WQLK
Encyclopedia
WQLK is a radio station
licensed to Richmond, Indiana
, located at 96.1 MHz on the FM dial. WQLK broadcasts at an effective radiated power of 50,000 Watt
s with its studios, offices, and tower located east of US 35 on Tingler Road just north of Richmond.
, mainly from the 1990s and today. It is also broadcasts Indiana University
Men's basketball
The station used to broadcast Richmond High School
football and boys basketball broadcasts until 2000. Those broadcasts have since moved to sister station, News/Talk WHON (930 AM).
format. This format continued until 1970 when the station adopted a Country format. Jazz remained a fixture on the station, however. WQLK continued to broadcast a Sunday morning jazz program until 1992 when the station became "Kicks 96". By 1974, the station changed its call sign to WQLK and adopted an Easy listening
format and briefly returned to country before flip-flopping formats with its AM sister station, WHON in 1979 to become Top 40 as K-96.
Throughout the early- and mid-1980s, WQLK saw quite a bit of success as a Top 40. What made K-96 stand out from stations in nearby Dayton
, Indianapolis
, and Cincinnati
was that it leaned more to toward the Rock side of the genre. This "Rock 40" format gave artists such as The Police
, Duran Duran
, Def Leppard
, for example, more exposure than heard on a conventional Top 40. K-96 did play some Rhythmic music, but mainly those from bands that were considered to be New Wave Music
. By today's standards, "Rock 40" would be termed as a Modern Rock
format.
By the end of the 1980s, WQLK became a classic hits
station featuring mainly 1970s rock. The format quickly morphed into classic rock
by 1990 and then album oriented rock by the early 1990s. The station retained the "K-96" moniker and the koala
mascot throughout these format tweaks. In the spring of 1992, and with rumors of a format change in the air, their playlist began to shift slightly incorporating songs by Mary Chapin Carpenter
(Passionate Kisses), Restless Heart
(When She Cries) and even country crooner Vince Gill
(I Still Believe In You) into their playlists right alongside format regulars Led Zeppelin
, Boston
and John Mellencamp
. Popular air personalities from this time period include The Captain, Jim Rhodes, The Buddha and Mike Fox.
Finally in July 1992, the "K-96" era of the station came to an end. At 5pm on the Friday before the format change, the radio station began playing the song "Kicks
" by Paul Revere & the Raiders
continuously all weekend. The following Monday at 5am, morning show hosts J.R. & The Buddha premiered the radio station's new contemporary Country
format as, "Kicks 96." J.R. & The Buddha remained as the radio station's morning show until J.R. was replaced by Buzz Cannon in 1995. At this time Buzz also took over as the station's Program Director. The Buzz & Buddha morning show remained an integral part of the station's success until Buzz's departure in 1999. Upon Buzz's departure from the station, Buddha took over as Program Director and evening air personality Angie Fox was promoted to mornings. Buddha was replaced as Program Director in 2001 by afternoon air-personality Steve Baker who remained the station's P.D. until October 31st 2008. Baker was replaced by Phil O'Reilly on November 1st 2008. The radio station's General Manager Dave Strycker has remained the station's G.M. since 1978. Angie & The Buddha have won numerous awards from The Indiana Broadcasters Association as have Steve Baker, Sports Director Troy Derengowski, News Director Jeff Lane and Production Director Joe Winters. Though the station has tweaked itself slightly over the years to include older songs and has changed their positioning statement from Hot Country Kicks 96 to The Best Country & The Most Fun, Kicks 96, their county format remains relatively the same to this day. Key air-personalities since 1993 include: Mark Brim, Buzz Cannon, The Buddha, Angie Fox, Allen Rantz, Paul Partezana, Dave McKay, Steve Baker, Marta Sebastian, and Randy Klemme/Big R. A lot of people knew who the Buddha was but didn't want to say his name. Dan Mills of the WHON afternoon show (KICKS96 sister station has come out on his show recently saying he is the Buddha.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
licensed to Richmond, Indiana
Richmond, Indiana
Richmond is a city largely within Wayne Township, Wayne County, in east central Indiana, United States, which borders Ohio. The city also includes the Richmond Municipal Airport, which is in Boston Township and separated from the rest of the city...
, located at 96.1 MHz on the FM dial. WQLK broadcasts at an effective radiated power of 50,000 Watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s with its studios, offices, and tower located east of US 35 on Tingler Road just north of Richmond.
Programming
WQLK plays Country musicCountry music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, mainly from the 1990s and today. It is also broadcasts Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
Men's basketball
The station used to broadcast Richmond High School
Richmond High School (Richmond, Indiana)
Richmond High School is a public high school in Richmond, Indiana, located at 380 Hub Etchison Parkway. It is the home of the Richmond Red Devils, who are members of the North Central Conference of the Indiana High School Athletic Association . The current enrollment of the school is around 1,700...
football and boys basketball broadcasts until 2000. Those broadcasts have since moved to sister station, News/Talk WHON (930 AM).
History
WQLK is Richmond's oldest FM radio signal. The station signed on as WGLM, featuring a JazzJazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
format. This format continued until 1970 when the station adopted a Country format. Jazz remained a fixture on the station, however. WQLK continued to broadcast a Sunday morning jazz program until 1992 when the station became "Kicks 96". By 1974, the station changed its call sign to WQLK and adopted an 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...
format and briefly returned to country before flip-flopping formats with its AM sister station, WHON in 1979 to become Top 40 as K-96.
Throughout the early- and mid-1980s, WQLK saw quite a bit of success as a Top 40. What made K-96 stand out from stations in nearby Dayton
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, and Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
was that it leaned more to toward the Rock side of the genre. This "Rock 40" format gave artists such as The Police
The Police
The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For the vast majority of their history, the band consisted of Sting , Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland...
, Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
, Def Leppard
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Since 1992, the band have consisted of Joe Elliott , Rick Savage , Rick Allen , Phil Collen , and Vivian Campbell...
, for example, more exposure than heard on a conventional Top 40. K-96 did play some Rhythmic music, but mainly those from bands that were considered to be New Wave Music
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
. By today's standards, "Rock 40" would be termed as a Modern Rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
format.
By the end of the 1980s, WQLK became a classic hits
Classic hits
Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format...
station featuring mainly 1970s rock. The format quickly morphed into classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
by 1990 and then album oriented rock by the early 1990s. The station retained the "K-96" moniker and the koala
Koala
The koala is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
mascot throughout these format tweaks. In the spring of 1992, and with rumors of a format change in the air, their playlist began to shift slightly incorporating songs by Mary Chapin Carpenter
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Mary Chapin Carpenter is an American folk and country music artist. Carpenter spent several years singing in Washington, D.C. clubs before signing in the late 1980s with Columbia Records, who marketed her as a country singer...
(Passionate Kisses), Restless Heart
Restless Heart
Restless Heart is an American country music band established in 1984. The band's original members were John Dittrich , Paul Gregg , Dave Innis , Greg Jennings , and Verlon Thompson...
(When She Cries) and even country crooner Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
(I Still Believe In You) into their playlists right alongside format regulars Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
, Boston
Boston (band)
Boston is an American rock band from Boston, Massachusetts that achieved its most notable successes during the 1970s and 1980s. Centered on guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter, and producer Tom Scholz, the band is a staple of classic rock radio playlists...
and John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp
John Mellencamp, previously known by the stage names Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American rock singer-songwriter, musician, painter and occasional actor known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock that eschews synthesizers and other artificial sounds...
. Popular air personalities from this time period include The Captain, Jim Rhodes, The Buddha and Mike Fox.
Finally in July 1992, the "K-96" era of the station came to an end. At 5pm on the Friday before the format change, the radio station began playing the song "Kicks
Kicks (song)
"Kicks" is a song by American rock band Paul Revere & the Raiders. Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil wrote the song for The Animals, but the band's lead singer Eric Burdon turned it down....
" by Paul Revere & the Raiders
Paul Revere & the Raiders
Paul Revere & the Raiders is an American rock band that saw considerable U.S. mainstream success in the second half of the 1960s and early 1970s with hits such as "Kicks" , "Hungry" , "Him Or Me - What's It Gonna Be?" and the 1971 No...
continuously all weekend. The following Monday at 5am, morning show hosts J.R. & The Buddha premiered the radio station's new contemporary Country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format as, "Kicks 96." J.R. & The Buddha remained as the radio station's morning show until J.R. was replaced by Buzz Cannon in 1995. At this time Buzz also took over as the station's Program Director. The Buzz & Buddha morning show remained an integral part of the station's success until Buzz's departure in 1999. Upon Buzz's departure from the station, Buddha took over as Program Director and evening air personality Angie Fox was promoted to mornings. Buddha was replaced as Program Director in 2001 by afternoon air-personality Steve Baker who remained the station's P.D. until October 31st 2008. Baker was replaced by Phil O'Reilly on November 1st 2008. The radio station's General Manager Dave Strycker has remained the station's G.M. since 1978. Angie & The Buddha have won numerous awards from The Indiana Broadcasters Association as have Steve Baker, Sports Director Troy Derengowski, News Director Jeff Lane and Production Director Joe Winters. Though the station has tweaked itself slightly over the years to include older songs and has changed their positioning statement from Hot Country Kicks 96 to The Best Country & The Most Fun, Kicks 96, their county format remains relatively the same to this day. Key air-personalities since 1993 include: Mark Brim, Buzz Cannon, The Buddha, Angie Fox, Allen Rantz, Paul Partezana, Dave McKay, Steve Baker, Marta Sebastian, and Randy Klemme/Big R. A lot of people knew who the Buddha was but didn't want to say his name. Dan Mills of the WHON afternoon show (KICKS96 sister station has come out on his show recently saying he is the Buddha.