WFGR was previously a classical music station throughout the 1990s, broadcasting the World Classical Network from WFCC-FM in Chatham, Massachusetts. It changed its format to oldies music as "Oldies 98.7" on October 11, 2004 when Grand Rapids' current oldies station at the time, WODJ, was displaced by rock station WKLQ.
When WFGR debuted its oldies format, it was satellite-fed using ABC Radio's "Oldies Radio" feed, but soon debuted a mostly-local lineup of DJs, playing music from the 1960s and early 1970s. On June 29, 2009, the station changed its name to Classic Hits "98.7 WFGR" and began to focus more on the 1970s and 1980s. The change left the Grand Rapids market without a local outlet for oldies in the traditional sense of the format, until Grand Valley State University stepped in to fill the void by flipping its WGVU from NPR news and talk to "Real Oldies" a few months later.
WFGR currently plays a wide variety of Pop, Rock, Disco and Funk from the mid-1960s to the late 1980s, after having somewhat of a more Classic Rock focus in its first incarnation of "Classic Hits" WFGR is considered to be the next generation of Oldies, branded as "Classic Hits". The stations image and delivery is that of a CHR/Top 40 station of the late 1970s or early 1980s.
WFGR logo 2009-2017
On October 5, 2009, The Bob & Tom Show premiered on the morning lineup, Monday through Saturday mornings. The show was added when Clear Channel's 101.3 The Fox WBFX did not renew the contract for the show. As of October 5, 2012, three years to the day after their premiere, Bob and Tom were replaced with local talent Andy O' Riley and Dave Kaechele. In late 2013, Local Mid-Day DJ Matt Hendricks was cut from the staff and replaced with a company voice-tracked Big Joe Henry based out of New Jersey. Andy and Dave were also cut from the staff in January 2014, due to low ratings. In early 2014, part-time Jock Lauren was promoted to middays, and Jo Jo Girard, formerly of Mix 106.5 Baltimore and 104.5 WSNX (Sunny FM) was introduced as the new WFGR Morning show host. Weekends on WFGR include American Top 40 - The '80s with Casey Kasem and America's Greatest Hits with Scott Shannon.
Jingles
In recent years, WFGR has used re-sung versions of cuts from several classic JAM Creative Productions jingle packages from the 1970s and 1980s. Among these is a version of WHTZ New York's legendary "Serving the Universe" top-of-the-hour ID, with "Serving the Universe" replaced by "Serving West Michigan."
Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as well as for a radio format playing this music.
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes songs from the top 40 music charts from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, with music from the 1980s serving as the core of the format. Music that was popularized by MTV in the early 1980s and the nostalgia behind it is a major driver to the format. It is considered the successor to the oldies format, a collection of top 40 songs from the late 1950s through the late 1970s that was once extremely popular in the United States and Canada. The term is sometimes incorrectly used as a synonym for the adult hits format, which uses a slightly newer music library stretching from all decades to the present with a major focus on 1990s and 2000s pop, rock and alternative songs. In addition, adult hits stations tend to have larger playlists, playing a given song only a few times per week, compared to the tighter libraries on classic hits stations. For example, KRTH, a classic hits station in Los Angeles, and KSPF, a classic hits station in Dallas, both play power songs up to 30 times a week or more, which is another differentiator compared to other formats that share songs with classic hits libraries.
WSLI is a radio station which serves the Greater Grand Rapids, Michigan, area. The main broadcast frequency is 1480 kHz, which is licensed to Kentwood, Michigan, a Grand Rapids suburb. It broadcasts Smile FM's contemporary Christian music format.
WGVU-FM is an NPR member station serving Grand Rapids, Michigan. Owned by Grand Valley State University, it is simulcast in West Michigan. The main broadcast frequency is 88.5 MHz, which is licensed to Allendale, the Grand Rapids suburb that is home to Grand Valley State's main campus. It is simulcast on WGVS-FM 95.3 MHz, which is licensed to Whitehall and serves Muskegon. The format is Talk radio from NPR, along with jazz.
WLHT-FM is a hot adult contemporary music formatted radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan owned by Townsquare Media. WLHT's studios are located on Ottawa Avenue Northwest in downtown Grand Rapids, while its transmitter is located in Comstock Park.
WGFN is a radio station in Northern Michigan that airs a classic rock format under the branding of "The Bear", and is currently owned by Black Diamond Broadcast Holdings, LLC. WGFN is based out of Glen Arbor, Michigan, airing at 98.1 FM to the Traverse City market. WGFN has been the flagship station of the Bear network of classic rock stations that have aired in Northern Michigan since the early 2000s, which peaked with 4 regional stations from 2002-2009 and 2010-2012. The only other surviving Bear station in the region is 95.3 WWSS, which airs the same programming and playlist as WGFN, but features differing station identifications and commercial content for its market. The Bear aired the popular syndicated morning radio program The Bob & Tom Show until September 2017, and currently airs Detroit Tigers baseball games and Detroit Lions football games. The current lineup includes Smitty in morning drive, "California Girl" Nicole Pence in mid-days, and Jay Roberts on afternoon drive.
WTRY-FM, is a commercial radio station licensed to Rotterdam, New York. It airs a classic hits format. WTRY-FM serves the New York State Capital District in the Albany-Schenectady-Troy radio market. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, and broadcasts at 6,000 watts ERP from a tower in between Altamont and Duanesburg off U.S. Route 20. Studios and offices are on Troy-Schenectady Road in Latham.
WBCT is a commercial radio station licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan and owned by iHeartMedia. The studios and offices are located at 77 Monroe Center in Downtown Grand Rapids. The station has had a country music radio format since July 24, 1992.
Scott Shannon's True Oldies Channel is a radio network begun in the spring of 2004. Originally distributed by ABC Radio Networks via satellite, the service plays a hybrid oldies/classic hits format comprising music mostly from 1964 to 1979 but also plays selected cuts from the 1955-1963 era and also from the 1980s. As of September 22, 2016, it is distributed via United Stations Radio Networks.
WVFM is an adult hits radio station serving the Kalamazoo, Michigan radio market. The station has an ERP of 33 kW. They are owned by Midwest Communications. WVFM 106.5 is located on a crowded Frequency across south-west lower Michigan. The station covers all of Kalamazoo/Battle Creek area, can be heard well in the Grand Rapids area, and reaches as far north and east as Lansing and Jackson. During summer months, the station can be received to Flint and Ann Arbor on occasion.
WSRW-FM is a commercial radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It airs an adult contemporary radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia. The studios and offices are on Monroe Center Street in Downtown Grand Rapids. The transmitter is off Payne Lake Road in Middleville.
WJRW – branded as The Ticket – is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan, serving the Grand Rapids metropolitan area. Owned by Cumulus Media, WJRW is the Grand Rapids affiliate for the BetQL Audio Network, CBS Sports Radio, and Fox Sports Radio. The WJRW studios and transmitter both reside in Grand Rapids. In addition to a standard analog transmission, the station also simulcasts over low-power FM translator W291DJ and is available online.
WBFX is a radio station broadcasting an oldies format, serving the Grand Rapids, Michigan market and owned and operated by iHeartMedia. The studios and offices are located at 77 Monroe Center in Downtown Grand Rapids while its transmitter is located near 5 Mile Rd and Lincoln Lake Ave northeast of Grand Rapids.
WVHF is an AM radio station licensed to broadcast at 1140 kHz for Kentwood, Michigan in the Grand Rapids market. The station is licensed to broadcast with 5,000 watts of power during the daytime hours but must sign off at sunset to protect co-channel WRVA (AM) in Richmond, Virginia. It is rebroadcast on WSPB 89.7 FM; licensed to Bedford, it serves the Battle Creek area.
WLAV-FM is a radio station broadcasting a classic rock music format in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is the dominant classic rock-formatted radio station in the market and is generally a top ten performer in the Grand Rapids ratings.
WMJH is a radio station broadcasting a Spanish-language regional Mexican music format under the name La Poderosa, licensed in Rockford, Michigan and serving the Grand Rapids, Michigan market. Owned by Cynthia Citlalick Cano, through licensee Cano's Broadcasting, LLC, WMJH broadcasts with 3,600 watts of power during the day, which, along with its lower dial position, allows it to be heard as far north as Kalkaska, Michigan, as far east as Redford, Michigan, as far south as Three Rivers, Michigan but must sign off at night to protect WGY in Schenectady, New York. WMJH programming is available around the clock on FM translator W227CG 93.3 FM, licensed to Grand Rapids.
WNWZ is a radio station broadcasting an urban contemporary format, licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan.
WLAW-FM is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Whitehall, Michigan, the station serves the Muskegon, Michigan market. The station's programming was derived from Cumulus Media Networks' Hits & Favorites format until Westwood One took over. It is heard as far as Grand Rapids, Michigan, east of US-131, and it experiences interference from WJIM-FM from Lansing. It is now affiliated with Westwood One's country program.
WOAP is a commercial radio station broadcasting Regional Mexican Syndication of WMJH. Licensed to Owosso, Michigan, it serves Shiawassee County. While the station is a daytimer, licensed to operate during daylight hours only, its programming is heard around the clock on its FM translator W276CZ (103.1 MHz) in Saginaw.
WNBY-FM is a classic hits/oldies music formatted radio station licensed to Newberry, Michigan, and serving the Sault Ste. Marie market. The station is owned and operated by Sovereign Communications. The station shares a call sign and ownership history with Newberry AM station WNBY 1450, which broadcasts a classic country format.
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