WPGC-FM
Encyclopedia
WPGC-FM is one of the most popular among Washington, D.C.'s urban format radio station's, and has been ranked as one of its top rated radio stations for over 20 years, according to the Arbitron
ratings. It has a city of license
of Morningside
(its studios are located in Lanham
) at the 95.5 MHz frequency on the FM
dial. Its tower operates at an effective radiated power of 50 kilowatts (kW) and is located in Capitol Heights, Maryland. It also formerly shared the WPGC calls with sister station WPGC-AM, which once played urban gospel music (the AM station is now talk as WHFS
). In 2005, WPGC began broadcasting in IBOC digital radio
, using the HD Radio
system from iBiquity
. Despite being a Rhythmic contemporary
station according to Mediabase
reports, it primarily plays urban contemporary
music (as Nielsen BDS reports it as an urban), making WPGC-FM an urban-leaning rhythmic station (the other being KBFB in Dallas
/Fort Worth, Texas
). In addition, WPGC-FM is the only rhythmic targeted towards Baltimore
listeners, putting competition up against WERQ, a Radio One-owned urban contemporary
station & WZFT, a Clear Channel
owned contemporary hit radio
station.
6-10a weekdays
10a-2p weekdays
2-6p weekdays
6-10p weekdays
10p-2a weekdays
Weekends/Fill-in
based bus company.
WBUZ-FM raised power to 6.3 kilowatts and its city of license was changed to Oakland, Maryland (near District Heights
; not the Western Maryland town
) in May 1953. Then on June 8, 1953, the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) granted a permit to the station to raise power from 6.3 to 18 kilowatts. WBUZ-FM changed frequency from 96.7 to 95.5 megahertz and power was reduced to 16.5 kilowatts from a new transmitter & tower site on Walker Mill Road in Oakland. The calls were changed to WRNC on March 30, 1956. By the end of the year, WRNC was simulcasting the WPGC-AM programming. The ERP was reduced to 15.7 kilowatts while the power increase authorized for the WPGC-AM in 1955 to 10,000 watts daytime only.
WPGC-AM, Inc., purchased WRNC in 1956. The calls were changed to WPGC-FM in March 1958. WPGC-FM temporarily goes silent until February 1959 as new studios were being constructed for the top 40 format. The call letters stand for "We're Prince Georges County", the county in which the station is actually located, but at one time in the 1970s and early 1980s, it was referred to in on-air promos as "Where People Get Cash".
WPGC-FM maintained some form of the top 40 format (skewed from rock 'n' roll-based to Adult Contemporary) until 1984, when it flipped to easy listening
/adult contemporary WCLY
, "Classy 95."
The format failed and First Media decided to sell all of its properties for $177 million to a minority interest in early 1987]]. New owners, Cook Inlet Media, a group of Alaska Natives
, promptly rebuilt the station as a Rhythmic and reclaimed the legendary call letters, WPGC on May 30, 1987. The station flipped to a successful music format with the brand name "WPGC, 95 Jams". Also in the early 2000s, the branding reverted to simply "WPGC 95.5", dropping the "Jams" moniker from the brand although it still visibly remained on the station's logo and was used in the slogan. In August 2009, the station rebranded again to "95-5 PGC" and changing its slogan from "DC's #1, Blazin' At Least 18 Jamz in A Row" to "DC's Hip Hop and R&B", but now "WPGC 95.5, DC's Home To At Least 18 Jamz in A Row" as of 2011. The "Jams" moniker was also removed from the station's logo and replaced with "wpgc.com". Even though Nielsen BDS has moved WPGC-FM to the urban panel, it is still on the rhythmic panel on Mediabase
, as Radio One's WKYS
is its competitor, but is an urban contemporary station.
Donnie Simpson
hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show from March 1993 to January 29, 2010.
radio station even though it really operates musically as a Mainstream Urban. In 1987, when the current format on WPGC was introduced it was actually a mix of R&B, hip-hop, dance and pop titles. However, by 1997, following the departure of longtime programming director and afternoon personality, Albie Dee, its playlist consisted mainly R&B and hip-hop titles. Many critics say the ability to attract more mainstream advertisers as Rhythmic, rather than Urban, is the real reason.
In June 2009, speculation began circulating that WPGC might be evolving towards a Top 40/CHR direction or back to it former urban-leaning Rhythmic format similar to sister stations WZMX
and WMBX
. The move might have been fueled by the recent drop in the ratings and in part due to the introduction of PPMs in the market, where it has hurt them audience-wise.
However, it has remained a Mainstream Urban (in terms of leaning, although still basically considered a rhythmic) that focuses primarily on the current urban hits with some recurrents and throwbacks mixed into its playlist.
In December 2010, WPGC began to open up its playlist to include songs that they wouldn't have touched, i.e. Just The Way You Are
from Bruno Mars
. This issue of whether WPGC might be shifting to a broader Rhythmic sound continues to be debated on message boards like Radio-Info. Even though WPGC-FM is still considered as a rhythmic, it added more rhythmic-friendly tracks but reduced the urban lean. The station is now beginning to take on contemporary hit radio
rival WIHT
(Hot 99-5), but despite adding more rhythmic pop, still goes up against urban contemporary
rival WKYS
full time and urban adult contemporaries
rivals WMMJ
and WHUR with slow jams on Sunday through Thursday nights from 10pm to 2am.
format, billed as "Area 955."
in the summer of 2000. In January 2006 owner Viacom split into two companies, Viacom and CBS, and the Infinity Broadcasting name was dropped in favor of CBS Radio.
Arbitron
Arbitron is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio audiences. It was founded as American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by merging with L.A. based Coffin, Cooper and Clay in the early 1950s...
ratings. It has a city of license
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
of Morningside
Morningside, Maryland
Morningside is an incorporated town in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,295 at the 2000 census. The town developed with the establishment of nearby Andrews Air Force Base and the federal Census Bureau. The government of the town is led by a mayor and town council...
(its studios are located in Lanham
Lanham, Maryland
Lanham is an unincorporated community in Prince George's County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America. Because it is not formally incorporated, it has no official boundaries, but the United States Census Bureau has defined a census-designated place consisting of Lanham and the...
) at the 95.5 MHz frequency on the FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
dial. Its tower operates at an effective radiated power of 50 kilowatts (kW) and is located in Capitol Heights, Maryland. It also formerly shared the WPGC calls with sister station WPGC-AM, which once played urban gospel music (the AM station is now talk as WHFS
WHFS
WHFS was the call sign for three different FM stations in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore, Maryland markets on various frequencies for nearly 50 years. The first and longest run was a progressive rock station and was usually, and affectionately, referred to as 'HFS...
). In 2005, WPGC began broadcasting in IBOC digital radio
Digital radio
Digital radio has several meanings:1. Today the most common meaning is digital radio broadcasting technologies, such as the digital audio broadcasting system, also known as Eureka 147. In these systems, the analog audio signal is digitized into zeros and ones, compressed using formats such as...
, using the HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
system from iBiquity
IBiquity
iBiquity Digital Corporation is a company formed by the merger of USA Digital Radio and Lucent Digital Radio, with the goal of creating an in-band on-channel digital radio system for the United States and around the world...
. Despite being a Rhythmic contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
station according to Mediabase
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 analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
reports, it primarily plays urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
music (as Nielsen BDS reports it as an urban), making WPGC-FM an urban-leaning rhythmic station (the other being KBFB in Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
/Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
). In addition, WPGC-FM is the only rhythmic targeted towards Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
listeners, putting competition up against WERQ, a Radio One-owned urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
station & WZFT, a Clear Channel
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
owned contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
station.
On-air personalities
WPGC-FM is the station home to several personalities including:6-10a weekdays
- Big TiggerBig TiggerDarian "Big Tigger" Morgan , also known as Big Tigg; is an American television and radio personality best known as the host of BET's Rap City and 106 & Park.- :...
— a BETBlack Entertainment TelevisionBlack Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
personality who started as an intern for Albie Dee. He worked his way up to become DC's #1 night-time DJDisc jockeyA disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
, and now hosts the morning drive time slot as well as a syndicated weekend radio show through CBS RadioCBS RadioCBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
. - FreeFree (rapper)Antoinette Marie Wright, better known by her stage name, "Free" , is an American media personality, television producer and philanthropist. She rose to fame as the first host of BET's 106 & Park...
co-host - Julie Wright traffic
- Guy Lambert news
- DJ Heat producer
10a-2p weekdays
- Sunni
2-6p weekdays
- DJ Flexx
- DJ Reddz mixer
6-10p weekdays
- Mr. Peter Parker host/mixer
- Toney Redz producer
10p-2a weekdays
- Herkules
Weekends/Fill-in
- Aladdin
- J. Hall
- Todd B
- Herkules
- Poet
- DJ Akademiks
- Laiya St. Clair
- Big Rodney
- Shack 'n da Pack
- DJ Heat
- Reverend Tony Lee Sunday Morning Hope host
- DJ Book mixer
- DJ Reddz mixer
- DJ Titan mixer
- DJ M&M mixer
- DJ Storm mixer
- DJ Aasha Adore mixer
- DJ Lucky mixer
- DJ Jealousy mixer
- Big Tigger
- Nick CannonNick CannonNicholas Scott "Nick" Cannon is an American actor, comedian, rapper, entrepreneur, record producer, radio, and television personality. On television, Cannon began as a teenage sketch comedian on All That before going on to host The Nick Cannon Show, Wild 'N Out, and America's Got Talent...
History
The station that later became WPGC-FM signed on as on January 18, 1948, on the 96.7 frequency with the WBUZ call letters. WBUZ was owned by Arthur Baldwin Curtis, president of Chesapeake Broadcasting Company, Incorporated, and was located in Bradbury Heights. WBUZ-FM was broadcasting at 420 watts effective radiated power. The call letters were a play on the word "bus," as WBUZ broadcast background music for a Prince George's County, MarylandPrince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
based bus company.
WBUZ-FM raised power to 6.3 kilowatts and its city of license was changed to Oakland, Maryland (near District Heights
District Heights, Maryland
District Heights is an incorporated city in. Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, located near Maryland Route 4. The population was 5,837 at the 2010 census...
; not the Western Maryland town
Oakland, Maryland
Oakland is a town in the west-central part of Garrett County, Maryland, United States. With a population of 1,925 according to United States Census 2010 figures, it is the most populated community in Garrett County...
) in May 1953. Then on June 8, 1953, the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) granted a permit to the station to raise power from 6.3 to 18 kilowatts. WBUZ-FM changed frequency from 96.7 to 95.5 megahertz and power was reduced to 16.5 kilowatts from a new transmitter & tower site on Walker Mill Road in Oakland. The calls were changed to WRNC on March 30, 1956. By the end of the year, WRNC was simulcasting the WPGC-AM programming. The ERP was reduced to 15.7 kilowatts while the power increase authorized for the WPGC-AM in 1955 to 10,000 watts daytime only.
WPGC-AM, Inc., purchased WRNC in 1956. The calls were changed to WPGC-FM in March 1958. WPGC-FM temporarily goes silent until February 1959 as new studios were being constructed for the top 40 format. The call letters stand for "We're Prince Georges County", the county in which the station is actually located, but at one time in the 1970s and early 1980s, it was referred to in on-air promos as "Where People Get Cash".
WPGC-FM maintained some form of the top 40 format (skewed from rock 'n' roll-based to Adult Contemporary) until 1984, when it flipped to easy listening
Easy listening
Easy listening is a broad style of popular music and radio format that emerged in the 1950s, evolving out of big band music, and related to MOR music as played on many AM radio stations. It encompasses the exotica, beautiful music, light music, lounge music, ambient music, and space age pop genres...
/adult contemporary WCLY
WCLY
WCLY is a Spanish language sports radio station located in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is owned by Capitol Broadcasting Company.-History:WCLY began broadcasting from Raleigh, North Carolina in 1962 as WNOH. WNOH was a country station founded by N.O. Harris, owner of Harris Distributors...
, "Classy 95."
Alaska Natives
Alaska Natives are the indigenous peoples of Alaska. They include: Aleut, Inuit, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Eyak, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures.-History:In 1912 the Alaska Native Brotherhood was founded...
, promptly rebuilt the station as a Rhythmic and reclaimed the legendary call letters, WPGC on May 30, 1987. The station flipped to a successful music format with the brand name "WPGC, 95 Jams". Also in the early 2000s, the branding reverted to simply "WPGC 95.5", dropping the "Jams" moniker from the brand although it still visibly remained on the station's logo and was used in the slogan. In August 2009, the station rebranded again to "95-5 PGC" and changing its slogan from "DC's #1, Blazin' At Least 18 Jamz in A Row" to "DC's Hip Hop and R&B", but now "WPGC 95.5, DC's Home To At Least 18 Jamz in A Row" as of 2011. The "Jams" moniker was also removed from the station's logo and replaced with "wpgc.com". Even though Nielsen BDS has moved WPGC-FM to the urban panel, it is still on the rhythmic panel on Mediabase
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 analytical tools for radio and record industry professionals...
, as Radio One's WKYS
WKYS
WKYS, the "Station for Interactive Hip Hop and R&B", is an American radio station broadcasting an Urban Contemporary radio format, that serves the greater Washington metropolitan area. Its transmitter is located on the same tower as WRC-TV. The station broadcasts from a class B signal with an...
is its competitor, but is an urban contemporary station.
Donnie Simpson
Donnie Simpson
Donnie Simpson is a longtime American radio DJ as well as a television and movie personality. He hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show on Washington, D.C. radio station WPGC-FM from March 1993 to January 29, 2010. Simpson is the first urban-format radio personality to have an annual salary over...
hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show from March 1993 to January 29, 2010.
Controversy
WPGC-FM also has been a debated topic amongst radio experts about its format classification as a Rhythmic Contemporary HitRhythmic Airplay Chart
The Rhythmic Airplay Chart is an airplay chart that is featured weekly in Billboard Magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on Rhythmic stations, whose playlist includes mostly hit-driven R&B/Hip-Hop, Rhythmic pop, and some Dance tracks...
radio station even though it really operates musically as a Mainstream Urban. In 1987, when the current format on WPGC was introduced it was actually a mix of R&B, hip-hop, dance and pop titles. However, by 1997, following the departure of longtime programming director and afternoon personality, Albie Dee, its playlist consisted mainly R&B and hip-hop titles. Many critics say the ability to attract more mainstream advertisers as Rhythmic, rather than Urban, is the real reason.
In June 2009, speculation began circulating that WPGC might be evolving towards a Top 40/CHR direction or back to it former urban-leaning Rhythmic format similar to sister stations WZMX
WZMX
WZMX, better known as "Hot 93.7" is a Rhythmic Contemporary station licensed to Hartford, Connecticut. The CBS Radio owned outlet broadcasts at 93.7 megahertz. The station's current slogan is Hartford's #1 Station For Hip-Hop and R&B...
and WMBX
WMBX
WMBX is a radio station serving the West Palm Beach, Florida and Port St. Lucie, Florida areas, broadcasting hip hop R&B & Gospel Music on a rhythmic contemporary format at 102.3 MHz. Its transmitter is located on the west side of Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Hobe Sound, Florida and is 965...
. The move might have been fueled by the recent drop in the ratings and in part due to the introduction of PPMs in the market, where it has hurt them audience-wise.
However, it has remained a Mainstream Urban (in terms of leaning, although still basically considered a rhythmic) that focuses primarily on the current urban hits with some recurrents and throwbacks mixed into its playlist.
In December 2010, WPGC began to open up its playlist to include songs that they wouldn't have touched, i.e. Just The Way You Are
Just the Way You Are (Bruno Mars song)
"Just the Way You Are" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, and is the lead single from his debut studio album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans. It was released in the United States on July 20, 2010. It has also received airplay from AOL Radio's New Pop First station. The song was written by...
from Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars
Peter Gene Hernandez , better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an Filipino-American singer-songwriter and record producer. Raised in Honolulu, Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age...
. This issue of whether WPGC might be shifting to a broader Rhythmic sound continues to be debated on message boards like Radio-Info. Even though WPGC-FM is still considered as a rhythmic, it added more rhythmic-friendly tracks but reduced the urban lean. The station is now beginning to take on contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
rival WIHT
WIHT
WIHT is a Top 40 formatted radio station that serves the greater Washington, DC metropolitan area. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day. WIHT is licensed to and owned by Clear Channel Communications...
(Hot 99-5), but despite adding more rhythmic pop, still goes up against urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
rival WKYS
WKYS
WKYS, the "Station for Interactive Hip Hop and R&B", is an American radio station broadcasting an Urban Contemporary radio format, that serves the greater Washington metropolitan area. Its transmitter is located on the same tower as WRC-TV. The station broadcasts from a class B signal with an...
full time and urban adult contemporaries
Urban Adult Contemporary
Urban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
rivals WMMJ
WMMJ
WMMJ is a top rated station Urban Adult Contemporary radio station owned by Radio One in the Washington, D.C. market. It is licensed to Bethesda, but its transmitter is located in Tenleytown...
and WHUR with slow jams on Sunday through Thursday nights from 10pm to 2am.
WPGC-HD2
In March 2006, WPGC launched a HD2 subchannel, which featured a format geared to local Hip-Hop and R&B artists under the billing "Crank." However, by September 2011 the format would be replaced with a Dance Top 40Dance radio
Dance radio is a format that consists of current and recent dance/electronic music.While the format is popular in Europe and Asia, it has yet to make an impact in North America, although there are several Top 40 and Rhythmic radio stations which include current Dance product in their playlists...
format, billed as "Area 955."
Sale
Infinity Broadcasting acquired the station and sister station WPGC-AM from Cook Inlet in June 1994 for $60 million. The stations moved to new studios and offices at 4200 Parliament Place, Suite 300 in Lanham, MarylandLanham, Maryland
Lanham is an unincorporated community in Prince George's County in the State of Maryland in the United States of America. Because it is not formally incorporated, it has no official boundaries, but the United States Census Bureau has defined a census-designated place consisting of Lanham and the...
in the summer of 2000. In January 2006 owner Viacom split into two companies, Viacom and CBS, and the Infinity Broadcasting name was dropped in favor of CBS Radio.