WJMN (94.5
FM) is a
rhythmic CHR Rhythmic may refer to:
* Related to rhythm
* Rhythmic contemporary, a radio format
* Rhythmic adult contemporary, a radio format
* Rhythmic gymnastics, a form of gymnastics
* Rhythmic (chart)
The Rhythmic chart (also called Rhythmic Airplay, a ...
radio station
licensed
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
to
Boston, Massachusetts,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, under the ownership of
iHeartMedia. Its current slogan is "Boston's #1 for Hip Hop & The Best Throwbacks." The station's studios are located in
Medford and the transmitter site is in
Newton, Massachusetts
Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...
.
History
WHDH-FM (1948–1972)
WJMN was originally WHDH-FM: a sister station to, and simulcast of,
WHDH (AM). In 1965, to comply with a
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 jurisdicti ...
regulation limiting simulcasting between commonly owned
AM and
FM stations in the same city, WHDH-FM began separate programming with an automated
middle-of-the-road format in stereo. In late 1967, WHDH-FM changed its format to automated
progressive rock
Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...
(predating future FM rocker
WBCN by several months), but by late 1969, the station returned to automated
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 mu ...
after a little "intervention", allegedly from WHDH Inc.'s chief executive officer, Harold J. Clancy (who did not particularly approve of putting rock and roll on "MY FM station!"). Although this format remained until 1975, it was not particularly successful, despite a 1972 attempt to establish a separate identity by changing the
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 WCOZ (as in "Cozy").
WCOZ (1972–1984)
Originally owned by Herald-Traveler Corp., parent of the ''
Boston Herald-Traveler'' newspaper, the station was sold to Blair Radio in 1972, and in the 1980s to Sconnix. Several ownership changes followed which eventually resulted in Clear Channel Communications (now
iHeartMedia) acquiring 94.5 FM.
In the summer of 1975, WCOZ announced that it would change its format to an
album-oriented rock
Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock.
Album-orien ...
station under their new name ''WCOZ 94½ FM'', which it did on August 15 of that year. Although automated at first, a team of live announcers was hired, led by Kenny Shelton and program director Clark Smidt. By the end of 1975, WCOZ had live announcers around the clock that also included George Taylor Morris, Leslie Palmiter, Lisa Karlin, Mark Parenteau and Robert Desiderio. WCOZ's format was tightened significantly in 1978, when new Program Director Tommy Hadges arrived from arch rival WBCN. Parenteau simultaneously defected to WBCN at that point.
In 1980, another new program director, John Sebastian, arrived and made some changes. WCOZ was still a rock station, but its focus was tightened to loud, hard rock (or "Kickass Rock 'N' Roll!", according to the station's slogan) with minimal announcer talk and short play list. It was extremely successful, peaking with a 13.1 in the ratings in 1982, but with the changes in rock music during the 1980s, the station's success did not last; its rival
WBCN moved past it in the ratings. By late 1983, WCOZ had changed formats to a short lived
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 ...
format.
WZOU (1984–1993)
In September 1984, the station's call letters were changed to WZOU, and flipped to a
Top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
format to compete against
WXKS-FM
WXKS-FM (107.9 FM), branded as ''Kiss 108'', is a commercial top 40/CHR radio station licensed to serve Medford, Massachusetts, and covering Greater Boston. Owned by iHeartMedia, the WXKS-FM studios are in Medford and the transmitter sits at ...
and
WHTT as ''Z-94''. Program Director David Gariano had success with the Top 40 format, which featured original 1984 personalities Mike Morin and Brad Krantz, Jeff Michaels, Steve York, Jim Cutler, Uncle Johnny, Jon "Rock N Roll" Anthony, Marc Mitchell, and Scott Brunner. In 1985, Pat McKay and Karen "The Madam" Blake joined the morning team. In June 1987, Dan McCoy arrived to do afternoons and eventually moved to mid-days, where he remained until April 1990. WZOU was Boston's affiliate for
Rick Dees Weekly Top 40
''Rick Dees Weekly Top 40'' (sometimes known as ''The Weekly Top 40'') is an internationally syndicated radio program created and hosted by American radio personality Rick Dees. It is currently heard on over 200 radio stations worldwide. It is d ...
.
Though WHTT would change formats in 1986, WXKS-FM successfully adapted to its Top 40/CHR format in December 1982, which would later into the decade cut into Z-94's ratings by 1988. What also didn't help the station's ratings was the declining popularity of the format in the late 1980s–early 1990s.
WJMN (1993–present)
Since its inception on May 11, 1993, "Jam'n 94.5" has become one of Boston's most successful
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 radi ...
s. Even after its sale to Chancellor in 1996, station management decided not to tamper with the format as they see WJMN as part of a winning combination with top 40/CHR sister station WXKS-FM, a formula that continues to the present day.
When "Jam'n" debuted, the station had a playlist of a balanced mix of R&B/hip-hop, rhythmic pop, and dance product (the same approach was used at WXKS-FM when it made the transition from disco to top 40 in 1982 up until their shift to their current mainstream direction in 1988). However, by the end of 1999, it began to play a variety of music that was along the lines of urban contemporary hits, heavy on the hip-hop to the extent of not playing non-rap rhythmic tracks. This would last until the beginning of 2009, when WJMN began tweaking their musical selection to once again include rhythmic/pop-charting artists like
Britney Spears,
Justin Bieber
Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...
,
Kesha,
Katy Perry,
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta ( , ; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and music producer. He has over 10 million album and 65 million single sales globally, with more than 10 billion streams. In 2011, 2020 and 2021, Guetta was voted the number one D ...
,
Edward Maya
Eduard Marian Ilie (; born 29 June 1986), better known by his stage name Edward Maya, is a Romanian DJ, musician, composer, record producer, performer, singer and songwriter, most famous for his 2009 smash hit single " Stereo Love".
Career
In an ...
,
Adele
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...
, and
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
. This tweaking has sparked a lot of talk on radio message boards and follows a pattern among rhythmic-format stations that have scaled back on the heavy amount of hip-hop in favor of a more balanced approach. This continued until mid 2013, when facing competition from
rhythmic AC
Rhythmic adult contemporary, often abbreviated as rhythmic AC or RAC, is an adult contemporary radio format. The format focuses primarily on rhythmic hits aimed towards an adult audience, often resembling a mixture of the classic hits and hot adult ...
-formatted
WBQT (which features some of WJMN's former airstaff), WJMN has added more hip hop and R&B content and scaled back on dance tracks, but still remains rhythmic. Because of this, several music trades (like
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 Audio
Nielsen Audio (formerly Arbitron) is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio broadcasting audiences. It was founded as the American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by merging ...
have listed WJMN as Rhythmic because the audience it targets is racially mixed and the region's
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...
population is not that large.
WJMN's voiceover artist was, at first, Brian James. From the late 1990s until 2019, the station's voiceover artist was Eric Edwards; he has since been replaced by Lucas Nugent. "Jam'n" morning drive, for the first two years, was hosted by John "J.R." Edwards. In February 1995, Baltazar, former night show host at
WQHT
WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared servi ...
in
New York, took over mornings. Two months later,
Pebbles, formerly of
WILD
Wild, wild, wilds or wild may refer to:
Common meanings
* Wild animal
* Wilderness, a wild natural environment
* Wildness, the quality of being wild or untamed
Art, media and entertainment Film and television
* ''Wild'' (2014 film), a 2014 A ...
, became morning co-host. The duo were very popular among Boston listeners, particularly with younger audiences. Baltazar left the show on October 26, 2001, giving way to the "Ramiro and Pebbles Morning Show" when afternoon host Ramiro Torres moved to mornings. Pebbles was unexpectedly let go from the station in December 2012, with mornings then hosted by Torres, Santi "Krazy Kulo" DeOleo and Ashlee Feldman, under the name "The Ramiro's House Morning Show". Torres and DeOleo were let go in July 2015 due to their contracts not being renewed. Frankie Vinci, formerly of station
KHTS in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
(and also a native of the nearby suburb of
Framingham
Framingham () is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located in Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The city proper covers with a popul ...
), would join the morning show alongside Feldman, with the show now titled "The Jam'n Morning Show w/ Frankie & Ashlee." On May 12, 2016, WJMN replaced Vinci and Feldman with the syndicated ''
Breakfast Club'' from sister
WWPR-FM
WWPR-FM (105.1 FM) is an urban contemporary music radio station licensed to New York City. WWPR-FM is owned by iHeartMedia and broadcasts from studios in the former AT&T Building in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan; its transmitter is lo ...
in New York. On March 25, 2019, Feldman and DeOleo would return to mornings, and would be joined by longtime station mixer DJ Pup Dawg and DJ 4eign.
WJMN also has an
HD2 sub-channel that serves as a local affiliate of the
Black Information Network
Black Information Network (BIN) is a radio network and content brand owned by iHeartMedia. Launched on June 30, 2020, it is an all-news radio network of stations targeting the African American community, carrying mostly important national news hea ...
, which is an
all-news
All-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to the discussion and broadcast of news.
All-news radio is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried on both major US satellite radio networks. All-news stations can run the ...
service specifically geared toward African-American listeners.
It previously broadcast 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 ...
format known as The Breeze from November 2018 to June 30, 2020. It also previously broadcast
old-school hip hop
Old-school hip hop (also spelled old skool) is the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music and original style of the genre. It typically refers to the music created around 1979 to 1983, as well as any hip hop that does not adhere to contem ...
music from January 27, 2006, to March 1, 2013, and offered a simulcast of sister station
WXKS from then until November 2018.
For a time, Boston was the largest market without an urban-formatted radio station; heritage R&B AM daytimer WILD, which served the area's African-American community since 1967, began airing
China Radio International
China Radio International (CRI) is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of China. It is currently headquartered in the Babaoshan area of Beijing's Shijingshan District. It was founded on December 3, 1941, as Radio Peking. It later ...
programming in June 2011, and its one-time hip hop sister station WBOT (which later became urban AC WILD-FM), which gave the market its first full-time urban outlet on the FM band in 1999 despite having a weak signal, has been defunct since the summer of 2006, when
Radio One (which owned both stations) sold it to
Entercom
Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...
and flipped it to a simulcast of
WAAF WAAF may refer to:
* w3af, (short for web application attack and audit framework), an open-source web application security scanner
* Women's Auxiliary Air Force, a British military service in World War II
** Waaf, a member of the service
* WAAF (AM ...
as
WKAF. However, in February 2016, AM station
WZBR
WZBR (1410 AM broadcasting, AM) is a radio station broadcasting a jazz music format. Licensed to Dedham, Massachusetts, United States, the station serves the Greater Boston area. The station is owned by Langer Broadcasting Group, LLC, which also o ...
flipped from a simulcast of
WSRO
WSRO (650 AM broadcasting, AM HD Radio) is a radio station now broadcasting classical music. Licensed to Ashland, Massachusetts, it serves the MetroWest, Massachusetts, MetroWest area. The station is owned by Alex Langer. WSRO also operates Broad ...
to urban (they have since changed formats). In January 2017, WKAF flipped back to urban AC, returning that format to the Boston market for the first time since WILD-FM flipped over ten years prior, and 11 months later, became a sister station to WJMN.
WJMN is unrelated to
WJMN-TV
WJMN-TV (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Escanaba, Michigan, United States, serving the Central and Western Upper Peninsula of Michigan as an affiliate of MyNetworkTV. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group, and maintains ...
, a MyNetworkTV affiliate in
Escanaba, Michigan
Escanaba ( ), commonly shortened to Esky, is a port city in Delta County in the U.S. state of Michigan, located on Little Bay de Noc in the state's Upper Peninsula. The population was 12,616 at the 2010 census, making it the third-largest city ...
.
Current on-air staff
DJ Pup Dawg* Deuce
Ashlee Feldman*
Santi "Krazy Kulo" DeOleo
Letty B
Mixshow DJs
* DJ FLUSS
DJ Chubby Chubb* DJ E. Dubble
* DJ Jaz
* DJ Jules Flava
* DJ 4eign
* DJ Voyage
* DJ Sammy Smoove
* DJ Gee Spin
* DJ D-Caso
* DJ Big Ben
* DJ ASmooth
* DJ Willie Daniels
* DJ KG
Past on-air staff
* Geespin
* Maverik
* Frankie "V." Vinci
[https://www.facebook.com/Frankie-V-74547490399 ]
* Ramiro Torres
* Master Millions
* Melissa
* J.R. in the Morning
* Baltazar
* Bobby Blaze
*
Pebbles
* Pat McKay
* Karen "The Madam" Blake
* Dan McCoy
* Chuck Dogg
* Chris Tyler (now on sister station
WXKS-FM
WXKS-FM (107.9 FM), branded as ''Kiss 108'', is a commercial top 40/CHR radio station licensed to serve Medford, Massachusetts, and covering Greater Boston. Owned by iHeartMedia, the WXKS-FM studios are in Medford and the transmitter sits at ...
)
* Kid Valentine
* Artie The One Man Party
*
Skip Kelly
* Deirdre Dagata
* Fast Freddy
* Master Jay
* Ralphie
* Big Daddy (Mike Morgan)
* Neil P. "The Frat Boy"
* Kobe
* Mike DiNatale (Magic Mike D)
* The LBD (The LilBigDaddy)
* Stevie DeMann
* Marc Clark
* Marc Jordan
* Diana "The Real Lady D." Steele
* JoJo "Cookin" Kincaid
* Problem Child (now on HOT 96.9)
* Romeo (now on sister station
WXKS-FM
WXKS-FM (107.9 FM), branded as ''Kiss 108'', is a commercial top 40/CHR radio station licensed to serve Medford, Massachusetts, and covering Greater Boston. Owned by iHeartMedia, the WXKS-FM studios are in Medford and the transmitter sits at ...
, still does commercial reads for the station)
* DJ
Akrobatik
* DJ Roy Barboza
*
Dj Buddha
Urales Vargas (born March 15, 1980), known professionally as DJ Buddha, is an American DJ, record producer, radio personality, music publisher, and record executive from Lawrence, Massachusetts.
In 2015, Buddha was enshrined into the Lawre ...
* Deja-Vu
* Ellen Prince
* DJ Hustle Simmons
* Dee Dee "DJ Spinderella" Roper of
Salt N Pepa
Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...
* Clinton Sparks
* DJ Jack Frost
* DJ Motion
* Cindy Bailen
* John Willis
Syndicated programming and features
*The Back In Day Buffet with DJ Pup Dawg
*The 5PM Traffic Jam with DJ Pup Dawg
*The Iheartradio 9@9 Countdown with DJ Geespin
*The Take Over Mix
*The Friday Night Throw Down (Jamn Mixers)
*DJ Pup Dawg's Top 30 Countdown (Flagship Station)
*Saturday Night Jump Off (Jamn Mixers)
*The Launchpad with DJ E Dubble, DJ Chubby Chubb (Flagship Station)
*Tropical Blends with DJ Pup Dawg
References
External links
*
*
{{iHeartMedia
JMN
Rhythmic contemporary radio stations in the United States
Radio stations established in 1948
IHeartMedia radio stations
1948 establishments in Massachusetts