Jingle

Also called: recognition tune, ping or sound branding

A jingle is a recognition tune for a radio station, radio program or radio DJ. Jingles usually feature a spoken message. The message in a jingle can be, for example, a name, announcement, proclamation or promotional text. The jingle can be considered part of a radio station's corporate identity and branding.

Jingles are often heard at the beginning and end of a radio broadcast, around interruptions for news or advertising, and sometimes between program items or between two musical numbers. A jingle can also be part of an advertiser's commercial.

There are different types of jingles. Some examples:

• Top of the hour (toth): Hour pager announcing a new radio hour, often after the news, to introduce the station and the program.
• ID/ident: Jingle with the name of the station or DJ on duty
• Bumper: short jingle between two program sections
• Drop-in: short jingle between two records
• Bed: Background music for under spoken text
• Liner: Jingle with the station's name and slogan

The first jingles were heard in the 1930s in the United States. Jingles were often sung and played live in the beginning. In the Netherlands, the jingle was introduced by Radio Veronica. In practice, the production of new jingle packages is handled both in-house by broadcasters and disc jockeys and outsourced to specialized companies.