Flava was a British hip-hop music television channel owned by Sony Pictures Television. Launched in June 2004 as B4 TV by CSC Media Group, Flava broadcast hip-hop, urban, and R&B music from the late 1970s to the 2010s. It also occasionally aired films and original programming. The channel promoted itself as "100% Old Skool Hip-Hop/R&B 24/7."

History

Flava launched on 12 July 2004 as a test channel named B4, focusing on pop and dance music. It played pre-release music videos and allowed viewers to request songs. B4 was available 24 hours a day on Sky channel 357 and was part of CSC Media Group's suite of music channels. The channel also produced an early morning music program that aired on Channel 4 from 2004, featuring new music videos scheduled for UK release. The rebranding of B4 to Flava was indicated by a change in the Ofcom license and program guide references by early March 2008. Flava officially launched on 26 March 2008, as an all-urban music channel. On 29 September 2009, Flava began broadcasting on Freesat channel 502, replacing Scuzz. On June 5, 2013, Flava swapped positions with Scuzz on Sky, moving from channel 367 to 374. On 21 July 2014, Flava, along with Bliss, was removed from Freesat. On 23 April 2017, Flava introduced a new logo and updated its graphics, changing from blue to black, with red and yellow accents. The channel rebranded as a 100% Old Skool Hip Hop and R&B channel on 2 May 2017. Flava abruptly ceased broadcasting on 1 November 2017, with Juicy by The Notorious B.I.G. as the final music video. The channel was subsequently removed from program guide references.

Programming

B4 programming