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Broadcast area | South Bend, Indiana |
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Frequency | 99.9 MHz (HD Radio) |
Branding | Live 99.9 |
Programming | |
Format | Alternative rock |
Subchannels | HD2: 107.9 The Lake (Classic rock) HD3: WSBT simulcast (Sports) |
Affiliations | Premiere Networks United Stations Radio Networks |
Ownership | |
Owner |
|
WSBT, WNSN, WYRX-FM | |
History | |
First air date | October 10, 1947 (as WHFB-FM) [1] |
Former call signs | WHFB-FM (1947–2016) |
Call sign meaning | W QLive 99.9 Q |
Technical information [2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 72175 |
Class | B |
ERP | 50,000 watts |
HAAT | 124 meters (407 ft) |
Translator(s) | HD2: 107.9 W300EJ (Benton Harbor) |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Webcast | Listen Live Listen Live (HD2) |
Website | live999radio.com 1079thelake.com (HD2) |
WQLQ (99.9 FM) is a radio station licensed to Benton Harbor, Michigan targeting the South Bend, Indiana market. WQLQ is owned by Mid-West Family Broadcasting. Its signal is regularly heard as far as Chicago, Illinois, and as far east as Battle Creek, Michigan.
As of June 2011, the station has re-imaged from Cat Country 99-9 to Real Country 99-Nine.
Previous to the country format, the then-WHFB-FM acted as a local station serving the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph area, with beautiful music and adult contemporary music formats.
In September 2015, Schurz Communications, which previously held a minority interest in Douglas Road Radio, agreed to acquire full ownership of the company. The transaction is part of the $442.5 million acquisition of Schurz' broadcast interests, including WHFB-FM, by Gray Television. [3] [4] [5] Though Gray initially intended to keep Schurz' radio stations, on November 2, it announced that Mid-West Family Broadcasting would acquire WHFB-FM and Schurz' other South Bend radio stations for $5.5 million. Mid-West Family already owns several stations in the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph area, where the station's city of license is located. [6] [7] [8] The sale to Mid-West was consummated on February 16, 2016.
Upon acquiring the station, Midwest Family announced on October 4, 2016, that WHFB would flip to Top 40/CHR as "Live 99.9" the following Tuesday, the 11th. The station began stunting with TV show theme songs on October 7, 2016, which ended with the noon launch on the aforementioned date. The callsign was changed on October 12, 2016 to WQLQ to match. [9] [10]
On July 24, 2024 at noon, after playing "Get Him Back!" by Olivia Rodrigo, WQLQ shifted to alternative rock, retaining the "Live" branding but using the new slogan "The Alternative". Core artists include The Killers, Nirvana, Foo Fighters (whose song "Best of You" was the first under the new format), Red Hot Chili Peppers, Weezer and Pearl Jam. The change came after the flip of the station's HD3 subchannel to a simulcast of sister station WSBT the day prior, and comes after the younger-leaning CHR format failed to overtake Artistic Media Partners' adult-leaning WNDV, only registering a 2.7 in the Fall 2023 ratings books, whereas WNDV held a 7.7. The shift now positions the station closer to Federated Media's active rock WRBR-FM, which held a 5.4 share.
On January 30, 2019, WQLQ launched a classic rock format on its HD2 subchannel, branded as "95.7 The Lake" (simulcast on translator W239CJ 95.7 FM Benton Harbor). [11] In April 2024, the station moved from 95.7 to 107.9 FM.
On June 28, 2021, WQLQ launched a country music format, branded as "96.1 The Ton" (simulcast on translator W241AD 96.1 FM South Bend, Indiana). [12]
On July 22, 2024, WQLQ-HD3/W241AD changed their format from country to a simulcast of sports-formatted WSBT 960 AM South Bend. [13]
WQLQ relays its HD2 subchannel on the following translator:
Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | HAAT | Class | FCC info |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W300EJ | 107.9 FM | Benton Harbor, Michigan | 156712 | 250 | 0 m (0 ft) | D | LMS |
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