WOLS
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| WOLS | |
| City of license | Waxhaw, North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Charlotte/Metrolina |
| Branding | Oldies 106.1 |
| Frequency | 106.1 MHz |
| First air date | 1994 |
| Format | Oldies |
| ERP | 32,000 watts |
| HAAT | 111 meters |
| Class | C2 |
| Facility ID | 68809 |
| Callsign meaning | W OLdieS (Oldies)[citation needed] |
| Former callsigns | WNMX-FM (6/7/96-2/12/08) WNMX (5/20/96-6/7/96) WIST-FM (4/14/95-5/20/96) WLWW (5/3/91-4/14/95) |
| Affiliations | Jones Radio Network "Goodtime Oldies" |
| Owner | GHB of Waxhaw Inc. |
| Sister stations | WHVN, WAVO, WCGC, WEGO, WAME |
WOLS is an Oldies FM radio station broadcasting at a frequency of 106.1 MHz serving the Charlotte market. While WOLS is licensed to the Union County town of Waxhaw, North Carolina, its studios are located in Charlotte.
WOLS uses the identifier "Oldies 106.1", and broadcasts the "Goodtime Oldies" format from the Jones Radio Network. "Goodtime Oldies" features a playlist of 60's and 70's oldies.
[edit] History
The station signed on in May 1994 on 1480 AM, a frequency that had been silent for several years, with the call letters WIST. At that time radio station owners were still limited to one AM station per market. GHB Broadcasting operated WIST-AM through a Limited Marketing Agreement (LMA) with Christ Covenant Church, the licensee for 1480AM. Most of the adult standards music came from the Satellite Music Network format Stardust.[1] A year later, the FM station, once intended to be an FM outlet for WHVN, signed on with the call letters WLWW but eventually changed to WIST-FM.[2]
The name WNMX "Mix 106" was chosen in 1997. The station's sales manager had previously worked for WMXC(104.7)when it was called "The Mix". He hoped to resurrect that format on 106.1. The AM station became WNMX-AM. By this time the AM aired some separate programs, including a talk show from John Sullivan. The AM became WTLT in Summer 1997 with a separate news/talk format.[3]For one month WNMX tried a more contemporary sound with local DJs during the day. This format was similar to the one used previously on WMXC(104.7). However, many listeners protested so the station returned to the Stardust format.[4],[5]
Over the years the definition of adult standards has evolved, and the Stardust satellite format has evolved with the times as well. Fewer songs from the big band era were played, though new performances of the old songs have become available. And when oldies station WWMG changed format in 2004, WNMX added more rock and roll songs to its local morning show.
In Summer 2006 ABC merged Stardust with its Memories format. The merger caused Stardust to leave its standards heritage behind, playing most of the same "timeless favorites" but moving more in an oldies direction, with most of the big-band standards being recent recordings. WNMX still played many of the older records on the local morning show. Ironically, the Timeless Favorites format had evolved into the format that listeners rejected in 1997.
On February 12, 2008 WNMX changed their format to 60s-70s oldies[6], branded as "Oldies 106.1". The station also changed its call sign to WOLS, which was moved from an AM station in Florence, South Carolina. That station took on the call sign "WOLH".
"Oldies 106.1" also carries broadcasts of several sports teams:
- the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats
- football and basketball games of the ACC's Duke Blue Devils
Note: due to league restrictions of the NBA, the games of the Bobcats can not be heard via the station's website.
The station previously broadcast the games of the WNBA's Charlotte Sting prior to the team's ceasing operations on January 2, 2007.
[edit] References
- ^ Tim Funk, "Wistful for Music of the '40s? New Radio Station Brings It Back," Charlotte Observer, May 19, 1994
- ^ "WIST Adds Big Band, Easy-Listening Sounds to FM," Charlotte Observer, March 4, 1995
- ^ Kay McFadden, "Talk-Radio Station Signs on to Battle for WBT Listeners", Charlotte Observer, July 8, 1997
- ^ Kay McFadden, "WNMX-FM Swaps Formats to Lure Working Listeners," Charlotte Observer, October 3, 1997
- ^ Kay McFadden,"WTLT: No Change - News/Talk Remains," Charlotte Observer, November 7, 1997
- ^ Mark Washburn, "Sinatra Style Dropped in Favor of Ad-attracting Oldies," The Charlotte Observer, February 13, 2008.
[edit] External links
- Query the FCC's FM station database for WOLS
- Radio Locator information on WOLS
- Query Arbitron's FM station database for WOLS
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