RADIO'S RICK DEES HAS THE REGGAETON BEAT.

Byline: - Fred Shuster

Rick Dees' weekly Top 40 countdown show just added a new flavor.

The veteran morning-radio host has brought his long-running survey of the week's most popular songs to a Spanish-language radio station and is hosting it in Spanglish.

``The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Con Sabor (``With Flavor'')'' is billed as the first bilingual hit music countdown radio show piloted by a mainstream radio personality. The four-hour program is broadcast at 6 a.m. Sundays on reggaeton radio KXOL-FM (96.3).

``I speak some Spanish, but there are so many phrases you can use that everyone understands,'' Dees said. ``The street Spanish we speak in Los Angeles is more popular than ever.''

During 22 years at KIIS-FM (102.7), Dees, who lives in Burbank, developed a strong Latino following. He left KIIS a year ago, his morning slot taken by Ryan Seacrest.

According to the fall Arbitron ratings, KXOL reaped exceptional growth, achieving peak weekend shares among listeners aged 18 to 49. Dees' first show last weekend featured an array of reggaeton acts like Ivy Queen and Daddy Yankee, along with mainstream hip-hop from Nelly, Mariah Carey, Black Eyed Peas and Kanye West. Reggaeton is the Puerto Rico-born version of hip-hop.

David Haymore, KXOL's vice president/general manager, trumpeted the arrival of Dees' weekly show, which the host prerecords at home. ``He is a fan favorite across the board, and has a massive Latino following throughout Los Angeles,'' Haymore said.

Along with music, Dees promises interviews with artists in both Spanish and English, along with games where listeners can win cash and prizes.

The English-language ``Rick Dees Weekly Top 40,'' which Dees also hosts, is the longest continually running countdown show on the dial. That syndicated show also streams continuously on Dees' Web site (www.rick.com). The Spanish-language version is expected to go into syndication as well.

``Back in the '50s and '60s, people would move here from Mexico and say, `We're not going to speak Spanish in the house,' '' Dees said. ``Now their grandchildren are saying, 'Look, we want to get back to our roots. We're going to only speak Spanish in the house and English outside.' ''

Dees says he often misses hosting a major-market morning show but doesn't miss the hours.

``I don't think the human body ever gets used to waking up at 3:45 in the morning to go to work,'' he said.

RICK DEES IN SPANGLISH

What: ``The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Con Sabor (With Flavor)''

Where: KXOL-FM (96.3).

When: 6 to 10 a.m. Sundays.

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Photo:

no caption (Rick Dees)