BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British

digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Businesses *Digital bank, a form of financial institution *Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company *Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...

radio station owned and operated by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

. It broadcasts

Black music Music of the African diaspora is a sound created, produced, or inspired by Black people, including Music of Africa, African music traditions and African popular music as well as the music genres of the African diaspora, including some Caribbean mus ...

and urban music, including

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been code named "Network X" during the consultation period. At the time, the station was listed as "1 Xtra BBC" on many electronic programming guides. The station broadcasts from the 8th floor of

Broadcasting House London Broadcasting House is the headquarters of the BBC, in Portland Place and Langham Place, London. The first radio broadcast from the building was made on 15 March 1932, and the building was officially opened two months later, on 15 May. T ...

, shared with Radio 1 and the Asian Network. According to

RAJAR Radio Joint Audience Research Limited (RAJAR; ) was established in 1992 to operate a single audience measurement system for the radio industry in the United Kingdom. RAJAR is jointly owned by the BBC and Radiocentre. RAJAR's predecessor was c ...

, the station broadcasts to a weekly audience of 786,000 with a listening share of 0.3% as of March 2024.

Music policy

BBC Radio 1Xtra's music includes largely British, North American, Caribbean and African

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust Music * Grime music, a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * "Grime", a 2023 song by Macklemore from ''Ben'' * "Grime", a 2024 song by Kittie from ''Fire ...

drill A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a drill bit for making holes, or a screwdriver bit for securing fasteners. Historically, they were powered by hand, and later mains power, but cordless b ...

UK garage UK garage, abbreviated as UKG, is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England in the early to mid-1990s. The genre was most clearly inspired by garage house and jungle production methods, but also incorporates elements from ...

drum and bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterised by fast Break (music)#Breakbeat (element of music), breakbeats (typically 165–185 Tempo, beats per minute) with heavy Bass (music) ...

UK funky UK funky (sometimes known as UKF or funky) is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England that is heavily influenced by soca, soulful house, tribal house, funky house, UK garage, broken beat and grime. Typically, UK funky ...

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

, R&B, comtemporary R&B,

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

, soca,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

afrobeats Afrobeats, not to be confused with Afrobeat or Afroswing, is an umbrella term to describe popular music from West Africa and the diaspora that initially developed in Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK in the 2000s and 2010s. Afrobeats is less of a st ...

and

amapiano Amapiano is a genre of music from South Africa that became popular in mid-2012 with an earlier regular occurrence on South African radio stations in the early 2000s. It is a hybrid of kwaito, deep house, gqom, jazz, soul, and lounge music char ...

. It is available on

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...

, digital radio ( DAB) and digital television. The first ever track played on 1Xtra was a specially created track produced by DJ Skitz and

Rodney P Rodney Panton, also known as Rodney P (born in Balham, London, 12 December 1969) is an English MC, as well as a radio and television personality who first gained attention via the UK hip hop scene in the 1980s. A former member of UK hip-hop gro ...

and featuring

Beverley Knight Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and radio personality. She released her first album, ''The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke ...

and

Blak Twang Blak Twang (born Tony Olabode in England), who also uses the pseudonyms Taipanic and Tony Rotton, is a British rapper who grew up in Deptford, Lewisham, South-East London. Blak Twang is admired for his live performances, and is also respected fo ...

. The five-hour show was presented by the Rampage DJ collective and the station's then breakfast show host, KC.

News and speech

As part of its

public service broadcasting Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive ...

remit, 1Xtra is required to carry a significant amount of news, information and speech content. 1Xtra had its own news service, 1Xtra News (formerly known as "TX"), which was operated as a

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...

of Radio 1's

Newsbeat ''Newsbeat'' is the BBC's radio news programme broadcast on Radio 1, 1Xtra and Asian Network. ''Newsbeat'' is produced by BBC News but differs from the BBC's other news programmes in its remit to provide news tailored for young people.

operations. The tone and style of the news presentation is in keeping with the station's overall target audience - young and predominantly urban. Initially, in addition to regular hourly bulletins, TX had a flagship weekday two-hour news, features and discussion show under the title "TX Unltd" (pronounced "Unlimited"). This show - initially broadcast in a 5pm7pm slot - rated poorly, however, and was later absorbed into a mixed music-and-speech format (similar to that used by

Jeremy Vine Jeremy Guy Vine (born 17 May 1965) is an English television and radio presenter and journalist. He is best known as the host of his BBC Radio 2 lunchtime programme which presents news, views, interviews with live guests, consumer issues and popu ...

on Radio 2) which aired in mid-afternoon (2pm4pm) and was named after its host, Max. In 2009, the

BBC Trust The BBC Trust was the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) between 2007 and 2017. It was operationally independent of BBC management and external bodies, and its stated aim was to make decisions in the best interests of ...

agreed to a further change to the scheduling of news content on 1Xtra, such that it could use the same format successfully operated by Radio 1's Newsbeat: two 15-minute news bulletins, one in the middle of the day and another in the early evening, with other speech features, profiles and social/cultural specials being broadcast on an ad hoc basis within music-led shows, and with regular hourly news bulletins also continuing. The Trust required that 1Xtra's main bulletins not air at the same time as those on Radio 1. When the new bulletins were introduced in late summer 2009, they aired at noon and 5pm, with Radio 1's bulletins remaining at 12:45pm and 5:45pm. As of Summer 2009 it was reported that Radio 1 and 1Xtra were carrying shared news bulletins at weekends; weekday news output remained separate. September 2012 saw a substantial increase in Newsbeat bulletins simulcast with Radio 1. Weekday breakfast bulletins at 6am, 7.30am, 8am, 8.30am and 9.30am remain bespoke 1Xtra broadcasts. From 10:30am, bulletins are shared with Radio 1, including the 15-minute Newsbeat magazines at 12:45pm and 5:45pm. In the first quarter of 2011, 1Xtra was part of an efficiency review conducted by John Myers. His role, according to Andrew Harrison, the chief executive of RadioCentre, was "to identify both areas of best practice and possible savings." In November 2017, reports signalled that the Roundhouse Rising concert series would partner with 1Xtra. As part of the change, the BBC curated a free grime night in the venue's Sackler Space.

Audience profile

BBC Radio 1Xtra's typical audience is between fifteen and thirty years old. According to the "Submission to the Secretary of State's review of digital channels" in March 2004, Radio 1Xtra "provides music output 24 hours a day, punctuated by bespoke BBC news bulletins and other speech output designed specifically to be pertinent to the audience."

Notable presenters

Current notable presenters

Kenny Allstar Kenny Enahoro, known professionally as Kenny Allstar (born 19 April 1993), is a British DJ and radio presenter who is the host of the BBC Radio 1Xtra Rap Show on Friday nights. He also hosts a ''Mad About Bars'' series on Mixtape Madness on YouT ...

Benji B Benjamin Benstead, known professionally as Benji B, is a British DJ, radio presenter, and record producer. A longtime BBC Radio producer and presenter, he has presented a weekly show on BBC Radio 1 since 2010 that highlights an eclectic mix of ...

* Nick Bright * Tiffany Calver * Eddie Kadi *

Nadia Jae Nadia Jae is a radio presenter on BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts Black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio ...

Trevor Nelson Trevor Ricardo Nelson, MBE (born 7 January 1964) is an English DJ and radio presenter. He is best known for presenting a range of shows across BBC Radio. Early life Born in Hackney to a family of St Lucian heritage, Nelson attended Centra ...

David Rodigan David Michael "Ram Jam" Rodigan MBE OD (born 24 June 1951) is a British radio DJ who also performs as a disc jockey. Known for his selections of reggae and dancehall music, he has played on stations including Radio London, Capital 95.8, K ...

* Snoochie Shy * Sir Spyro *

DJ Target Darren Joseph, known professionally as DJ Target, is an English DJ and presenter. He is best known for being part of grime collective Roll Deep and presenting on BBC Radio 1Xtra. Career Joseph is a former member of Roll Deep. Joseph began hosti ...

Heartless Crew The Heartless Crew are a UK garage crew from North London. The group has been credited for paving the way for Grime (music genre), grime music, alongside So Solid Crew and Pay As U Go. Its original members are Emcees, MCs Bushkin and Mighty Mo ...

* Remi Burgz Weekday evening shows began with MistaJam helming a three-hour multi-genre show, followed by six hours of specialist output tailored to a particular genre (e.g. UK Garage, dancehall, etc.) Between October 2009 and spring 2010, the 4am6am slot housed a replay of selected weekend specialist programming; this and the one-hour Morning Mix programme were dropped in spring 2010 and a new six-days-a-week 'early breakfast' show (4am7am) hosted by Nick Bright was introduced. (The Saturday 4am replay of Target's Friday night show was also axed, to make room for Bright's sixth show) This has now itself been replaced by a rerun of the previous week's overnight mix show from 4am to 6am, giving nine hours of specialist output. Weekday overnights (1am3am), Saturday overnights (1am4am) and Saturday evenings (7pm1am) are now simulcast entirely with Radio 1 - this allows Radio 1's flagship urban content to air on 1Xtra.

Former notable presenters

* A. Dot *

Clara Amfo Clara Amfo is a British radio broadcaster, television presenter, podcast host and voice-over artist. She is known for presenting her shows on BBC Radio 1. Early life and education Born to Ghanaian parents. She has five siblings. Her father, w ...

* Adele Roberts *

Sarah-Jane Crawford Sarah-Jane Crawford is an English television and radio presenter, actress, voice-over artist, and DJ best known for her radio work with Hits Radio and formerly with BBC Radio 1Xtra, and television work with E! Network (which she is currentl ...

Gemma Cairney Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented ''The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultural ...

Reggie Yates Reginald Yates (born 31 May 1983) is a British television presenter, actor, writer and director with a career spanning three decades on screen as an actor, television presenter and radio DJ. Yates played Leo Jones in ''Doctor Who'' and has wo ...

* Ronnie Herel * DJ Cameo * DJ Diggz * Devin Griffin *

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling gir ...

Ms. Dynamite Naomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born 26 April 1981), better known as Ms. Dynamite, is a British singer and rapper. She is the recipient of the Mercury Music Prize, two Brit Awards and three MOBO Awards. Early years She was born Naomi Arleen M ...

* Zena McNally *

Tim Westwood Timothy Westwood (born 3 October 1957), often known professionally simply as Westwood, is a British DJ and presenter. He was described by ''The Guardian'' in 2022 as "a veteran of the hip-hop scene whose opinions have been able to make or bre ...

* Crissy Criss * DJ Blakey *

Matthew Xia Matthew Xia (born 1982) is a British theatre director, DJ (under the name DJ Excalibah), composer, broadcaster and journalist. Early life Xia was born to a Scottish and English mother and Jamaican father in Waltham Forest, London, and was ...

DJ Q Shollen Michael Quarshie (born 16 August 1985), known by his stage name DJ Q, is a DJ and record producer from Huddersfield, England. He forms part of the supergroup TQD alongside Flava D and Royal-T. Early life DJ Q’s musical journey star ...

* DJ Skitz *

Ras Kwame Ras Kwame is a British musician, record producer, radio DJ and presenter of Ghanaian heritage."'We ...

* Robbo Ranx *

Friction Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements sliding against each other. Types of friction include dry, fluid, lubricated, skin, and internal -- an incomplete list. The study of t ...

* Panjabi Hit Squad *

Semtex Semtex is a general-purpose plastic explosive containing RDX and PETN. It is used in commercial blasting, demolition, and in certain military applications. Semtex was developed and manufactured in Czechoslovakia, originally under the name B 1 a ...

Charlie Sloth Charlie Ian Paul Rouillon (born 20 August 1981), known professionally as Charlie Sloth, is a British DJ, hype man, producer and TV presenter. Early life MistaJam Peter Dalton (born 19 January 1983), known professionally as MistaJam, is a British DJ and radio presenter. He is known for presenting radio shows on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra from 2005 to 2020; since 2020 he has presented on Capital Danc ...

Toddla T Thomas Mackenzie Bell (born 22 February 1985), better known by the stage name of Toddla T, is an English DJ, record producer, remixer and songwriter from Sheffield, South Yorkshire. Biography Bell was raised in Sheffield where he attended Ki ...

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is a co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer; a member of the supergroup LSD (group), ...

* René LaVice * Annie Nightingale * Yasmin Evans * Cuppy *

Lady Leshurr Melesha Katrina O'Garro (born 15 December 1987), known professionally as Lady Leshurr (), is a British rapper, singer, songwriter and producer. She is known for her ''Queen's Speech'' series of freestyles, the fourth of which became popular i ...

Logo history

File:BBC Radio 1Xtra launch logo.svg, BBC Radio 1Xtra logo from its 2002 launch until 2007, known as "BBC 1Xtra". File:Logo BBC Radio 1Xtra.svg, BBC Radio 1Xtra logo from 2007 to 2010. File:BBC Radio 1Xtra Logo (2010-present).png, BBC Radio 1Xtra logo from 2010 to 2022. File:BBC Radio 1Xtra 2021.svg, BBC Radio 1Xtra logo since 2022.

Notes

References

Sources

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Radio 1xtra

1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio in the United Kingdom, digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts Black music and Urban contemporary music, urban music, including Hip hop music, hip hop and Contemporary R&B, ...

Urban contemporary radio stations Black British music Radio stations established in 2002 2002 establishments in the United Kingdom Radio stations in the United Kingdom Digital-only radio stations