Philadelphia
WEAZ Relaunches As B101
Previous Format: AC “EZ 101” WEAZ New Format: AC “B101” WBEB Date & Time Of Change: April 25, 1993 at 5:30pm More Info: Philadelphia Radio Archives, Wikipedia
Eagle 106 WEGX becomes Smooth Jazz WJJZ
In the early 1990’s CHRs across the country were flipping formats. Baltimore and Washington, D.C. had lost theirs in 1992. In 1993, Philadelphia would lose its. The 106.1 frequency had been CHR for almost a decade under a few monikers: WZGO Z106, WTRK Electric 106, and finally Eagle 106. Smooth Jazz formats were sprouting up across the nation, targeting a more desirable audience to advertisers. After the flip on Friday, March 12th, another station was quick to jump on WEGX’s audience. 100.3 WKSZ, a struggling AC flipped to CHR as Z100 the following Monday, but would later change calls to WPLY “Y100” after a lawsuit from New York’s Z100 fearing audience confusion due to signal overlap. WPLY would have an Adult lean until it flipped to Modern Rock in 1994. Other...
103.9 WIBF flips from Ethnic to Modern Rock
The 103.9 frequency was one of the last remaining voids in the Philadelphia market. With a leased-time format under Fox Broadcasting, WIBF was an untapped goldmine in the world of formatted radio. Enter Jarad Broadcasting, owners of longtime Modern Rocker WDRE in Garden City, New York. Jarad was quickly developing a cluster of Modern Rock stations with the “Underground Network” moniker. Affiliates included stations in Albany, Memphis, Little Rock, and WIBF. Signing-On with Pearl Jam’s “Alive”, 103.9 would simulcast New York’s WDRE until the demise of the network. Around that time, the WDRE call letters were moved to 103.9, which went live and local until its death in 1997.
102.1 WIOQ flips from Oldies to Rhythmic CHR “Q102”
On November 18, 1987, two Philadelphia radio stations changed formats to oldies within minutes of one another: “Hot Hits” 98.1 WCAU-FM became “Oldies 98” WOGL, while Rocker “Q102” WIOQ became “Solid Gold 102”. The battle between the two stations would last for 14 months until WIOQ was sold to EZ Communications. Under new PD Mark Driscoll, the station debuted a Rhythmic CHR format under the resurrected “Q102” moniker that has lasted to this day in various forms.
KYW Goes All-News
Previous Format: Middle Of The Road New Format: News Date & Time Of Change: September 21, 1965 More Info: CBS Philly, Wikipedia Aircheck Contributed by KYW 1060
