KWEM-LP

Last updated
KWEM-LP
City West Memphis, Arkansas, US
Frequency 93.3 MHz
Programming
Format Blues/gospel
Ownership
Owner Arkansas State University Mid-South
(Mid-South Community College)
History
Founded2014
First air date
2015
Call sign meaning
West Memphis; tribute to former KWEM
Technical information
Facility ID 193203
ERP 45 watts
HAAT 45 meters (148 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
 35°11′24.3″N90°15′26.3″W / 35.190083°N 90.257306°W / 35.190083; -90.257306
Links
Webcast Listen live
Website kwemradio.com

KWEM-LP is a low-power FM radio station in West Memphis, Arkansas, United States, owned by Arkansas State University Mid-South. The station airs a format of blues and gospel music and is also used as a training ground for students in the community college's digital media program.

Contents

The call letters and format are a tribute to a former West Memphis radio station, KWEM (990 AM), which began in 1947; moved across the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee, in 1953; and changed call letters in 1959. The station was influential in the early careers of several blues and rockabilly musicians.

History

The original KWEM

The owners of Little Rock-area radio station KXLR (1450 AM) sought to build a statewide network of stations to carry Arkansas Razorbacks football, and they felt that the Memphis area would provide important coverage and exposure for the football program. [1] After delays, KWEM (990 AM) began operating on February 23, 1947. [2] : 317 

West Memphis was described as the "Las Vegas of the South" in this era, and its programming drew from the musicians playing clubs in that era. [1] Howlin' Wolf had a show on the station from 1949 to 1952, and Sam Phillips heard him and signed him to a contract with Sun Records; [3] his program aired after music by rockabilly guitarist Paul Burlison; [4] B.B. King was first heard over the station, getting his break on a show helmed by Sonny Boy Williamson II; [5] Stax Records founder Jim Stewart started at KWEM, as did James Cotton and Hubert Sumlin; [6] Johnny Cash's first radio broadcast was on KWEM in 1953. [1] [7] The station allowed aspiring performers to pay for 15-minute blocks of air time. [8] Elvis Presley made his first radio appearance on KWEM in 1953, which did not go well because he lacked a band and moved around too much; [3] George Klein worked there as a DJ after its move to Memphis; [9] so did Eddie Bond. [10]

KWEM was purchased by Dee Rivers in 1951. [11] Rivers moved the station to Memphis, where from studios on Flicker Street, it continued to be an influential hotbed of talent; the transmitter remained on the Arkansas side of the river. [12] This lasted through the end of the decade, when KWEM became KWAM, [12] and it eventually stopped playing live music. [8]

The revival

In 2009, Dale Franklin purchased assets to relaunch KWEM as an online-only station, playing the genres of music where it had the most influence. [7] In addition, he acquired such historic artifacts as a recording lathe used by Ike Turner. [3] Franklin's goal was to increase recognition of KWEM's historical role and increase musical tourism on the Arkansas side of the Mississippi by restoring the original studio on Broadway Street. [8] He then opted to sell these assets to Mid-South Community College in West Memphis. [13] Streaming returned under MSCC management in 2014 ahead of the station's 2015 sign-on on FM. [14]

Franklin, who was described by the president of MSCC as having a "John the Baptist type fervor" for the project, [3] died in 2017. [15]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Nelson, Rex (April 10, 2013). "Resurrecting a radio legend". Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  2. ↑ Poindexter, Ray (1974). Arkansas Airwaves (PDF). Retrieved August 10, 2021– via World Radio History.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Randall, Mark (June 5, 2014). "KWEM 'flips the switch' at Mid-South Community College". The Evening Times.
  4. ↑ Boehm, Mike (September 19, 1986). "Sun's sons: Rockabilly pioneers". Providence Journal.
  5. ↑ Shuster, Fred (October 23, 1991). "Blues king had pauper start". Daily News of Los Angeles. p. L8.
  6. ↑ Ellis, Bill (April 29, 2005). "Wolf's guitar man keeps his bite". The Commercial Appeal.
  7. 1 2 McCracken, Mitch (July 13, 2010). "Back on the Air: Historic KWEM returns to airwaves". Memphis Daily News. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 Boudreau, Eleanor (May 13, 2013). "You'll Be Mine: Bringing Musical Tourism To West Memphis". WKNO. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Platter Spinner Patter" (PDF). Cash Box. February 12, 1955. p. 11. Retrieved August 30, 2021– via World Radio History.
  10. ↑ "Country Round Up" (PDF). Cash Box. August 17, 1957. p. 43. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  11. ↑ "FCC Actions" (PDF). Broadcasting. December 3, 1951. p. 98. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
  12. 1 2 FCC History Cards for KWAM
  13. ↑ "Historic KWEM Station Returns Online". Billboard. Associated Press. May 27, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Bob Mehr's Memphis Music Beat: Historic KWEM radio to relaunch, Pearl Jam in Memphis, new Amy LaVere". The Commercial Appeal. May 22, 2014. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  15. ↑ Randall, Mark (November 21, 2017). "Dale Franklin, KWEM radio revivalist, passes away". The Evening Times. Retrieved August 26, 2021.
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