WSSR (96.7 FM, "Star 96-7") 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 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 ...

format. Licensed to

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the cit ...

, United States, it serves South and West Suburban Chicago. The station is currently owned by

Alpha Media Alpha (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἄλφα, ''álpha'', or ell, άλφα, álfa) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of one. Alpha is derived from the Phoenician letter aleph , which ...

, through licensee Alpha Media Licensee LLC. WSSR's studios are located in Crest Hill, and its transmitter is in

Homer Glen, Illinois Homer Glen is a village, located southwest of downtown Chicago, in Homer Township, Will County, Illinois. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 24,543. The village was incorporated on April 17, 2001. The ...

. Using the slogan Star 96-7, the station features a playlist of new pop and pop-rock artists, 2000s and 1990s music.

History

WJOL-FM

The station first signed on the air on February 6, 1960 as WJOL-FM, sister station to AM 1340

WJOL WJOL (1340 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a news talk/sports format. Licensed to Joliet, Illinois, United States, the station is currently owned by Alpha Media, through licensee Alpha Media Licensee LLC. WJOL carries a variety of local progr ...

. The station shared its studios and transmitter site with the AM in Joliet, where it broadcast with an ERP of 1,000 watts at a

height above average terrain Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site is above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is ...

(HAAT) of 125 feet.History Cards for WSSR
fcc.gov. Retrieved March 15, 2019. Initially, WJOL-FM simulcast the programming of the AM part of the day, but aired

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 ...

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

, and

standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

separate from the AM station during evening hours and weekends. The station was owned by Joseph Novy and Jerome Cerny.Changing hands
, ''

Broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution (business), distribution of sound, audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio ...

''. May 11, 1964. p. 87. Retrieved March 15, 2019.Ownership changes
, ''

''. May 11, 1964. p. 96. Retrieved March 15, 2019. By 1964, its programming was separate from its AM sister station, and the station was one of the first in the area to broadcast in stereo.
1964 Broadcasting Yearbook
',

, 1964. p. B-50. Retrieved March 15, 2019. That year, WJOL-AM-FM were sold to Publishing Enterprises, owned by Jack Harris and family, for $560,000. A year later, its ERP was increased to 3,000 watts and its HAAT was increased to 300 feet.

WLLI-FM

In 1974, the station's call letters were changed to WLLI, an anagram for

Will County Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, the primary county in its coverage area, and it aired a

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

format.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1975
',

, 1975. p. C-58. Retrieved March 15, 2019. Later that decade, the station switched to a MOR format,
Broadcasting Yearbook 1977
',

, 1977. p. C-64. Retrieved March 16, 2019. and then 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 " con ...

format.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1978
',

, 1978. p. C-66. Retrieved March 16, 2019. By 1980, WLLI had returned to a MOR format.
Broadcasting Yearbook 1980
',

, 1980. p. C-69. Retrieved March 16, 2019. In 1984, the station switched to a top 40/CHR format. In 1987, the station was sold to Joliet Broadcasting. It would shift to an

adult rock Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, 2 ...

format, and was branded "96.7 I-Rock".
Chicagoland Radio Waves
', MediaTies. Summer 1988/Spring-Summer 1989. Retrieved March 17, 2019.WLLI FM 96.7
, ''Radio Chicago'', Spring 1991. p. 54. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
The Broadcasting Yearbook 1991
',

Broadcasting & Cable ''Broadcasting & Cable'' (or ''Broadcasting+Cable'') is a weekly telecommunications industry trade magazine published by Future US. Previous names included ''Broadcasting-Telecasting'', ''Broadcasting and Broadcast Advertising'', and ''Broadcast ...

, 1978. p. B-102. Retrieved March 17, 2019. In early 1995, WLLI was sold to Barden Broadcasting, which changed the station's format to

hot AC 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 s ...

. On January 22, 1996, the station adopted a country format.

Will Rock

In January 1997, WLLI adopted a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

format, and was branded "96.7 Will Rock Rocks!". Lonny Tyler was morning host and program director. During this time the station carried the

Motor Racing Network Motor Racing Network (MRN) is a U.S. radio network that syndicates broadcasts of auto racing events, particularly NASCAR. MRN was founded in 1970 by NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. and broadcaster Ken Squier, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of N ...

broadcasts of what was then known as the

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...

. In 1998, the station was sold to Pride Communications. In 2000, the station was sold to

NextMedia Group NextMedia Group was an out-of-home media company headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado. NextMedia owns and operates 33 AM and FM stations, 5,700 outdoor advertising display across several regions and markets, as well as an interactive divi ...

Star 96.7

On February 2, 2004, while playing "

Welcome to the Jungle "Welcome to the Jungle" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their debut album, ''Appetite for Destruction'' (1987). It was released as the album's second single initially in the UK in September 1987 then again in October ...

" by

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

, the song started slowing down, until the song was cut halfway through. After 15 seconds of dead air and a minute of stunting with radio sounds, this led to the launch of the station's new

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 as "Star 96.7". The first song to air under the new branding and format is " Lucky Star" by

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

. The "Star" branded adult contemporary format had previously aired on 93.5 WJTW, but the station was sold to HBC and flipped to a Spanish language format, as WVIX. On February 9, 2004, its call sign was changed to WSSR. In 2008, WSSR moved its transmitting antenna from Joliet (where it was co-located on WJOL's tower) to a 350-foot tower located at 159th Street & Cedar Road in Homer Glen. The move solidified the stations signal coverage in the I-88 and I-355 corridor as well as the southwest suburbs. WSSR and NextMedia's 32 other radio stations were sold to Digity, LLC for $85 million; the transaction was consummated on February 10, 2014. Effective February 25, 2016, Digity, LLC and its 124 radio stations were acquired by

for $264 million. Scott Childers joined WSSR in 2008 as afternoon drive host, and became program director in 2012. In April 2019, Childers was replaced in his weekday afternoon and evening shift by Eddie Volkman.

HD programming

WSSR transmits in

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...

and provides a multicast (extra) channel, which carries sister station, WJOL-AM 1340 on HD 2. The main HD channel, HD 1 simulcasts the over-the-air (analog) channel.http://www.hdradio.com/station_guides/widget.php?id=3 HD Radio Guide for Chicago

References

External links

Star 96.7 WSSR official website
* {{Alpha Media Hot adult contemporary radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1960 SSR Alpha Media radio stations 1960 establishments in Illinois