WQQK
Encyclopedia
WQQK is an Urban Adult Contemporary
FM radio station broadcasting in the Nashville, Tennessee
market on a frequency of 92.1 MHz.
Beginning in the 1970s as the pioneering station of the "rock oldies
" format in the Nashville market, "92-Q" WQQK was later reformatted to Urban contemporary
format and currently features a large proportion of rap music in its programming, albeit only Old school hip hop
in regular rotation nowadays, which is a rarity for the perdominately R&B/Classic Soul Urban AC format, due to competition from WUBT
. It is consistently one of the highest-rated stations in the Nashville market according to Arbitron
despite broadcasting with only 3,000 watts of power. It has long been controlled by the Dickey family, controlling figures in the Cumulus Media
organization.
Today WQQK carries Tom Joyner
in the mornings, and Michael Baisden
in the afternoons. The station primarily plays '90s and current R & B.
On September 16, 2011, two of WQQK's sister stations, WRQQ
and WNFN
, were placed into an independent trust (Volt Radio, LLC) while Cumulus seeks a buyer. The move was forced by FCC ownership limits following Cumulus' acquisition of Citadel Broadcasting
, which resulted locally in WKDF
and WGFX
joining the Cumulus cluster. The FCC, as of 2011, allows a single company to own a maximum of five FM stations and two AM stations in any given market. To meet these guidelines in Nashville, Cumulus was forced to spin off two of its seven FM stations, and the company chose WRQQ and WNFN, traditionally its two lowest-performing stations.
On November 14, 2011, Cumulus announced it was removing WRQQ from the Volt Radio trust, replacing it with WQQK.
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...
FM radio station broadcasting in the Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
market on a frequency of 92.1 MHz.
Beginning in the 1970s as the pioneering station of the "rock oldies
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
" format in the Nashville market, "92-Q" WQQK was later reformatted to 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...
format and currently features a large proportion of rap music in its programming, albeit only Old school hip hop
Old school hip hop
Old school hip hop describes the earliest commercially recorded hip hop music , and the music in the period preceding it from which it was directly descended . Old school hip hop is said to end around 1983 or 1984 with the emergence of Run–D.M.C., the first new school hip hop group...
in regular rotation nowadays, which is a rarity for the perdominately R&B/Classic Soul Urban AC format, due to competition from WUBT
WUBT
WUBT is a United States Urban contemporary FM radio station broadcasting in the Nashville, Tennessee market on a frequency of 101.1 mHz.Licensed to Russellville, Kentucky, WUBT was originally WBVR , a country music-formatted station which received minor Arbitron ratings in the Nashville market and...
. It is consistently one of the highest-rated stations in the Nashville market according to Arbitron
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...
despite broadcasting with only 3,000 watts of power. It has long been controlled by the Dickey family, controlling figures in the Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media
Cumulus Media, Inc. is the second largest Owner and Operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States, behind Clear Channel Communications, operating 570 stations in 150 markets as of September 16, 2011. The company also owns Cumulus Media Networks...
organization.
Today WQQK carries Tom Joyner
Tom Joyner
Thomas "Tom" Joyner is an American radio host, host of the nationally syndicated The Tom Joyner Morning Show, and also founder of REACH Media Inc., the Tom Joyner Foundation, and BlackAmericaWeb.com.-Early life:...
in the mornings, and Michael Baisden
Michael Baisden
Michael Baisden is an American author, motivational speaker, host of the TV One talk show Baisden After Dark, and host of his own nationally-syndicated radio show.-Career:...
in the afternoons. The station primarily plays '90s and current R & B.
On September 16, 2011, two of WQQK's sister stations, WRQQ
WRQQ
WRQQ is a radio station broadcasting on the FM band at 97.1 MHz licensed to the city of Belle Meade, Tennessee, but serving the Nashville market as a whole. It is currently branded as Classic Hits 97.1 RQQ, broadcasting a classic hits format. It is owned by Cumulus Media and operates out of studios...
and WNFN
WNFN
WNFN is a Top 40 formatted radio station in the Nashville, Tennessee market, broadcasting a Top 40 format.Previously licensed to the affluent Nashville suburb of Belle Meade, and recently obtaining a permit for an increased signal, with a new license based in nearby Millersville, WNFN was...
, were placed into an independent trust (Volt Radio, LLC) while Cumulus seeks a buyer. The move was forced by FCC ownership limits following Cumulus' acquisition of Citadel Broadcasting
Citadel Broadcasting
Citadel Broadcasting Corporation was a Las Vegas, Nevada-based broadcast holding company. Citadel owned 243 radio stations across the United States and was the third-largest radio station owner in the country...
, which resulted locally in WKDF
WKDF
WKDF is a Country music radio station broadcasting on a frequency of 103.3 MHz from Nashville, Tennessee. WKDF is owned by Cumulus Media.-History:...
and WGFX
WGFX
WGFX is a radio station broadcasting on the FM band at 104.5 MHz licensed to the city of Gallatin, Tennessee, but serving the Nashville market as a whole. It is currently branded as 104.5 The Zone, broadcasting a sports talk format. It is owned by Cumulus Media and operates out of studios on Second...
joining the Cumulus cluster. The FCC, as of 2011, allows a single company to own a maximum of five FM stations and two AM stations in any given market. To meet these guidelines in Nashville, Cumulus was forced to spin off two of its seven FM stations, and the company chose WRQQ and WNFN, traditionally its two lowest-performing stations.
On November 14, 2011, Cumulus announced it was removing WRQQ from the Volt Radio trust, replacing it with WQQK.