Former logo
| Broadcast area | Memphis metropolitan area |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 99.7 MHz |
| Branding | 99.7 The Wolf |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Format | Country |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| History | |
First air date | May 22, 1947 |
Former call signs | WMCF (1947–60) |
Call sign meaning | Carried over from WMC (AM); originally an extension of the Memphis Commercial Appeal |
| Technical information | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 59449 |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 300,000 watts (horizontal) 100,000 watts (vertical) |
| HAAT | 277 meters (909 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 35°10′09″N89°53′10″W / 35.16917°N 89.88611°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live (via Audacy) |
| Website | www |
WMC-FM (99.7 MHz, "99.7 The Wolf") is a commercial country music radio station licensed to Memphis, Tennessee, serving the Memphis metropolitan area and much of surrounding West Tennessee, northern Mississippi, and eastern Arkansas. Owned by Audacy, Inc. The WMC-FM studios are located in Memphis' Colonial Acres neighborhood, while the station transmitter resides in northeast Memphis. Besides a standard analog transmission, WMC-FM is also available online via Audacy.
Founded by The Commercial Appeal , WMC-FM is notable for being an FM "superpower station," with an output exceeding Federal Communications Commission (FCC) restrictions; [1] [2] of FM stations operating in the FCC's Zone II, WMC-FM is the most powerful. [3]
The Memphis Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Scripps-Howard Newspapers which owned the Memphis Commercial Appeal and founded WMC (790 AM), launched this station as WMCF on May 22, 1947. [4] WMCF was the first FM station established in Memphis and the second in the state of Tennessee, after WSM-FM in Nashville, which began in 1941. From its establishment, WMCF had an output of 515,000 watts; this would be adjusted multiple times before settling at its current power output of 300,000 watts. As the FM adjunct to WMC, WMCF largely simulcast the AM station's programming.
On December 11, 1948, a TV station was added, WMCT. WMC, WMCF and WMCT moved to studios at 1960 Union Avenue in Midtown Memphis in 1959 and celebrated with a broadcast hosted by comedian George Gobel. WMCF changed its call sign to WMC-FM on May 27, 1960; WMCT would become WMC-TV in 1967.
WMC-FM was the first FM radio station in the market, and the first in Tennessee, to play progressive rock, beginning February 6, 1967. Personalities on the station included Greg Hamilton, Ron Michaels, Jon Scott, David Day, and the program director was Mike Powell. Artists included the likes of King Crimson, It's a Beautiful Day, and Quicksilver Messenger Service. The versions of "Light My Fire" by The Doors and "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly (with its extended drum solo) were longer than the one most stations played. [5] In the early 1970s, the station was responsible for regionally breaking many new artists such as David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top and Billy Joel. By 1978, WMC-FM had evolved to a Top 40/CHR format, which would transition to a hot adult contemporary format by September 1992.
Scripps Howard sold WMC, WMC-FM, and WMC-TV to Atlanta businessman Bert Ellis in 1993. Ellis, in turn, sold his station group in the spring quarter of 1996 to a new broadcasting group formed by the Retirement Systems of Alabama, also composed of Aflac's broadcast holdings and Ellis' Raycom Sports operations; [6] this was subsequently named Raycom Media. [7]
Raycom Media sold off WMC and WMC-FM in 2000 to Infinity Broadcasting, a subsidiary of CBS Radio, while keeping WMC-TV. In 2006, Entercom Communications purchased WMC and WMC-FM from CBS Radio; this preceded both companies merging a decade later. [8] WMC and WMC-FM relocated to the Entercom complex in the Moriah Woods Business Park, near the intersection of I-240 and Mount Moriah Road in eastern Memphis.
Many of the station's air personalities worked there for a decade or longer. Most notably, Ron "Hey Now" Olson had been the station's morning host since the 1980s, partnered with Steve Conley for some of that time, until leaving the station to join co-owned WRVR. Tom Prestigiacomo had been the afternoon host since 1979, staying for nearly three decades; Prestigiacomo left in 2007 for rival AC outlet WKIM.
By 2023, WMC-FM's schedule include the morning team of Ryan Anderson and Erin Austin; Jill Bucco in middays; Chris Michaels in afternoons; Chase Daniels in evenings; and Bennett Doyle in overnights. WMC-FM also carried the "Acoustic Sunrise" on weekends.
In April 2023, as part of a memo to staff, Audacy disclosed that the country music programming of WLFP (94.1 FM) would relocate to WMC-FM as "99.7 The Wolf", replacing WMC-FM's hot adult contemporary format (which was stated to continue as a stream exclusively on Audacy's online app), following the sale of the 94.1 license to the Educational Media Foundation. [9] The move of "The Wolf" would take place at 12 pm on June 12, 2023, following a six-hour farewell program for FM100, in which a majority of the past and current airstaff voiced their stories about the station. [10] The final song on FM100 was "Memphis, I'm Coming Home to You" by The Breaks (a longtime promotional song for the station), while the first song on "The Wolf" was "Like I Love Country Music" by Chattanooga native Kane Brown; in a final nod to the legacy of FM100, the first promotional sweeper under the "Wolf" format, immediately following the sign-off, was a tribute saluting the prior format. [11] With the move, the WMC-FM callsign will also be retired, as Audacy has filed with the FCC to move the WLFP calls to 99.7 (due to a clerical error encountered by the FCC in interacting with three-letter callsigns, the WLFP calls were initially slated to move to Hartford, Connecticut sister station WZMX before it was corrected).
Current FCC restrictions were passed in 1962 and mandate a maximum 100,000 watts across most of the country on the FM band, with most of the Northeast and much of California limited to 50,000 watts. [12] WMC-FM is calculated to exceed power restrictions by 4.6 decibels. However, WMC-FM was grandfathered at the high power since it went on the air before the restrictions began.
KXNT is a commercial AM radio station licensed to North Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by Audacy, Inc. and carries a talk radio format. The radio studios are located in the unincorporated Clark County area of Spring Valley, while KXNT's transmitter is located on U.S. Route 93 at Great Valley Parkway in North Las Vegas.
WMC-TV is a television station in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Gray Television. Its studios are located on Union Avenue in midtown Memphis, and its transmitter is located in northeast Memphis, near the suburb of Bartlett, Tennessee.
WLZL is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve College Park, Maryland. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. through licensee Audacy License, LLC and broadcasts a Spanish tropical format. Studios are located in Washington, D.C. while the station's broadcast tower is located east of Crofton, Maryland at.
WJFK is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a sports gambling radio format. Licensed to Morningside, Maryland, and serving the Washington metropolitan area, the station is owned by Audacy, Inc. The radio studios are in Southeast DC in the Navy Yard neighborhood. Programming is supplied by the co-owned BetQL Audio Network and CBS Sports Radio.
WDSY-FM is a commercial radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs a country radio format. The studios and offices are in Foster Plaza on Holiday Drive in Green Tree, Pennsylvania, but using a Pittsburgh address.
KAMX is a commercial radio station licensed to Luling, Texas, and serving the Greater Austin radio market. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs a hot adult contemporary radio format. The station has studios and offices on Westbank Drive, off Loop 360, near Westlake High School.
KQPS is a commercial radio station that is licensed to Palm Desert, California, United States, and serves the Palm Springs—Coachella Valley radio market. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. but is operated by Brad Fuhr under a temporary LMA until Fuhr's full consummation from Audacy. KQPS's transmitter is off Varner Road in Cathedral City, amid other Palm Springs-area FM and TV towers.
WMC is a commercial AM radio station in Memphis, Tennessee, broadcasting a sports gambling format. It is one of the city's oldest radio stations, and still uses its original three-letter call sign. WMC maintains studios in the Audacy, Inc. complex in Southeast Memphis, and has its transmitter towers in Northeast Memphis.
WMFS-FM is a United States commercial sports radio radio station in Bartlett, Tennessee, broadcasting to the Memphis, Tennessee area, owned by Audacy, Inc. WMFS is the radio home for the Memphis Grizzlies. The station's studios are in Southeast Memphis, and the transmitter tower is in Northeast Memphis.
KKWF is a commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and it airs a country music radio format. The studios and offices are on Fifth Avenue in Downtown Seattle.
WORD, known on-air as "The Fan Upstate", is a sports-formatted AM radio station in the Greenville-Spartanburg area of Upstate South Carolina. The Audacy, Inc. outlet is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to Spartanburg, South Carolina, and broadcasts with a power of 5,000 watts during the day and 65 watts at night using a non-directional antenna. The programming on WORD is simultaneously broadcast on WYRD 1330 AM Greenville; W249DL 97.7 MHz, Greenville; and W246CV 97.1 MHz, Spartanburg. "The Fan Upstate" format can also be heard on WFBC-FM HD3, Greenville. WORD's transmitter is located on the aptly named Broadcast Drive in Spartanburg, while its studios are in Greenville.
WTSS is a commercial radio station in Buffalo, New York. It is owned by Audacy, Inc.. The studios and offices are on Corporate Parkway in Amherst, New York.
WRVR is an adult contemporary radio station broadcasting in Memphis, Tennessee. It has broadcast this format for at least 34 years as of 2021. Owned by Audacy, Inc., the station's studios are located in Southeast Memphis, and the transmitter tower is in Cordova, Tennessee, outside Memphis.
WEGR is a hot adult contemporary FM radio station in Memphis, Tennessee. It is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. and serves the Memphis metropolitan area, including sections of Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri and Mississippi. WEGR broadcasts at 102.7 MHz and on the air it calls itself 102.7 Kiss FM. The station's studios are located in Southeast Memphis, and the transmitter site is in Bartlett, Tennessee. WEGR broadcasts at 100,000 watts.
WLFP is a country music radio station. It is licensed to Germantown, Tennessee, and serves the Memphis area. WLFP broadcasts in HD.
WOGY, known as "Froggy 104", is an American FM radio station licensed to Jackson, Tennessee, and owned by Forever Media through Forever South Licenses, LLC. As of October, 2007, the programming format is country music. The station is a 100,000 watt radio station that reaches as far north as Kentucky and even covers the eastern suburbs of Memphis.
WMFS is a commercial AM radio station located in Memphis, Tennessee. WMFS airs sports radio programming branded as "ESPN 680AM Sports Radio Memphis". The station simulcasts with WMFS-FM 92.9. WMFS is home to the Geoff Calkins Show, the Jason and John Show, the Eric Hasseltine Show, and the Gary Parrish Show. As of the 2007 baseball season, WMFS has become the home of St. Louis Cardinals broadcasts in the Memphis area. It also broadcasts Tennessee Volunteers football and basketball games.
KFH is a commercial AM radio station in Wichita, Kansas. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. It airs a sports radio format. The station's studios and offices are located on East Douglas Avenue.
WKIM is a commercial radio station licensed to Munford, Tennessee, and serving the Memphis metropolitan area. It is owned by Cumulus Media and airs a news/talk radio format.
KVLM is a non-commercial FM radio station licensed to Lamesa, Texas, and serving the Midland-Big Spring-Odessa region of Texas. It broadcasts a Christian radio format and is owned by VCY America, Inc. The station airs a mix of Christian talk and teaching shows and Christian music. SRN News provides updates.