Country Aircheck

In This Issue (6/29)

"It makes me want to tear up a bit, I’ll be honest with you.”

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Radio Vision

Gimme That Whirl: Quartz Hill's Joe Nichols (l) with KNEI/Waukon, IA's Josh Blake at the Mighty Howard County Fair.

Road Less Settled: WJVL/Janesville, WI's Justin Brown with Big Loud's Lauren Alaina (l) and Warner/WRN's Ashley McBryde at Old Settlers Days.

God, Family, Kountry: SiriusXM's 4th of July Guest DJ with Craig Morgan (pictured with SXM's "Trapper" John Morris) airs on Y2Kountry (channel 57) throughout the weekend.

Opry-tunity Knocks: Singer/songwriter Adam Sanders at his Grand Ole Opry debut with SiriusXM's Lauryn Snapp and Cody Alan.

Fest Friends Forever: Stoney Creek's Lanie Gardner (r) with the label's Lexi Willson and WQMX/Akron's Sarah Kay and Cherise Richards (l-r) at Country Fest.

You've Got A Friend In Me: KFGE/Lincoln, NE (Brooke Summers, Cory Edmondson, Johanna Buresh, Brian Streeter and Maria Mickelson, l-r) host a Toy Story 5 Toy Drive for unhoused children and youth in crisis.

Signage: Trio Restless Road (front, l-r: Garrett Nichols, Colton Pack and Zach Beeken) sign with Empire Nashville. Pictured (back, l-r) are the label's Zak Waters, Neon Coast's Martha Earls, the label's Jen Way, Neon Coast's Tyler Corrado and the label's Eric Hurt.

In My Wildest Streams: Hey Now's Kenny Chesney received the Pandora Billionaire plaque for more than eight billion streams at SiriusXM's Music Row Happy Hour in Las Vegas. Pictured (l-r) are SXM's Tommy Massad, Kizzi Barazetti and Buzz Brainard, Chesney and SXM's Johnny Chiang.

Nate Night: RCA's Nate Smith (l) with Music Choice's Jim Murphy at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium.

Show Bidness: The Society of Leaders in Development (SOLID) raises more than $27,000 at its annual Backstage Auction for the CMA Foundation. Pictured (l-r) are SOLID's Alannah Schwartz, Nina Teapot Owens, Eunice Hernandez, Brendan McManus and Brian Day and the CMA's Victoria Rutledge, Sarah McKenzie, Lindsey Morrison and Michelle Kirk.

Top Stories

May CDM Ratings

Independence Rate: Here are select Nielsen Audio Continuous Diary Measurement (CDM) ratings for May 2026 (three-month rolling average, 3/5-5/27) compared with March and April. Ranks (in parentheses) are among subscribers. Unless otherwise noted, all figures are Persons 12+, Monday-Sunday, 6am-midnight.

Albuquerque, NM (Market 72)	KBQI iHeartMedia 3.8 (6) - 4.0 (5) - 4.4 (4) Largest share since Dec. 2023. KBQI-HD2 iHeartMedia Cl. Ctry. 1.6 (13t) - 1.5 (15t) - 1.9 (12t) KRST Cumulus Does not subscribe.
Allentown, PA (75)	WCTO Cumulus Does not subscribe.
El Paso, TX (77)	KHEY iHeartMedia 5.2 (7) - 5.2 (7) - 5.0 (6)
Fresno, CA (67)	KHGE iHeartMedia 2.7 (9) - 2.0 (10) - 1.9 (11t) KSKS Cumulus Does not subscribe.
Knoxville, TN (71)	WCYQ SummitMedia 3.3 (6) - 3.8 (5) - 3.7 (5t) WDKW Midwest Classic Country 2.1 (9) - 1.8 (9) - 1.9 (9t) WIVK Cumulus Does not subscribe.
Wilkes-Barre, PA (81)	WGGY Audacy 7.4 (2) - 5.9 (3) - 6.1 (3)

Jul 2, 2026 Share

May CDM Ratings

May To Order: Here are select Nielsen Audio Continuous Diary Measurement (CDM) ratings for May 2026 (three-month rolling average, 3/5-5/27) compared with March and April. Ranks (in parentheses) are among subscribers. Unless otherwise noted, all figures are Persons 12+, Monday-Sunday, 6am-midnight.

Dayton, OH (Market 66)	WHKO Cox 11.1 (1) - 10.8 (1) - 9.3 (1) WZDA iHeartMedia 1.3 (11t) - 1.6 (11) - 1.5 (12)
Fort Myers, FL (51)	WWGR Renda 4.8 (3) - 5.0 (3) - 4.3 (4t) WHEL Sun 2.5 (12) - 2.8 (11) - 2.9 (11) WCKT iHeartMedia 2.3 (13t) - 2.3 (14) - 2.4 (13t)
Grand Rapids, MI (69)	WBCT iHeartMedia 8.6 (1) - 7.5 (2) - 7.3 (2) WTNR Cumulus Does not subscribe.
Tucson, AZ (62)	KHUD iHeartMedia 3.1 (10) - 4.3 (6t) - 4.2 (6) KIIM Cumulus Does not subscribe.
Tulsa, OK (63)	KVOO Griffin Classic Country 6.3 (1) - 5.3 (3) - 5.1 (3) KXBL Griffin 4.7 (5) - 5.2 (4) - 3.9 (5t) KTGX iHeartMedia 1.7 (10) - 1.8 (11t) - 2.1 (10) KWEN Zoellner Does not subscribe.

Jul 1, 2026 Share

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