Freestyle (radio program)

Freestyle was a radio program on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Radio One network, which aired from 2005 to 2007.[1] For the first year, the program's hosts were Cameron Phillips and Kelly Ryan;[1] in December 2006, Ryan left the program and was replaced by Marsha Lederman. Freestyle combined contemporary popular music, predominantly but not exclusively by Canadian artists, with generally irreverent "water cooler" chat.[2] The show also featured regular commentators including "music guy" Daniel Levitin and book reviewer Sara O'Leary. It first aired on November 9, 2005, replacing The Roundup.

The show received some criticism for purportedly sounding too much like commercial radio programming.[3] Conversely, Kate Taylor of The Globe and Mail called the show relatively inoffensive and safe, but supported the CBC's desire to attract a younger listening audience.[2]

Freestyle had its final broadcast on April 13, 2007, and was replaced on the CBC Radio One schedule by Q.[4]

  1. ^ a b "Revamp aimed at office listeners". The Globe and Mail, November 1, 2005.
  2. ^ a b "If Mozart embodies the CBC, why not Madonna?" The Globe and Mail, December 3, 2005.
  3. ^ "CBC radio launches three new shows". Edmonton Journal, February 11, 2006.
  4. ^ "New CBC Radio show gets name of a single letter". The Globe and Mail, March 2, 2007.