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WKMK and WTHJ (106.3 and 106.5 FM, "Thunder 106") are two
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 simulcasting 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. The stations are licensed to Eatontown and Bass River Township,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, respectively. The station is owned by Press Communications. WKMK's transmitter is located at exit 105 of the
Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May to the New York state line at Montvale. Its name refers to New Jerse ...
in
Tinton Falls Tinton Falls is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,892,Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
television station
WWSI WWSI (channel 62) is a television station licensed to Mount Laurel, New Jersey, United States, broadcasting the Spanish-language Telemundo network to the Philadelphia area. It is owned and operated by NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group alo ...
/62 located in Tuckerton in extreme southern Ocean County. The studios are located in Neptune, New Jersey. The 106.3 WKMK signal reaches Staten Island to the north, Toms River to the south and Hightstown to the west. The 106.5 WTHJ signal reaches Brick Township to the north, Ocean City to the south and Philadelphia to the west.


History


WTHJ history

This facility was originally allocated to Ocean City and broadcast from that city as WSLT-FM on 106.3 MHz, beginning around 1970. The station broadcast with beautiful music, adult contemporary and classical formats until a local marketing agreement led to a country format and the new call sign of WKOE. More format changes ensued, but none of them made much of an impact on the Atlantic City market and the owners eventually applied to move the station to its present location and frequency. On July 6, 2006, WKOE swapped frequencies with WBBO, which had been simulcasting WHTG-FM on 98.5 FM and was known as B98.5 prior to that. From August 2005 to January 2009 it simulcasted G 106.3 in Ocean County and South Jersey. On January 19, 2009, the format switched to Top 40 along with WHTG-FM. On December 8, 2010, the WBBO call letters reverted to the FM station on 98.5 MHz licensed to Ocean Acres, NJ, near Manahawkin, NJ. Concurrently the station on 106.5 MHz in bass River Township, NJ, became WTHJ.


WHTG history

WHTG-FM first signed on at the 105.5 MHz frequency on October 11, 1961, as the sister station of WHTG (1410 AM). The station was named for Harold and Theo Gade, its first owners and operators. Eventually, the Gades' daughter Faye became general manager of the station. Faye Gade assumed ownership of the station in 1985. Interference with WDHA in northern New Jersey resulted in the move to its current 106.3 MHz frequency in 1965, which had been vacated in 1963 when WFHA in Red Bank, NJ, discontinued operations. Primarily 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 mu ...
station, it also broadcast Adult Standards (e.g. popular vocalists like Frank Sinatra) and big bands in the evenings alongside its sister station until 1983, then
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 up to the switch to
Alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
in August, 1984. The AM station officially split off from the FM station in the summer of 1984 Kevin Dunn was named Program Director for the AM station. WHTG-AM began offering its own format of adult contemporary, and eventually, oldies music, using many of the personalities from its beautiful music days as a new airstaff was assembled to take over the rock music now the norm on the FM. The station started to play emerging local bands such as Red House,
Dramarama Dramarama is an American, New Jersey–based alternative rock/power pop band, who later moved to Los Angeles. The band was formed in New Jersey in 1982 and disbanded in 1994. The band formally reunited in 2003 following an appearance on VH1's ...
, the Blases and the Whirling Dervishes along with national alternative sounds from artists such as Bolshoi,
Flesh for Lulu Flesh for Lulu were an English rock band formed in Brixton, London, England, active between 1982 and 1992. They reformed from 2013 to 2015 with a new lineup. Initially part of the post-punk scene, the band's sound shifted to reflect influence ...
, the Del-Lords,
Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead vocals, lead guitar), Jonny Wickersham (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Brent Harding (bass, backing voca ...
and
Hüsker Dü Hüsker Dü () was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist/vocalist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notabili ...
. Air personalities on WHTG at this time included Jack Scott, Kevin Dunn, Don Brennan, Ray Knight, Jeff Michaels (now known as Jeff Rafter), Vince Hartnett, James Theadoracopulous (who used the air name "J.T. Copulous"), Chuck Weigel, Phil Matthews,
Rich Robinson Richard Spencer Robinson (born May 24, 1969) is an American musician and founding member of the rock and roll band the Black Crowes. Along with older brother Chris Robinson, Rich formed the band in 1984 (originally called ''Mr. Crowes Garden'' ...
, Drew Williamson, Rich O'Reilly, Dave Mackey, Chuck Rossi, Mike Marrone, and
Matt Pinfield Matthew Pinfield (born May 28, 1961) is an American television host, disc jockey, and music executive. He first reached national prominence as VJ on MTV. He served two stints as the host of the alternative music program ''120 Minutes'', from 19 ...
. WHTG-AM still broadcasts on 1410-AM


Freeform

In the very early FM 106–3 days, the station had somewhat of a free-form approach, with DJs who were alternative rock fans picking what music they played, from
Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...
to
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...
. During the mid-1980s,
The Smiths The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. They comprised the singer Morrissey, the guitarist Johnny Marr, the bassist Andy Rourke and the drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to eme ...
and other Manchester Sound artists were especially favored by the station's jocks. By that time Rich Robinson had become program director and was slowly nudging ownership into a more contemporary format. DJ
Matt Pinfield Matthew Pinfield (born May 28, 1961) is an American television host, disc jockey, and music executive. He first reached national prominence as VJ on MTV. He served two stints as the host of the alternative music program ''120 Minutes'', from 19 ...
, who started at the station in 1984 and had, by the early nineties, become Program Director, was noted for being extremely knowledgeable of alternative and independent artist information when introducing tracks. He later was seen spouting that knowledge as the 2nd host of MTV's " 120 Minutes". In the 1980s, the station referred to itself as, Your Rock Alternative, FM 106.3. For a brief period in the early nineties, the station used a slogan of "Real Rock Radio, FM 106.3." In the nineties, its signature copy became, FM 106.3, Modern Rock at the Jersey Shore. WHTG achieved its highest ratings ever in 1993 and 1994 when it received "favorite radio station" honor in ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
s annual readers' polls. The station garnered "underground" marketing support in the form of widespread application of the station's logo (at right) upon traffic signs throughout the state. The vinyl stickers were quite durable and available free at Jersey area independent music shops.


Ownership change

In November 2000, WHTG was sold to Press Communications. WHTG then became known as G106.3, and took on a format that could be described as a hybrid of alternative and
modern 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 ...
. Later, WHTG had then evolved into an alternative rock station that played current and re-current alternative hits, as well as heritage artists such as The Cure and REM. Before the acquisition of WBBO, WHTG was referred to as G106.3, Your Rock Alternative, echoing—perhaps unwittingly—FM 106.3's original alternative-era slogan from 1985 to 1989. G Rock Radio also featured special programming on weekend mornings. The Saturday Morning Breakfast Club took a nostalgic look at alternative rock from the 1980s, while Common Threads (a program that dates back to the FM 106-3 era and originally featured "theme" sets of songs) showcased modern acoustic music. With the acquisition of WBBO, G106.3 became known as "G-Rock Radio", with a simulcast on 106.3 and 98.5. In July 2006, WBBO's 98.5 signal was moved to 106.5. During this time, G-Rock was trimulcasted on 98.5, 106.3, and 106.5 to assist listeners in the frequency transition. G-Rock later dropped their weekday noon request show called "90's at Noon" for a more 80's influenced request show known as "The Retro Request Hour". Another specialty show heard on Sunday nights called The Underground, which featured indie bands as well as b-sides and unknown tracks from current played artists, which was dropped in March 2007. On June 24, 2007, specialty programming on Sunday nights returned with "The Punkyard", which consisted of two hours of punk music. By spring 2008, other weekend programming on G Rock included the all-request "Radio Kaos" from 7 pm – midnight Saturdays. There also was "Queens of Noise" on Sundays from 9-10 pm, which featured female-fronted bands and solo rock artists.


Hit 106

On January 19, 2009, the previous alternative rock format heard on WHTG and WBBO was dropped in the middle of the day with no advance notice in favor of a Top 40 format, known as "Hit 106". The last song was '' Le Disko'' by
Shiny Toy Guns Shiny Toy Guns is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 2002. The band is composed of guitarist/vocalist Chad Petree, vocalist Carah Faye Charnow, keyboardist Jeremy Dawson, and drummer Mikey Martin. Their first studio ...
. A
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
group known as Bring Back GRock! formed to protest the format change. Membership in the group peaked at over 10,700. A protest outside of Press Communications was held the week of the change, attended by about 200 people. In a letter posted in response to the protest, CEO of Press Communications Robert McAllan lambasted the G Rock Radio fans for their perceived reluctance to fill out Arbitron surveys, adding that he hoped that they would tune into the new station, which counted Justin Timberlake, 50 Cent,
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
and
Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurle ...
among its core artists.


Thunder 106

On September 15, 2010, at 3:00 p.m., Press Broadcasting's "Thunder" country format swapped formats and call signs with Hit 106, with "Thunder" now broadcasting on the renamed WKMK and WBBO-FM and the hit music format moved to the 98.5 frequency in Ocean Acres, now known as WHTG-FM. the first song on Thunder 106 was " Country Done Come To Town" by John Rich. WHTG-FM is once again known as "B 98.5". This came only twenty months after the sudden format change on January 19, 2009, when both WHTG-FM and WBBO dropped the long-time
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 ...
format and switched to the Top 40 format, identifying themselves as Hit 106.


Airstaff

The current lineup () is as follows *Pork Roll & Eggs (6–10 am): Nina Lippart & Tom Devoy *Middays (10 am – 3pm): Zach Rayment *The Afternoon Ride (3–7 pm): Chris VanZant *Country Nights (7 pm–midnight): TJ Mateo *Weekends/Fill-ins: Joe Stephens *Program Director/Music Director: Chris VanZant


References


External links

*
List of airstaff from WHTG's FM106.3 period (1984–2000)
{{Country Radio Stations in New Jersey KMK Country radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1961 Bass River Township, New Jersey Eatontown, New Jersey