A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and are subject to often change.^[1] Music radio, old time radio, all-news radio, sports radio, talk radio and weather radio describe the operation of different genres of radio format and each format can often be sub-divided into many specialty formats.

List of formats[link]

Formats constantly evolve and each format can often be sub-divided into many specialty formats. Some of the following formats are available only regionally or through specialized venues such as satellite radio or Internet radio.^[2]

• Active rock^[2]
• Adult album alternative (or just adult alternative) (AAA or Triple-A)^[2]
• Adult contemporary music (AC)^[2]
• Adult standards / nostalgia (pre-rock)^[2]
• Adult hits / variety hits
• Album rock / album-oriented rock (AOR)^[2]
• Alternative rock^[2]
• Americana^[2]
• Beautiful music
• Big band^[2]
• Bluegrass
• Blues
• Caribbean (reggae, soca, merengue, cumbia, salsa, etc.)
• Children's
• Christmas music (usually seasonal, mainly December)
• Classic hits
• Classic rock^[2]
• Classical^[2]
• College radio
• Comedy
• Contemporary Christian (which is also known as CCM)
• Contemporary hit radio (CHR), occasionally still informally known as top-40 / hot hits^[2])^[2]
• Contemporary classical music
• Country music: ^[2]
  • New country/Young country
  • Classic country
• Dance (dance top-40)^[2]
• Eclectic
• Ethnic/International^[2]
• Educational
• Experimental
• Folk music
• Full-service (talk and variety music)
• Freeform radio (DJ-selected)
• Hot adult contemporary (Hot AC)^[2]
• Hispanic rhythmic
• Indian music
• Jazz^[2]
• Lite adult contemporary (Lite AC)^[2]
• Mainstream rock
• middle of the road (MOR)
• Modern adult contemporary (Modern AC)
• Modern rock^[2]
• All-news radio
• Oldies - Primarily 1955-early '80s pop music^[2]
• Progressive rock
• Psychedelic rock
• Quiet Storm (most often a "day-part" format at Urban Stations, i.e. 7p-12 midnight,)
• Radio documentary
• Radio drama
• Ranchera
• Regional Mexican (Banda, corridos, ranchera, conjunto, mariachi, norteño, etc.)
• Rhythmic adult contemporary
• Rhythmic contemporary (Rhythmic Top 40)
• Rhythmic oldies
• Rock^[2]
• Rock en español
• Romántica (Spanish AC)
• Smooth jazz^[2]
• Soft adult contemporary (soft AC)
• Soft rock
• Soul music
• Space music
• Sports
• Spanish sub-formats: ^[2]
  • Tejano music (Texas/Mexican music)
  • Also see: Ranchera, Regional Mexican, Romántica, and Tropical
• Talk radio
  • Conservative talk radio
  • Progressive talk radio
  • Public talk radio
  • Hot talk/shock jocks
• Traditional pop music
• Tropical (salsa, merengue, cumbia, etc.)
• Urban: ^[2]
  • Urban contemporary (mostly rap, hip hop, soul, and R&B artists)
  • Urban adult contemporary (Urban AC)^[2] - R&B, soul and sometimes gospel music, without rap
• Variety
• World music^[2]

See also[link]

Radio portal

• Radio broadcasting
• Television format
• Top 40

References[link]

For Real was an American R&B and soul quartet, that formed in 1993.^[1] In the latter part of that decade they were nominated for a Grammy, Billboard Music Award, and Soul Train Music Award.

Biography[link]

For Real secured their recording contract by accident. "We were picking up our manager from the airport. So we decided to greet him with an acappella song. Someone from A&M Records just happened to be in the airport and heard them perform. Not long after, they were signed," said Latanyia Baldwin.^[2]

The band released their debut album, It's a Natural Thang, with production from Brian McKnight on A&M Records in 1994, and it became a critical success, including a rare four stars from Rolling Stone magazine.^[3] Their first single, "You Don't Wanna Miss" hit #28 on the Billboard chart, courtesy of a danceable new jack swing remix by Steve "Silk" Hurley, which was featured in the song's video. A second single, "Easy to Love", peaked at #65 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The album scored another chart hit with the a cappella love song, "You Don't Know Nothin'", which was written and produced by Mervyn Warren, and which peaked at #27. The song peaked at #54 in the UK Singles Chart in July 1995.^[4] The album sold over one million copies worldwide, and peaked at #80 on the Billboard 200.

In 1995, the band appeared in Italian Vogue, modeling men's suits. They toured alongside Stevie Wonder,^[5] and lent their voices to the Martin Scorsese film project Grace of My Heart. The foursome also forayed into acting with appearances in the film Shake, Rattle and Rock! starring Renée Zellweger and Howie Mandel^[6] on Showtime.

They also hit the US Top 20 with the single "Freedom (Theme from Panther)" featuring Aaliyah, TLC, En Vogue, BlackGirl, SWV, and Vanessa Williams from the film Panther. They also recorded a duet with Stevie Wonder called "Stubborn Kind of Fellow", which appeared on the Marvin Gaye tribute album, Inner City Blues: The Music of Marvin Gaye.^[7] For Real also recorded songs for the soundtracks of the films Waiting to Exhale and Fled.

After a label change from A&M to Dallas Austin's Arista imprint Rowdy Records in 1996, For Real struck again with the Austin-produced, 60s-leaning single "Like I Do", from their second album Free. "Like I Do" hit #10 on the Billboard singles chart. The video also earned a Billboard nomination for Best R&B Clip; the album made the Top 100, and sold nearly 400,000 copies in the US. The album's next and last single was the Diane Warren-penned pop ballad "The Saddest Song I Ever Heard" which hit #65 on the Top 100 singles chart. The band performed "Saddest Song" on the TV series All That. Free included production from top R&B/pop producers like Babyface, Mario Winans, and Jon B..

The band also recorded three songs ("I Do", "Born to Love That Boy" and "Unwanted Number") and appeared in the critically acclaimed film Grace of My Heart. The film's soundstrack won a Satellite Award in 1997.^[9][10]

In January 1997, the band won an American Music Award for their work on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack, in Summer 1997, the group earned a Soul Train Award nomination for Album of the Year (By a Group, Band or Duo) for Free.

In 1999, Wendi Williams lent her voice to the Emmy-winning film Introducing Dorothy Dandridge with Halle Berry, in which Berry plays a singer but Williams is behind her singing voice.^[11]

In 2002, their song "Love Will Be Waiting at Home" appeared in the film Two Can Play That Game, which starred Vivica A. Fox and Morris Chestnut.

In 2009, CoryLavel began to work with Josina Elder on her new album.

Discography[link]

• It's a Natural Thang (1994)
• Free (1996)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• SingingFool.com Streaming music videos for "Like I Do" and "The Saddest Song I Ever Heard"
• Allmusic^{[dead link]} Discography, biographies, and pictures
• IUMA Group photos, lyrics, message board, audio streams, and biography
• Google Album info, photos, and lyrics