WCJK

WCJK is an FM radio station broadcasting to the Nashville, Tennessee market on a frequency of 96.3 MHz. WCJK-FM is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to broadcast with a power of 39,000 watts to serve the community of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The station's studios are located in south central Nashville near the Tennessee State Fairgrounds arena and the transmitter site is in north Nashville.

WCJK
CityMurfreesboro, Tennessee
Broadcast areaNashville, Tennessee
Branding96.3 Jack FM
SloganPlaying What We Want
Frequency96.3 MHz
First air date1963 (1963) (as WMTS-FM)
FormatAdult Hits
ERP39,000 watts
HAAT432 meters
ClassC1
Facility ID61053
Call sign meaningWe're Crazy Like JacK!
Former call signsWMTS-FM (1963–1977)
WKOS (1977–1984)
WZKS (1984–1985)
WTMG (1985–1988)
WRMX (1988–2000)
WMAK (2000–2004)
WMAK-FM (2004–2005)
OwnerDuey Wright
(Midwest Communications, Inc.)
Sister stationsWJXA, WNFN
WebcastListen Live
Website963jackfm.com

History

The 96.3 FM signal came on-air in Murfreesboro in the 1960s. It was built by a trio of partners named Montlow, Trimm, and Smith along with a sister station at 810 AM, as WMTS & WMTS-FM after the initials of the owners' surnames. It was by sheer coincidence that the call letters matched the initials of the local college, Middle Tennessee State.

The station was sold by Mr. Arthur D Smith Jr. to Joyce R Ehrhart in August 1964 for 175 thousand dollars [1] Her husband, Jack Ehrhart became President and ran the station for a couple of years. They hosted an open house on the 11th anniversary of the station. [2] They are believed to have sold the station in 1966 or 1967.

[3] The station was sold to Tom Perryman in 1976, and then purchased by local sportscaster and station employee Monte Hale in 1977. Hale changed the call letters to WKOS and branded the station 96 KOS after changing the format to Top 40. Battling cancer, in 1981 Hale sold the AM and FM stations shortly before his death to John McCreery.

McCreery would later change the callsign to WZKS (96 Kiss). WZKS switched to an adult contemporary format, first as WTMG "Magic 96" in 1985, and then as WRMX "WMIX" in 1988. It played the "best mix of the 60s, 70s, and 80s."

In 1990, the station converted to an oldies format consisting of music almost entirely recorded between the late 1950s and early 1970s. Eventually, the station would then be purchased by South Central Communications, separating it from the 810 AM combo. Later, the calls were changed to WMAK-FM (reviving the callsign of a popular Rock AM station of the late 1960s and early 1970s).

On May 12, 2005, the format was abruptly switched to the "Jack FM" format, featuring an expanded, less-structured playlist, including some newer music. Shortly thereafter, the call letters were changed to the current WCJK.

It was announced on May 28, 2014, that Midwest Communications would purchase 9 of the 10 Stations owned by South Central Communications. (This includes WCJK & Sister Station WJXA) With this purchase, Midwest Communications will expand its portfolio of stations to Evansville, Knoxville and Nashville.[4] The sale was finalized on September 2, 2014, at a price of $72 million.[5]

References
  1. https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1964/1964-09-07-BC.pdf
  2. https://www.newspapers.com/image/367614882/
  3. http://www.alanfreeman.org/alanfreeman/wmts.htm
  4. Midwest Communications Acquires South Central Communications
  5. "South Central Radio Group". Archived from the original on 2015-10-11. Retrieved 2014-10-03.
  • List of Nashville media


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