WIOG (102.5 FM) 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 ...

airing a Top 40 (CHR) format, licensed to

Bay City, Michigan Bay City is a city and county seat of Bay County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located near the base of the Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 34,932, and it is the principal city of the Bay City Metropol ...

and serving the Greater Tri-Cities areas.

History

From the 1970s until September 1986, WIOG operated on 106.3 MHz licensed to Saginaw. 106.3 FM signed on in 1969 as WSBM, featuring a

MOR Mor or MOR may refer to: Names and titles * Mór (given name), a list of people named Mór or Mor * Mor (surname), a list of people named Mor or Mór * Mor (honorific), or Mar, in Syriac Radio and television * Middle of the road (music) genre * ...

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, quie ...

music format. Later in the 1970s the calls became WIOG (the calls resembled the number "106," as in its dial position) and the format shifted to AOR. In 1980, with the addition of some

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

records to its AOR playlist, WIOG moved to a Top 40 format, eventually taking on the name "Hits 106" and becoming one of the most popular radio stations in the market. The 102.5 frequency was originally home to WNEM-FM (later

WGER WGER (106.3 FM, "106.3 The Core") is a radio station licensed to Saginaw, Michigan, broadcasting a classic alternative format. The station broadcasts from a transmitter southeast of I-675 Exit 6 (Tittabawassee Road) in Carrollton Township in Sa ...

), a

Beautiful Music Beautiful music (sometimes abbreviated as BM, B/EZ or BM/EZ for "beautiful music/easy listening") is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in North American radio from the late 1950s through the 1980s. Easy listening, elevator musi ...

station which was one of the pioneers of FM Stereo broadcasting in Michigan. With its big signal, WGER was one of the most successful easy-listening stations in Michigan; as late as 1985, when it was using TM Programming's beautiful-music package, the station was posting #1 ratings among adult listeners aged 25–49 in the Saginaw and Flint markets, according to TM promotional literature of the time. After the owner of WIOG bought WGER then sold the old station at 106.3, WIOG and WGER switched call signs in September 1986. WGER moved its beautiful music to the lower powered 106.3 and WIOG's CHR format was planted at 102.5. The move paid off, as WIOG quickly became a powerhouse in mid-Michigan broadcasting. In the fall of 1986, during an economic rescission, the radio station ran a new promotion "Free Money". Where they gave away a chance to win $1,000 to $10,000 every hour. This helped the station meet an Arbitron rating of 30.3%. Becoming the highest-rated radio station in the entire country. WIOG got strong competition in the early 1990s from 100.5 WTCF "The Fox", which soon surpassed them as the dominant CHR station. Due to the competition and to a desire to appeal to more adult listeners, WIOG shifted to being a

Hot 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 ...

station in May 1992. WTCF's departure from the CHR format in 1999, however, left the door open for WIOG to move back to CHR, which it did that July. Today WIOG remains one of the most popular stations in the Tri-Cities market, though its showing in the Flint market is more modest due to competition from CHR

WWCK-FM WWCK-FM (105.5 MHz, "CK105.5") is a radio station in Flint, Michigan, broadcasting a Top 40 (CHR) format. The station is owned by Cumulus Media and has programmed its current format since 1989. Its studios are located south of the Flint city l ...

, rhythmic

WRCL WRCL (93.7 FM) is a commercial broadcast radio station serving the mid Michigan area (Flint, Saginaw and Bay City). It plays Rhythmic Contemporary Hits on the FM dial at 93.7 MHz, naming itself ''Club 93-7''. The transmitter is in Tuscola ...

and active rocker

WWBN WWBN (101.5 FM, "Banana 101.5") is a radio station broadcasting mainstream rock to Flint and The Thumb areas of Michigan. Syndicated shows on Banana include the morning comedy program ''The Free Beer and Hot Wings Show'', and music programs '' L ...

. Notable

DJs A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile D ...

at WIOG at the time include Dean Myers, Scott "Shannon" Seipel (not to be confused with

Scott Shannon Michael Scott Shannon (born July 25, 1947) is an American radio disc jockey who hosted the morning show for WCBS-FM in New York City from 2014 to 2022 as well as ''Scott Shannon Presents America's Greatest Hits'' which is syndicated nationally wi ...

), Renee Andrews, Bob Hughes, Jim Alexander, Rick Donahue, Keith Michaels, Steve Kelly and Tim Murphy. Rick Belcher was the Program Director at the time of WIOG's rating's domination.

References

Michiguide.com - WIOG History"Superpower" Grandfathered FM's

External links

WIOG official website
* {{Cumulus Media Radio stations in Michigan, IOG Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States Cumulus Media radio stations Radio stations established in 1969 1969 establishments in Michigan