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WKAF (FM)
Encyclopedia
WKAF is a radio station in the Boston, Massachusetts market, simulcasting the rock
format of WAAF
107.3. It broadcasts on 97.7 MHz, and serves the Metro Boston and South Shore areas of Massachusetts, which are unable to receive WAAF's main signal.
). The two stations almost always simulcast programming for the next twenty-eight years. On November 1, 1976, WBET-FM went Stereo and broke away from the AM to broadcast a Top-40 format. On January 1, 1977, the call letters were changed to WCAV. In July 1982, the station switched to country music
and targeted the South Shore of Massachusetts
. This format continued until 1999. For some of that time, WCAV was the only country-music station on the FM dial in the Boston area.
In 1999, WCAV was purchased by Radio One, a company that owns and operates radio stations, most of which target African American
communities. Radio One made many transmitter improvements and established new studios in Roxbury
, a largely African American section of Boston
. The station was relaunched in December 1999 as WBOT, "Hot 97.7", targeting the Greater Boston
area with a Mainstream Urban
format. For a full week, WBOT looped Tone Lōc
's "Wild Thing
". Hot 97.7's playlist included Common
, T.I.
, Jill Scott
, Jadakiss
, and Ludacris
.
From the very beginning, WBET-FM/WCAV/WBOT had been plagued by a poor signal in Boston and points north. However, after the relocation of the transmitter
to Great Blue Hill
in Milton
, Massachusetts
in summer 2005, the station's signal improved dramatically.
Over the years, WBOT had never made any significant strides against its main competitor, WJMN "Jam'n 94.5", a station which had no signal problem and depended chiefly on the region's large Caucasian
population for success. At the same time, Radio One had been experiencing great success with the Urban Adult Contemporary
/Urban Oldies format of WILD
1090, a weak AM radio station that was prohibited by FCC
regulations from operating at night.
On October 20, 2005, Radio One moved the format and intellectual property of WILD to WBOT's FM signal. This move eliminated WBOT from the Boston radio dial, and created the new "97.7 WILD FM". WILD-FM had retained the Urban Adult Contemporary
programming of the old WILD 1090 during the day, and aired the old WBOT's Mainstream Urban
format during the late afternoon and early evening hours. The station officially changed to WILD-FM on October 26.
There was speculation that the format of the old WBOT would be reborn if Radio One acquired a second FM station in the Boston area, but there was nothing to suggest that such a move would occur. Hot 97's format is now airing on 87.7 WPOT, a pirate radio station without a license.
107.3). The end of WILD-FM came after "Wild Thing
" by Tone-Loc at about 7:00 pm EDT on August 21, and the station began a stunt of a computerized voice counting down to 5:30 pm EDT the following day, August 22. At that time, the simulcast of WAAF began with the song "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)
" by AC/DC
. The station changed its calls to WKAF on August 30, 2006, reflecting the new simulcast.
The move has expanded the signal reach of WAAF to more of the urban areas of Boston and the South Shore cities and towns of Massachusetts.
However, both WAAF and WKAF have signal issues in the South Coast
and Taunton
areas.
This move has also made Boston
the largest market in the country without an urban-formatted radio station. Former competition WJMN
is often considered to be more of a Rhythmic.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
format of WAAF
WAAF (FM)
WAAF is a Boston, Massachusetts, area commercial Album Oriented Rock/Active rock radio station that mixes music that is popular in the modern rock, heavy metal and classic rock genres....
107.3. It broadcasts on 97.7 MHz, and serves the Metro Boston and South Shore areas of Massachusetts, which are unable to receive WAAF's main signal.
History
WKAF first went on the air in 1948 as WBET-FM, the sister AM station of WBET 1460 in Brockton (now WXBRWXBR
WXBR is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format to the south Boston metro, a.k.a. "The South Shore". The station is licensed to BTR Boston, Inc and features programing from AP Radio and CNN Radio.-History:...
). The two stations almost always simulcast programming for the next twenty-eight years. On November 1, 1976, WBET-FM went Stereo and broke away from the AM to broadcast a Top-40 format. On January 1, 1977, the call letters were changed to WCAV. In July 1982, the station switched to country music
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...
and targeted the South Shore of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. This format continued until 1999. For some of that time, WCAV was the only country-music station on the FM dial in the Boston area.
In 1999, WCAV was purchased by Radio One, a company that owns and operates radio stations, most of which target African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
communities. Radio One made many transmitter improvements and established new studios in Roxbury
Roxbury, Massachusetts
Roxbury is a dissolved municipality and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was one of the first towns founded in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630, and became a city in 1846 until annexed to Boston on January 5, 1868...
, a largely African American section of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. The station was relaunched in December 1999 as WBOT, "Hot 97.7", targeting the Greater Boston
Greater Boston
Greater Boston is the area of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts surrounding the city of Boston. Due to ambiguity in usage, the size of the area referred to can be anywhere between that of the metropolitan statistical area of Boston and that of the city's combined statistical area which includes...
area with a Mainstream Urban
Mainstream Urban
Mainstream Urban is a term used to describe a radio format similar to an Urban Contemporary format. The format differentiates itself due to two factors: playlist composition and target demographic...
format. For a full week, WBOT looped Tone Lōc
Tone Lōc
Anthony Terrell Smith , better known by his stage name Tone Lōc, is an American rapper and actor.-Early life and career:...
's "Wild Thing
Wild Thing (Tone Lōc song)
"Wild Thing" is the name of rapper Tone Lōc's 1988 single from the album Lōc-ed After Dark. The title is a reference to the phrase "doin' the wild thing," a euphemism for sex, unlike The Troggs' hit song, "Wild Thing", in which the "wild thing" was a girl.Tone Lōc's song peaked at number two on...
". Hot 97.7's playlist included Common
Common (rapper)
Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. , better known by his stage name Common , is an American hip-hop artist and actor....
, T.I.
T.I.
Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. , better known by his stage name T.I., is an American rap artist, film and music producer, actor and author. He is also the founder and co-chief executive officer of Grand Hustle Records....
, Jill Scott
Jill Scott
Jill Scott is an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter, poet, and actress. In 2007, Scott made her cinematic debut in the films Hounddog and in Tyler Perry's feature film, Why Did I Get Married? That year, her third studio album, The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3, was released on...
, Jadakiss
Jadakiss
Jason Phillips , better known as Jadakiss, is an American rapper. He is a member of the group The LOX. Jadakiss is one of the three owners of the imprint known as D-Block. In early 2007, Jadakiss signed to Roc-a-Fella Records / Def Jam Records.-Early life:By the age of 16, Jadakiss was a freestyle...
, and Ludacris
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges , better known by his stage name Ludacris, is an American rapper and actor. Along with his manager, Chaka Zulu, Ludacris is the co-founder of Disturbing tha Peace, an imprint distributed by Def Jam Recordings...
.
From the very beginning, WBET-FM/WCAV/WBOT had been plagued by a poor signal in Boston and points north. However, after the relocation of the transmitter
Transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications a transmitter or radio transmitter is an electronic device which, with the aid of an antenna, produces radio waves. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the antenna. When excited by this alternating...
to Great Blue Hill
Great Blue Hill
Great Blue Hill is a hill of 635 feet located within the Blue Hills Reservation in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Massachusetts, 10 miles southwest of Boston. It is the highest point in Norfolk County...
in Milton
Milton, Massachusetts
Milton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States and part of the Greater Boston area. The population was 27,003 at the 2010 census. Milton is the birthplace of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush and architect Buckminster Fuller. Milton also has the highest percentage of...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
in summer 2005, the station's signal improved dramatically.
Over the years, WBOT had never made any significant strides against its main competitor, WJMN "Jam'n 94.5", a station which had no signal problem and depended chiefly on the region's large Caucasian
Caucasian race
The term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western Asia , Central Asia and South Asia...
population for success. At the same time, Radio One had been experiencing great success with the Urban Adult Contemporary
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...
/Urban Oldies format of WILD
WILD (AM)
WILD 1090 AM is a radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts. It broadcasts on 1090 kHz and airs programming from China Radio International under a lease agreement...
1090, a weak AM radio station that was prohibited by FCC
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...
regulations from operating at night.
On October 20, 2005, Radio One moved the format and intellectual property of WILD to WBOT's FM signal. This move eliminated WBOT from the Boston radio dial, and created the new "97.7 WILD FM". WILD-FM had retained the Urban Adult Contemporary
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...
programming of the old WILD 1090 during the day, and aired the old WBOT's Mainstream Urban
Mainstream Urban
Mainstream Urban is a term used to describe a radio format similar to an Urban Contemporary format. The format differentiates itself due to two factors: playlist composition and target demographic...
format during the late afternoon and early evening hours. The station officially changed to WILD-FM on October 26.
There was speculation that the format of the old WBOT would be reborn if Radio One acquired a second FM station in the Boston area, but there was nothing to suggest that such a move would occur. Hot 97's format is now airing on 87.7 WPOT, a pirate radio station without a license.
Entercom buys WILD-FM
On August 21, 2006, AllAccess.com reported that Entercom had purchased WILD-FM and would change the format to rock (a simulcast of WAAFWAAF (FM)
WAAF is a Boston, Massachusetts, area commercial Album Oriented Rock/Active rock radio station that mixes music that is popular in the modern rock, heavy metal and classic rock genres....
107.3). The end of WILD-FM came after "Wild Thing
Wild Thing
Wild Thing or Wild Things can refer to:In entertainment:* "Wild Thing" , a 1965 song that was a hit for The Troggs* "Wild Thing" , a 1989 song by rapper Tone Lōc...
" by Tone-Loc at about 7:00 pm EDT on August 21, and the station began a stunt of a computerized voice counting down to 5:30 pm EDT the following day, August 22. At that time, the simulcast of WAAF began with the song "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)
"For Those About to Rock " is a song by the Australian hard rock band AC/DC. The song was first released on AC/DC's eighth studio album For Those About to Rock We Salute You in 1981, and later as a single in 1982. The single's B-side contains an edited live version of "Let There Be Rock", recorded...
" by AC/DC
AC/DC
AC/DC are an Australian rock band, formed in 1973 by brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Commonly classified as hard rock, they are considered pioneers of heavy metal, though they themselves have always classified their music as simply "rock and roll"...
. The station changed its calls to WKAF on August 30, 2006, reflecting the new simulcast.
The move has expanded the signal reach of WAAF to more of the urban areas of Boston and the South Shore cities and towns of Massachusetts.
However, both WAAF and WKAF have signal issues in the South Coast
South Coast (Massachusetts)
The South Coast of Massachusetts is the region of southeastern Massachusetts consisting of southern Bristol and Plymouth counties bordering Buzzards Bay, and includes the cities of Fall River, New Bedford, the southeastern tip of East Taunton and nearby towns...
and Taunton
Taunton, Massachusetts
Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County and the hub of the Greater Taunton Area. The city is located south of Boston, east of Providence, north of Fall River and west of Plymouth. The City of Taunton is situated on the Taunton River...
areas.
This move has also made Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
the largest market in the country without an urban-formatted radio station. Former competition WJMN
WJMN (FM)
WJMN is a successful Rhythmic Top 40 radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, USA, under the ownership of Clear Channel Communications. Its current slogan is "Hip Hop and Today's Hit Music!" and can be heard as far north as the White Mountains under good conditions, and in portions of...
is often considered to be more of a Rhythmic.