.7,” which is now playing contemporary R&B from the ‘80s, ‘90s and 2000s.

Source: Inside Radio