WGY-FM (103.1
MHz) is a
news
News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different media: word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, or through the testimony of observers and witnesses to event ...
-
talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...
station licensed to
Albany, New York
Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York Cit ...
. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day at 5,600 watts
ERP from a non-directional antenna in
North Greenbush, New York
North Greenbush is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. North Greenbush is located in the western part of the county. The population was 13,292 at the 2020 census.
The town has three main hamlets, Wynantskill in the northeaste ...
located near
U.S. Route 4
U.S. Route 4 (US 4) is a long United States highway that runs from East Greenbush, New York, in the west to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in the east, traversing Vermont.
In New York, US 4 is signed North-South to reflect its alignment in the sta ...
. The station, owned by
iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
, serves the New York's
Capital District
A capital district, capital region or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any poli ...
and surrounding areas, including the portions of the Mid-Hudson and upper
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...
.
WGY-FM's signal can be heard as far away as
Hudson and
Catskill to the south,
Pittsfield
Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield ...
and
North Adams to the east,
Warrensburg and
Glens Falls
Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,700 at the 2010 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls ref ...
to the north, and
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
and
Cobleskill to the west.
History
Easy listening
WGY-FM first signed on in 1966 with an
easy listening
Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, ...
format under the moniker ''Whirl'' and the call letters WHRL. The easy listening format lasted in some form or another for much of the next two decades, evolving to a soft adult contemporary approach in 1987. Listeners of the station prior to 1987 recall WHRL being an "elevator music" station.
"Today's Jazz" 103.1 FM WHRL
103.1 FM WHRL was an adult contemporary/
smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of commercially-oriented crossover jazz and easy listening music that became dominant in the mid 1970s to the early 1990s.
History
Smooth jazz is a commercially oriented, crossover jazz which came to prominence in the ...
radio station from 1987 to October 1999. In 1988, the station flipped to a new age/jazz format, and became known as "Easy 103.1" and "The Breeze". Around 1995, WHRL officially picked up the all-smooth jazz format. WHRL enjoyed success in its format.
Radio & Records
''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...
reported on WHRL's "net gains" success on August 25, 1995, noting "WHRL/Albany climbed from about a half share to over two in the same demo for a 214% increase." Similarly, in 1997, Radio & Records reported that "WHRL surged 2.5-3.4 12+." Before transitioning to all-smooth jazz, WHRL had played operas on the weekend and big band, only playing smooth jazz on the morning drive, but these were scrapped and WHRL added
dayparts, or segments during the day, of smooth jazz. The change was well received. Brant Curtiss, the Operations Manager at the time said that "listener reaction, via phones and e-mail, has been extremely positive. WHRL went from two or three daily complaints (some urging them to convert more quickly) to a over dozen listeners each day asking for title and album information of the new music they had begun playing. Smooth jazz is not just wallpaper music in Albany."
At this time, the new smooth jazz format was marketed with word-of-mouth because there was not the kind of budget for massive television and print like jazz stations in larger markets could afford. In this effort, WHRL launched its website in 1997, as well as a "Jazz Club" that listeners could join. In going through this change to all-smooth jazz, WHRL more than doubled its
cume
In the practice of measuring the size of US commercial broadcasting and newspaper audiences, cume, short for "cumulative audience", is a measure of the total number of unique consumers over a specified period.
The technical definition of cume is r ...
(cumulative audience) from 1996 to 1997.
In its tenure, WHRL went by "Easy 103.1," "The Breeze" and "Today's Jazz." The station's "Today's Jazz" iteration logo had 103.1 on top of "TODAY'S JAZZ" written in a stylized font, above the station number which appeared on the bottom.
Today's Jazz used clips from Spyro Gyra's "Morning Dance" and Rick Braun's "Club Harlem" featuring Peter White as bumpers.
WHRL aimed for "stress management" with its song list and format. In 1999, Brant Curtiss, then DJ, Station Programmer, and Director/Creative Services for WHRL described the station:
"Our ratings rise continuously through the day. During evenings with our Today's Jazz Tonight and Lights Out programs, the numbers go through the roof - No. 1 and 2 in certain demos - and we are kicking the hell out of 41 stations in Albany. That's because the format fits the function, and our function is stress management. When people leave work and are driving home, we're like a decompression chamber for them. It's sad, but our morning show is almost not a factor: middays are more like morning for us. That doesn't mean you should waste mornings; you've got to go after it. With great songs like "Urban Turban," Kombo and
Brian Tarquin's "Darlin' Darlin' Baby," you can pump up your sound. They have very strong hooks. Songs that are very smooth complement them and offer balance."
Ownership and management
Dame Media Inc. purchased WHRL, a 6,000-watt station, in 1996 from Regal Broadcasting, Inc. of Rensselaer.
Dame Media paid $2.63 million.
That year, Congress had enacted new ownership rules raising the limit in the market size of the Capital Region from four stations to seven.
The enactment precipitated a seller's market. At the time of Dame Media's purchase, WHRL had a 1.7 percent share of listeners aged 12 and up putting it in 12th place in the area. In 1994, the station had a revenue of $500,000.
In 1997, Dame Media hired Peter Baumann as station manager of WHRL "Today's Jazz."
Previously, Baumann had been director of sales for other Capital District Radio Stations WPYX and WTRY.
Another Dame Media hire in that year was Brant Curtiss as operations manager for WHRL. Previously Curtiss had been production director of WTPA/WVNC in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Dame Media Inc. was acquired by Clear Channel Communications Inc. in 1998 for $85 million in stock and debt.
WHRL activities and promotions
Today's Jazz produced its own smooth jazz compilations from time to time. In 1998 the station released a compilation album with nine tracks that was available retail at Hollywood Video and sold for $7.95.
A portion of the proceeds from the purchase of the compilation benefited the Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization.
The track list included songs by Spyro Gyra, Diana Krall, George Benson, and Lee Ritenour.
The station published a newsletter called "WHRL Smooth Jazz Scene" that featured "the lowdown on upcoming events plus cool photos of your favorite WHRL personalities."
The newsletter could be picked up in the Capitol region at over twenty retail locations.
In 1997, WHRL acquired a station van named "Miles" that had the 103.1 "Today's Jazz" logo emblazoned on the side.
1999 transfer of smooth jazz to 104.9 FM WZMR
After Clear Channel Communications (now
iHeartMedia
iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...
) purchased Dame Media in 1999, WHRL's future became cloudy and rumors of a format change circulated. Clear Channel Communications decided to discontinue the smooth jazz programming on WHRL-FM in 1999. The decision was met with public outcry.
In response to the public support of WHRL-FM,
Albany Broadcasting's (now Pamal Broadcasting)
WZMR-FM Albany/Schenectady/Troy decided to pick up the discarded smooth jazz format.
Albany Broadcasting's Vice President of Programming concurred.
Today's Jazz WHRL continued to sponsor and promote jazz in the Capital Region right up until its departure in October 1999; for example, WHRL sponsored A Night of Jazz at the New York State Museum on September 9, 1999, featuring a live performance by jazz guitarist Dwight Sills.
Smooth jazz exits 104.9
In June 2003, 104.9 incorporated smooth jazz and R&B oldies as "104.9 Love FM" to reach a broader audience. However, by 2005, smooth jazz had permanently been taken off the air; in January 2005, 104.9 FM was still playing Christmas music, until it switched to a simulcast of "Froggy Country 107.1" in Glens Falls.
Channel 103-1
The smooth jazz format on 103.1 gave way to the modern rock-formatted ''Channel 103.1'' on October 2, 1999, two weeks after former sister station
WQBK-FM
WQBK-FM (105.7 MHz "Q105.7/103.5") is a commercial radio station licensed to Malta, New York, and serving the Capital District of New York, including the Albany-Schenectady-Troy radio market. The station is owned by Townsquare Media, and ai ...
(now owned by
Townsquare Media
Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...
) flipped from modern rock to active rock; the first song played by Channel 103-1 was "Driven to Tears" by
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Polic ...
. Slogans used by the station included "Albany's New Music Alternative", "Albany's New Rock Alternative", and eventually "Where You Rock" during its active rock format.
In
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...
, WHRL adopted
Clear Channel's
Premium Choice
The majority of programming syndicated by iHeartMedia is distributed through its subsidiary, Premiere Networks, owned by the company since 1999 and purchased by antecedent Jacor in 1997. However, several music and talk shows originated on iHeartM ...
active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...
format, becoming musically identical outside of morning drive to sister stations
KBRU
KREF-FM (94.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station located in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. KREF-FM airs a sports format branded as "94.7 The Ref". Owned by iHeartMedia, its transmitter is located in Northeast Oklahoma City, and studios are located at t ...
in
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...
and
KIOC
KIOC is an active rock-formatted radio station in Beaumont, Texas. It serves the entire Golden Triangle region and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. Its studios are located southeast of the I-10/US 69 interchange in Beaumont, and its transmitter is l ...
in
Beaumont
Beaumont may refer to:
Places Canada
* Beaumont, Alberta
* Beaumont, Quebec
England
* Beaumont, Cumbria
* Beaumont, Essex
** Beaumont Cut, a canal closed in the 1930s
* Beaumont Street, Oxford
France (communes)
* Beaumont, Ardèche
* ...
. WHRL became the third active rock station in the Albany market in addition to competitors WZMR and WQBK-FM. During this period, the Albany market had the highest number of active rock stations for an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
radio market, until
WZMR flipped to
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...
on February 26,
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
.
However, when WHRL flipped to active rock in 2009, the Clear Channel-Regent non-compete clause, which was previously used when
WBZZ
WBZZ (100.7 FM, "100.7 Star") is a top 40/CHR station licensed to New Kensington, Pennsylvania, targeting Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and owned by Audacy, Inc. Its transmitter is located in Pittsburgh's Spring Hill district and its studios ...
flipped from Hot AC to AC, was invoked (as WQBK-FM is an active rock station) and led to the eventual flip to a talk radio simulcast of WGY. WHRL had already been reporting as an
active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...
station on
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...
since
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; ...
;
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...
is owned by the station's parent company, iHeartMedia.
Throughout its history as a rock format, the station was known for playing many
alternative
Alternative or alternate may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki''
* ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film
* ''The Alternative ...
,
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
,
goth,
emo
Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...
, and
metal
A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...
bands and artists from about 1990 to the present, including
Avenged Sevenfold
Avenged Sevenfold (abbreviated as A7X) is an American heavy metal band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1999. The band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist M. Shadows, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Zacky Vengeance, ...
,
Disturbed,
Korn
Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream.
Originally formed in 1993 ...
,
Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn and drumm ...
,
Slipknot, and
Atreyu
Atreyu is an American metalcore band from Yorba Linda, California, formed in 1998. The band currently consists of clean vocalist Brandon Saller, guitarists Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel, bassist and unclean vocalist Marc "Porter" McKnight, and ...
. The station also held concerts known as the ''Channel 103-1 Big Day Out'' every summer until 2010, featuring modern and active rock artists.
WGY-FM
At 12:01 AM on September 20, 2010, after the song "
New Divide
"New Divide" is a song by American rock band Linkin Park. The song is released as a single and was recorded specifically for the soundtrack, '' Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen – The Album'' to Michael Bay's film '' Transformers: Revenge of ...
" by
Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn and drumm ...
, WHRL dropped its
active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...
format to simulcast sister station
WGY, which runs a
news-talk
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...
format; in addition, the station changed its callsign to the current WGY-FM.
With WHRL switching from modern rock to active rock in 2009, only to drop it in favor of the WGY simulcast one year later, this leaves
WEQX
WEQX is an FM radio station located at 102.7 MHz and broadcasting from Manchester, Vermont, United States with an effective radiated power of 1,250 watts at 759 meters (equivalent to 50,000 watts at 150 meters). Their tower is located on nearby ...
as the only modern rock radio station remaining in the Albany market. Despite being a rimshot station, WEQX is reported by
Mediabase
Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analytic ...
and
Nielsen BDS as an Albany station.
As of September 24, 2010, Channel 103.1's former website redirects to the website of sister station
WPYX (PYX 106.5).
HD Radio operations
In 2005, WHRL upgraded to
IBOC digital radio
Digital radio is the use of digital technology to transmit or receive across the radio spectrum. Digital transmission by radio waves includes digital broadcasting, and especially digital audio radio services.
Types
In digital broadcasting s ...
alongside the rest of Clear Channel's Albany stations. On August 17, 2006, WHRL began airing an HD2 channel with a "Classic Alternative" format. With WHRL dumping active rock for a WGY simulcast, the station's HD2 signal was changed from the classic alternative format to a simulcast of
WOFX (''Fox Sports 980'') the same day.
Logos
File:Whrl old.png, WGY-FM's first logo as WHRL ''Channel 103.1'', 1999-2001
File:WHRLfinal.png, WGY-FM's final logo under the ''Channel 103.1'' format, 2005–2010
File:New WGY logo.jpg, WGY-FM's logo as WGY ''News Talk'', 2010–2013
References
External links
{{coord missing, Capital District
GY-FM
Radio stations established in 1966
IHeartMedia radio stations
1966 establishments in New York (state)
News and talk radio stations in the United States