HOT 97 just dropped big news about their first-ever daily live TV news show starting January 2026. The new show, “HOT 97 News,” will be hosted by Lana Harris, Ronndell Smith, and Million Connally-Cooper.
They’re calling the show a mix of Hip-Hop news, entertainment, and culture that will air nationally on HOT 97 TV and stream across all HOT 97 TV and digital platforms beginning in January 2026. In addition, HOT 97 TV is also expanding its local footprint with HOT 97 News – Atlanta,
HOT 97 says their new news show will bring “raw, unedited” coverage of Hip-Hop and culture. The national version starts in January 2026, and they’re also doing a local Atlanta show.
The news did not play out well for New Yorkers, who criticized the station on Instagram, where angry comments flooded in.
“Wait how come we don’t have Hot97 TV in the Tri State Area? Why just Atlanta?” one user asked. “Has there ever been more of a predictable fail,” another wrote.
The move comes just weeks after the station axed Ebro Darden’s morning show that ran for 13 years. Ebro got the boot in December 2025 after his “Ebro In The Morning” show was canceled.
He said HOT 97 no longer cares about Hip-Hop or the Black community and believes the station just wants to make money from wealthy friends.
“We’re living in a time right now where they don’t want those voices continuing to shed light, especially in local scenarios,” Ebro said. “I think if you look around the country right now, how many local voices, influential voices are being platformed, because local politics is really where this s### happens, man. I know we spend a lot of time talking about the president and all this other type shi, but local politics is really where the s### happens that could affect your life.”
The radio vet said his outspoken views on politics and government were detrimental to business. He claimed that all the media companies are scrambling to renew their licenses and that his controversial takes hurt their chances.
Ebro isn’t sitting around feeling sorry for himself, though. He continues to serve as Apple Music’s Global Editorial Head of Hip-Hop and R&B. He hosts “The Ebro Show” on Apple Music 1 and has his own podcast.
DJ Akademiks and Drake were happy to see Ebro go. But fans of the morning show were shocked by the sudden cancellation.
The timing seems obvious: out with the old, controversial host, in with fresh faces who won’t disrupt the station’s business deals.