The Blend (Sirius XM)
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| File:The Blend logo.svg | |
| Broadcast area | United States, Canada |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Sirius XM Radio 6 Dish Network 6006 |
| Branding | The Blend |
| Programming | |
| Format | Soft Adult Contemporary |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Sirius XM Radio |
| History | |
First air date | February 2, 2004 |
| Technical information | |
| Class | Satellite Radio Station |
| Links | |
| Website | SiriusXM:The Blend |
The Blend is a Pop music channel on Sirius XM Radio, broadcasting on channel 16 and Dish Network channel 6016. The channel was added to XM on February 2, 2004 in response to demands by customers which desired a Soft Adult Contemporary music radio channel, ever since Clear Channel-owned New York City adult contemporary station WLTW (which was XM 24) left XM on December 1, 2003 to make room for Sunny, also owned by Clear Channel. On November 12, 2008, The Blend was added to Sirius' channel lineup, replacing StarLite as part of the company's channel merger.
Sirius XM describes the channel as "A Perfect Blend", although since it leans towards mainstream rock and pop, the station plays no urban music. In 2008, The Blend tweaked its format to more of an older-skewing sound, and dropping matchbox 20, Lifehouse, Rod Stewart and Train from the playlist, along with all the 1970s and most of the 1980s songs, bringing the channel in a more FM-minded direction. The music is targeted for the middle aged group, especially for those who are age 50 or older. The channel broadcasts in the United States and Canada.
The channel is one of the most popular choices for businesses, being used in retail stores, doctor's offices, and restaurants all over.
Many subscribers were unhappy with the change and, in September 2009, The Blend modified its playlist, dropping most of the 1970s songs. The new playlist closely resembled the former Sirius channel StarLite, taking the format in a more Hard Rock direction. The 1960s & 1970s songs are still found on sister channel The Bridge. In addition, most of the soft AC songs were moved to sister channel Sirius XM Love. The Blend eventually relocated its studios from XM's Washington, D.C. studios to Sirius XM's New York City headquarters, where Starlite used to broadcast from. The channel's callsign continues as X025-FM rather than S002-FM, Starlite's old callsign.
In mid-September many of the old Starlite jingles returned; the only difference being that the word "Starlite" was replaced by "The Blend." However, the following month, the channel dropped most titles released as singles prior to 1960, including the remaining 1960s songs. Most of the 1950s songs formerly played by sister hot AC channel The Pulse are now played on The Blend.
As of January 2010, The Blend has since tweaked its playlist by re-adding more early 1950s songs, as a mix towards the old Blend and Starlite. In May 2011, Sirius XM moved the blend to channel 16 as a part of their channel integration plan.