WTWV-FM (92.9

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

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 ...

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 Suffolk, Virginia, and serving Hampton Roads. WTWV-FM is owned and operated by Max Media. It airs an

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 ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelle ...

using the branding "92.9 The Wave." Studios and offices are on Greenwich Road in

Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...

. The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the ...

is off Greenbrook Drive in Suffolk.

History

Early years as WXYW, WFOG

WTWV-FM first

signed on Signing may refer to: * Using sign language * Signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on do ...

the air in December 1965 as WXYW. It was owned by the Suffolk Broadcasting Company, along with

AM 1460 The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1460 kHz: 1460 AM is a Regional broadcast frequency. Argentina * LT29 in Venado Tuerto, Santa Fe * LU30 in Maipu, Buenos Aires * LU34 Pigüé, Buenos Aires * LRK204 in Yerba Buena, T ...

WLPM (now 1450 WBVA, which is currently silent). WXYW was largely

automated Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human intervention in processes, namely by predetermining decision criteria, subprocess relationships, and related actions, as well as embodying those predeterminations in machines ...

, playing 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 ...

format of mostly instrumental versions of pop songs, as well as Hollywood and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

show tunes. In 1970, the

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was switched to WFOG, since the

Tidewater region Tidewater refers to the north Atlantic coastal plain region of the United States of America. Definition Culturally, the Tidewater region usually includes the low-lying plains of southeast Virginia, northeastern North Carolina, southern Mary ...

of Virginia, along the

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coast, often experiences fog. The station's

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, n ...

sound lasted for more than 20 years. In 1985, WFOG was acquired by JAG Communications of Virginia. JAG updated the easy listening format by adding more vocals, in an effort to attract younger listeners. WFOG changed hands again in 1989, being bought by the Sunshine Wireless Company for $8 million. Sunshine Wireless deleted the instrumentals and moved WFOG to 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 "Lite Favorites."

Soul classics and oldies

Barnstable Broadcasting acquired WFOG-FM in April 1999. On September 10, 1999, Barnstable converted the station to

urban oldies Urban adult contemporary, often abbreviated as urban AC or UAC, (also known as adult R&B,) is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have hip hop music on ...

as "Soul Classics 92.9." The call letters were also changed to WWSO-FM. The "Soul Classics" format lasted only two years. On December 16, 2001, the station changed formats again, this time going to

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as ...

, branded as "Oldies 92-9." The first song of the new format was The Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night (song), A Hard Day's Night." The WFOG call letters returned on December 5, 2003, when the classic country format on 100.5 FM shifted to AM and displaced the adult standards format on WFOG (now WVXX). Not long after, in 2004, the moniker changed to "92-9 WFOG," reflecting the change in call letters.

92-9 The Wave

In early 2005, Max Media purchased WFOG, and the rest of the Barnstable cluster, making the stations locally owned and operated. Later that year, on July 1, the station changed its moniker to "FM 92-9 WFOG." To mark the switch, it played a countdown of the top 100 songs for each year from 1965 to 1985. Then, at 6 a.m. on July 21, "WFOG" signed off with Beach Boys' "Catch a Wave." Max Media then flipped the station to

as "92-9 The Wave," with "Forever Young (Rod Stewart song), Forever Young" by Rod Stewart as its first song. The call letters switched to WVBW. After airing an adult contemporary format for several years, the station transitioned to more of an adult hits format, with an emphasis on older music. Barry Michaels was the morning drive time host for the station since the beginning of the oldies format. In July 2005, Michaels was let go by the new owners, who had hired Dick Lamb, the former morning host from rival station WWDE-FM, known as "2WD." In the weeks leading up to the Lamb's debut, it was hinted that he would return to the air on The Wave. Lamb recorded a TV commercial saying that he would be the host of a new morning show on The Wave. This was also mentioned on the station's bumpers between songs. On September 12, 2005, Lamb made his return to the airwaves as the new morning host for The Wave, along with his "2WD Breakfast Bunch" sidekick Paul Richardson. Jennifer Roberts, the only remaining member of the former morning show, also joined them. A contest was held to name the new morning show. Voters picked "Dick Lamb and the Morning Wave." On May 3, 2011, WVBW segued from Adult Hits to Classic Hits, though no personnel changes were made. The station now plays hits of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, competing with iHeartMedia-owned WNOH, WVMA until that station flipped to contemporary hit radio, Top 40 in April 2012. In September 2018, the station shifted its musical focus from classic hits to adult contemporary while maintaining its "Wave" branding. On June 26, 2022, radio industry website ''RadioInsight'' disclosed that Max Media had applied to move the WVBW call letters to what was WVBW-FM, WVHT, its sister station; upon the move, 92.9 would change its call letters to WTWV-FM. The change was approved by the FCC on June 29.FCC Report 6/26: FCC Clarifies Class D FM Public File Obligations
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References

External links

92.9 The Wave Online
* {{Max Media Radio stations in the Hampton Roads-Tidewater area, TWV-FM Radio stations established in 1967 Max Media radio stations 1967 establishments in Virginia Mainstream adult contemporary radio stations in the United States