Radio 1 denies banning 'older' artists from playlist after claims Madonna was struck off

The station said tracks were chosen on their musical merit and relevance to a young audience on a 'case-by-case basis'

Madonna is not in Twitter's good books after describing her album leak as 'artistic rape and terrorism' (Getty Images)

Radio 1 has spoken out after reports it had banned Madonna from its playlist due to claims she was too old.

The station has defended its playlist choice after a story in the Mail on Sunday said Madonna had been banned after her new single “Living for Love” had only been played once since its debut in December.

In a statement on its Facebook page, Radio 1 said it “did not ban anyone” and added that it currently has two Paul McCartney tracks on its playlist.

“Radio 1 does not ban anyone – please don’t believe the papers,” it said.

Post by BBC Radio 1.

“The tracks played by Radio 1 are chosen on musical merit and their relevance to our young audience on a case-by-case basis, and whilst around 40% of the country’s 15 to 29-year-olds tune into Radio 1 each week, an artist’s age is never a factor.

“In fact, Paul McCartney currently has two tracks – ‘FourFiveSeconds’ and ‘Only One’ – on the Radio 1 playlist.”

The BBC radio station has previously come under fire for not playing artists over a certain age

Breakfast presenter Nick Grimshaw claimed that Robbie Williams was “not relevant” to his target audience of 15-19 year olds.

Lily Allen, 29, and La Roux singer Elly Jackson, 26, have also been excluded from the list before.

Grimshaw took over from Chris Moyles in 2012 in a bid to attract younger listeners to Radio 1.

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