What WBLS does

WBLS is a New York City-based R&B radio station broadcasting on 107.5 FM under an FCC license, operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of MediaCo Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: MDIA). Founded in 1973 and recently marking its 50th anniversary, WBLS positions itself as the "#1 station for R&B" in the New York metro and serves multicultural urban audiences with music programming, syndicated content (including the Steve Harvey Morning Show, weekdays 6AM–10AM), entertainment news, celebrity interviews, event promotions, and community-oriented coverage. The station's technology stack consists of traditional over-the-air FM radio broadcast infrastructure supplemented by digital audio distribution, with active social media presence on X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, a website hosting news, interviews, and event listings, and an email newsletter (WBLS Insiders) used for audience engagement. WBLS is currently extending its reach beyond the New York DMA through a partnership with Dot 2 Audio, launching branded audio content in Los Angeles, Riverside, Dallas, and Houston from December 1, 2025.

WBLS monetizes primarily through advertising and sponsorships, including on-air spots, sponsored content, and promotional partnerships with local and national advertisers targeting multicultural urban demographics. The service is free to end listeners; specific advertising rates are not publicly disclosed. Distribution is dual-channel: regional over-the-air broadcast in the New York metro, and digital audio streaming via Dot 2 Audio across four additional U.S. metros starting December 2025. The station shares a corporate parent and operational infrastructure with sibling urban-format station HOT 97, enabling bundled advertiser offerings across two of the highest-rated multicultural stations in the U.S. Awards recognition (Billboard Air Personality of the Year, 1999; three NYC Council Proclamations; Ida B. Wells Journalism Award; Lincoln Center Award) and a careers portal suggest an established organization of 101–250 employees headquartered in New York.

Name

WBLS

Legal name

WBLS

Website

https://wbls.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

WBLS is a New York City R&B radio station (107.5 FM) owned by MediaCo Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: MDIA), serving multicultural urban audiences with music, syndicated shows, news, and events, and expanding to four additional U.S. metros via Dot 2 Audio from December 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Radio Broadcasting

NAICS

Radio Broadcasting Stations (51611)

SIC

Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)

akta.pro primary industry

Talk/News/Sports Radio Networks & Syndication (MPAIAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Internet Radio & Streaming Broadcast Stations (Simulcast/Online-only) (MPAIAEAE)

Keywords

• R&B radio broadcasting
• Urban music programming
• Multicultural digital audio
• Entertainment news coverage
• Community event promotion

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advertising and Sponsorships: Radio broadcast advertising including on-air spots, sponsored content, and promotional partnerships with local and national advertisers targeting the multicultural urban audience demographic.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

WBLS is a New York City-based urban R&B radio station (107.5 FM) that broadcasts music programming, syndicated morning shows (Steve Harvey Morning Show), entertainment news, celebrity interviews, and live event promotions to multicultural urban audiences. The station reaches listeners through over-the-air FM broadcast and is expanding its brands to digital audio platforms (Dot 2 Audio) across additional U.S. markets, with revenue primarily generated through advertising and sponsorship.

Product overview

WBLS is a New York City-based R&B radio station (107.5 FM) operated by MediaCo Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: MDIA), positioned as the #1 station for R&B music. The station offers a combination of live radio programming including syndicated shows like the Steve Harvey Morning Show (6AM-10AM weekdays), local talent programs (The Quiet Storm with Lenny Green, The Déja Vu Show, JusNik Show, Ann Tripp), news content, artist interviews, and live event promotions. The station also maintains a digital presence with Dot 2 audio expansion to multiple U.S. cities. The offering is a traditional radio broadcast platform supplemented by digital content distribution and an email newsletter service.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WBLS 107.5 FM Radio Broadcast New York City-based R&B radio station broadcasting on 107.5 FM, positioned as the #1 station for R&B music and urban culture for multicultural audiences in the New York metropolitan area.
• Steve Harvey Morning Show Nationally syndicated morning radio show featuring Steve Harvey, airing on WBLS weekdays from 6AM to 10AM, targeted at urban morning commuters and R&B audiences.
• WBLS Events & Ticket Sales Promotion of live music events featuring artists such as Lionel Richie, Keith Sweat, and Bruno Mars, with ticket purchase links provided to listeners and the multicultural urban audience.
• WBLS Insiders Email Newsletter Email subscription service delivering latest news, artist updates, and exclusive offers from artists and events to engaged listeners of the station.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Dot 2 AudiocoreTechnology or Integration · 1 December 2025Digital audio platform partnership for distributing WBLS and HOT 97 branded content to listeners in Los Angeles, Riverside, Dallas, and Houston markets, expanding the station's geographic reach through digital streaming.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Urban One: Urban One (formerly Radio One) is the largest U.S. radio broadcasting company targeting African American and urban listeners, operating radio stations across multiple U.S. markets. Like WBLS, it focuses on urban, R&B, and hip-hop formats with a multicultural audience, making it the closest direct competitor in the urban-contemporary radio space.
• Emmis Communications: Emmis Communications was the historic owner of HOT 97 and WBLS before the MediaCo sale and remains a focused urban-format radio operator. Emmis's history with these stations makes it a direct precedent for media company-owned urban radio brands and a close peer in format specialization.

Broad incumbents

• iHeartMedia: iHeartMedia is the largest radio broadcaster in the United States, operating more than 850 stations across diverse formats including R&B and hip-hop in major markets. While not focused on the urban format, iHeart competes directly for the same multicultural advertising dollars and has launched iHeartRadio as a digital streaming platform competing with WBLS's digital expansion.
• Audacy: Audacy (formerly Entercom/CBS Radio) is the second-largest U.S. radio broadcaster with stations in major markets including New York, operating formats spanning sports, news, R&B, and hip-hop. Audacy competes with WBLS for both listeners in NYC and national digital audio advertising budgets through its Audacy app streaming platform.
• Cumulus Media: Cumulus Media is a major U.S. radio operator with hundreds of stations across multiple formats, including urban and R&B programming in select markets. It competes with WBLS at the industry level for advertising share-of-wallet and has invested in digital audio via the Westwood One distribution platform.
• Salem Communications: Salem Communications operates a network of radio stations across the U.S. with a focus on talk, news, and Christian/conservative formats. While its format mix differs from WBLS's urban R&B, Salem is a comparable commercial radio operator competing for similar advertiser relationships and audience scale in select markets.

Others

• MediaCo Holding Inc. MediaCo Holding Inc. (Nasdaq: MDIA) is WBLS's parent company and a relevant peer in that it directly controls WBLS and HOT 97 as a public-market urban radio platform. While not a direct competitor, MediaCo's public valuation and strategic decisions are the most direct benchmark for WBLS's enterprise value.

Regional players

• Townsquare Media: Townsquare Media is a U.S. radio broadcaster focused on small and mid-sized markets with limited presence in the largest metros. While it does not directly compete with WBLS in NYC, it competes for the same national advertising budgets and has built a digital content platform comparable in strategy to WBLS's Dot 2 Audio expansion.

Emerging players

• REVOLT Media: REVOLT is a Sean 'Diddy' Combs-founded music media company focused on hip-hop culture, originally a TV channel and now a digital platform reaching the same multicultural urban audience as WBLS. REVOLT competes with WBLS for audience attention in the hip-hop and R&B space, particularly among younger digital-native listeners.
• Pandora (SiriusXM): Pandora, owned by SiriusXM, is one of the largest U.S. music streaming services with significant R&B and hip-hop listenership that overlaps with WBLS's target demographic. Pandora represents the digital audio competitor most threatening to WBLS's over-the-air listenership base as audience attention shifts from FM to on-demand streaming.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/WBLS1075FM
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/wblsfm1075
• Facebookfacebook.com/WBLS1075NYC
• Instagraminstagram.com/WBLS1075NYC

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WBLS