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WFZX (1490 AM) is a
radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...
broadcasting an
urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...
music format. Licensed to
Anniston, Alabama Anniston is the county seat of Calhoun County in Alabama and is one of two urban centers/principal cities of and included in the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 23,106. Acco ...
, United States, the station serves the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Area. The station is currently owned by Jeff Beck, through licensee The Jeff Beck Broadcasting Group, LLC. The station is branded as "99.1 & 99.3 The Vibe", referring to its two translators in Oxford and Gadsden.


History

Owned by Cary L. Graham and Edwin Estes, the Anniston Radio Company opened WANA in 1954, taking over the 1490-kHz 250-watt FCC assignment previously used by Anniston station WOOB. Within a short time, Graham gained full ownership. Joe A. Burney was an early employee of WANA, working his way up to become station manager. When Graham died, his will decreed that Bundy would receive the property. On August 4, 1987, the FCC approved the license to be transferred to Joe A. Burney and Ann H. Burney. In June 2000, Anniston Radio Company reached an agreement to sell this station to Dewey D. Lankford for a reported sale price of $175,000. At the time of the sale, WANA broadcast a
Southern Gospel Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as ...
music format. The deal was approved by the FCC on July 10, 2000, and the transaction was consummated on July 17, 2000. In January 2006, Jacobs Broadcast Group Inc. reached an agreement to purchase WANA from Dewey D. Lankford. The station sold for a reported $330,000. At the time of the sale, WANA broadcast a mixed Urban Christian Contemporary/
Gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...
format. The deal was approved by the FCC on March 3, 2006, and the transaction was consummated on May 1, 2006. Under the new ownership, until May 2008 the station had been
sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on-ai ...
formatted WANA, known on-air as "Sports Radio 1490 The Ticket." In May 2008, the station announced it would change its
call letters In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
to WSYA and that by the end of May it would be broadcasting a
Soft Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...
music format,
simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...
on an
FM translator A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...
in Anniston. The station was assigned the WSYA call letters by the
Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
on May 23,
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
. WSYA began broadcasting on 104.3 FM (Anniston, AL) and on 99.1 FM (Oxford, AL) on April 20, 2009. The station featured the syndicated ''
The Bob and Sheri Show ''Bob and Sheri'' is a syndicated U.S. radio program hosted by Bob Lacey and Sheri Lynch. It is heard in morning drive time. Its flagship station is WKQC-FM "K104.7" in Charlotte, North Carolina. For 29 years, the originating station had been ...
until early 2011, then it begin featuring the syndicated show
The Rick and Bubba Show ''The Rick and Bubba Show'' is an American comedy radio show based in Birmingham, Alabama. Nationally syndicated and produced at WZZK-FM, the show is live every weekday for five hours and is hosted by Rick Burgess and Bill "Bubba" Bussey. ...
'' in the morning as well as '' Deliliah'' in the evening, until it changed formats. The station's call letters and branding were previously used by
WMXS WMXS (103.3 FM, "Mix 103.3") is a radio station licensed to serve Montgomery, Alabama, United States. The station is owned by Cumulus Media and the license is held by Cumulus Licensing LLC. The WMXS studios are located on the 3rd floor of The ...
in
Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...
, which used the WSYA call letters and was known as "Sunny 103" from 1987 to 1994. The station changed call signs to WGBZ on April 6, 2011. The station again changed call signs on March 29, 2012 to WFZX. On May 28, 2012 WFZX changed their format to classic hits, branded as "The Fox". On September 5, 2012, WFZX, along with its sister station WTDR-FM, were sold to Jeff Beck, owner of The Jeff Beck Broadcasting Group, LLC. The sale of the two stations to Beck was consummated on January 3, 2013, at a purchase price of $745,000. On September 3, 2017 WFZX changed their format from classic hits to urban contemporary, branded as "99.1 & 99.3 The Vibe". (info taken from stationintel.com)


Translators


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References


External links


Jeff Beck Media WebsiteWFZX 99.1 - 99.3 Facebook
{{Urban Radio Stations in Alabama FZX Urban contemporary radio stations in the United States Mass media in Calhoun County, Alabama Radio stations established in 1954 1954 establishments in Alabama