KLQ.com
Encyclopedia
KLQ.com was an Internet radio
station playing active rock
and owned by Citadel Broadcasting
. Formerly transmitting on the frequency of 107.3 MHz from near Grand Rapids, Michigan
as "WKLQ", it was a web-cast only station from May 28, 2009 through November 1, 2009. Due to low listenership in this presentation, Citadel Broadcasting
decided to terminate the webcast and redirect all traffic to sister station WLAV's website.
as WKLQ. "Hit Rock KLQ" battled WGRD for Grand Rapids' teen audience during the late 1980s and occasionally beat WGRD in the ratings, but by the summer of 1989 the station had shifted into a more AOR direction. By the mid 1990s, the format became alternative rock
and gradually became more active rock
oriented towards the year 2000. The station played an active rock
format, including classic rock-oriented songs as well as more contemporary releases.
WKLQ created the very successful "Q Morning Zoo" in 1984, which at the time featured Robert J. Wright, Sarah Wilson, and Jim Owen. Owen left the Q Zoo in 1987 to concentrate on his duties off air at KLQ and was replaced by Grand Rapids radio legend Rick Beckett
. When Wright left the station, he was replaced by Jay Allen. In 1989, Wilson left the station and was replaced by Darla Jaye
. In 1993, Allen left the station to work at WOOD (AM)
and he was replaced by Scott Winters
. For three consecutive years beginning in 1992, the Q Zoo was the number one rated morning show in Grand Rapids according to Arbitron
. On September 12, 1995, the entire Q Zoo resigned and less than two weeks later went on the air at rival station WGRD.
In 1996, WKLQ started airing The Howard Stern Show. In 2002 Matt Hanlon, took over as station General Manager
. Around Christmas
2002, the station quietly moved Stern to its lower-powered AM
sister, WBBL
. As a result, WKLQ did not have a morning show for months, until they hired Ron & Don Show
from Seattle who stayed with the station until 2005.
, which played oldies music. WTNR
replaced WKLQ on 94.5 FM as a country music
station.
Shortly before KLQ's move to 107.3 FM, They hired Justice and Jim for mornings. In Summer 2005, the duo created a vast amount of controversy when they announced on the air that they were going to drown a dog. The announcement persuaded several listeners to call 911. A day later, they announced that it was only a stunt.
On July 19, 2006, Justice and Jim were fired and replaced by The Opie and Anthony Show.
In fall of 2007, WKLQ returned to its roots of playing the most new Rock in Grand Rapids. On July 17, 2008, WKLQ launched Grey & Kluck mornings featuring Grand Rapids market veteran, Michael Grey, and Warren Kluck. Grey serves as the Program Director of WKLQ. Kluck spent three years previously doing morning drive at WRKR-FM in Kalamazoo, MI.
Repeater station WKOQ (92.5 FM) signed on the air on August 15, 2005. It transmitted from the same tower as television station
WZZM
in Newaygo County
, near Grant
. The simulcast was terminated on May 1, 2006. 92.5 FM subsequently became WLAW-FM, "The Outlaw," airing a blend of country music and Southern Rock.
, which was previously on the AM dial, and WKLQ was made an exclusive web-station. The Grey and Kluck Morning show was pulled off the air. Warren Kluck went to do the Kevin Matthews Morning Show. Michael Grey went on to The Starting Line Up with Bret Bakita.
This move left a current void in the West Michigan area for new active rock enthusiasts and left its competitor (97.9 WGRD) the main source for new rock in this area. However, competitor WBFX
101.3 FM, owned by Clear Channel Communications
, reacted to the loss of WKLQ by adding more music from the 1990s and later to its rotation, tweaking from a pure classic rocker to a gold-based mainstream rock
outlet.
Internet radio
Internet radio is an audio service transmitted via the Internet...
station playing active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
and owned by 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...
. Formerly transmitting on the frequency of 107.3 MHz from near Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
as "WKLQ", it was a web-cast only station from May 28, 2009 through November 1, 2009. Due to low listenership in this presentation, 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...
decided to terminate the webcast and redirect all traffic to sister station WLAV's website.
History
In 1984, WJBL-FM 94.5 made a dramatic format change from religious programming to CHRContemporary 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...
as WKLQ. "Hit Rock KLQ" battled WGRD for Grand Rapids' teen audience during the late 1980s and occasionally beat WGRD in the ratings, but by the summer of 1989 the station had shifted into a more AOR direction. By the mid 1990s, the format became alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
and gradually became more active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
oriented towards the year 2000. The station played an active rock
Active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
format, including classic rock-oriented songs as well as more contemporary releases.
WKLQ created the very successful "Q Morning Zoo" in 1984, which at the time featured Robert J. Wright, Sarah Wilson, and Jim Owen. Owen left the Q Zoo in 1987 to concentrate on his duties off air at KLQ and was replaced by Grand Rapids radio legend Rick Beckett
Rick Beckett
Richard Blaine Beckett was an American radio broadcaster.Rick was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan and moved to Grand Rapids shortly thereafter. He began his radio career while still in high school at Union High School in Grand Rapids at WZZM-FM in 1970, where he worked part time on weekends...
. When Wright left the station, he was replaced by Jay Allen. In 1989, Wilson left the station and was replaced by Darla Jaye
Darla Jaye
Darla Jaye is a talk show host at radio station KMBZ in Kansas City, Missouri. Until July 1, 2005, Darla Jaye hosted the afternoon show at WVNN in Huntsville, Alabama....
. In 1993, Allen left the station to work at WOOD (AM)
WOOD (AM)
WOOD is a news/talk radio station broadcasting at 1300 kHz and 106.9 FM in Michigan, United States. WOOD-AM is licensed to Grand Rapids, Michigan and WOOD-FM to Muskegon, Michigan.-Full-service station:...
and he was replaced by Scott Winters
Scott Winters
Richard Scott Winters is an American radio talk show host.Winters is a 1981 graduate of Union High School in Grand Rapids. After graduating high school, he began working in the commercial printing industry...
. For three consecutive years beginning in 1992, the Q Zoo was the number one rated morning show in Grand Rapids 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...
. On September 12, 1995, the entire Q Zoo resigned and less than two weeks later went on the air at rival station WGRD.
In 1996, WKLQ started airing The Howard Stern Show. In 2002 Matt Hanlon, took over as station General Manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
. Around Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
2002, the station quietly moved Stern to its lower-powered AM
Amplitude modulation
Amplitude modulation is a technique used in electronic communication, most commonly for transmitting information via a radio carrier wave. AM works by varying the strength of the transmitted signal in relation to the information being sent...
sister, WBBL
WBBL
WJRW is a radio station broadcasting a News/Talk format in Grand Rapids, Michigan. WJRW is branded as NEWSTALK 1340 WJRW, West Michigan's LIVE & LOCAL Leader...
. As a result, WKLQ did not have a morning show for months, until they hired Ron & Don Show
Ron & Don Show
The Ron and Don Show is a talk radio show in Seattle, Washington. It airs on 97.3 KIRO FM from 3:00-7:00 pm weekdays. The show is hosted by Ron Upshaw and Don O'Neill.-Ron Upshaw:...
from Seattle who stayed with the station until 2005.
Move to 107.3 FM
On October 11, 2004, WKLQ was moved from 94.5 FM to 107.3 FM in the Grand Rapids market, displacing sister station WODJWODJ
WKLQ is a talk radio station licensed to Whitehall, Michigan. The station broadcasts at 1490 kHz, and is owned by Cumulus Media.As WUBR , the station has played adult standards. Later, the format changed to sports, carrying ESPN Radio. In December 2005, the station switched to the current talk...
, which played oldies music. WTNR
WTNR
WTNR , is a country radio station located in Holland, Michigan, owned by Cumulus Media. It was established in October 2004, as a station that focueses mostly on new country music, with songs from the 1990's and early 2000's. It competes with B-93...
replaced WKLQ on 94.5 FM as a 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...
station.
Shortly before KLQ's move to 107.3 FM, They hired Justice and Jim for mornings. In Summer 2005, the duo created a vast amount of controversy when they announced on the air that they were going to drown a dog. The announcement persuaded several listeners to call 911. A day later, they announced that it was only a stunt.
On July 19, 2006, Justice and Jim were fired and replaced by The Opie and Anthony Show.
In fall of 2007, WKLQ returned to its roots of playing the most new Rock in Grand Rapids. On July 17, 2008, WKLQ launched Grey & Kluck mornings featuring Grand Rapids market veteran, Michael Grey, and Warren Kluck. Grey serves as the Program Director of WKLQ. Kluck spent three years previously doing morning drive at WRKR-FM in Kalamazoo, MI.
Repeater station WKOQ (92.5 FM) signed on the air on August 15, 2005. It transmitted from the same tower as television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
WZZM
WZZM-TV
WZZM channel 13 is the Western Michigan affiliate television station for the American Broadcasting Company. It's based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, broadcasting at 16.5 kilowatts of power from a tower located in Newaygo County, near Grant...
in Newaygo County
Newaygo County, Michigan
Newaygo County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the Grand Rapids–Wyoming, MI, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 48,460. The county seat is White Cloud. Newaygo County was either named for an Ojibwe leader who signed the Saginaw...
, near Grant
Grant, Michigan
Grant is a city in Newaygo County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 894 at the 2010 census. The city is on the boundary between Grant Township and Ashland Township, but is politically independent of both...
. The simulcast was terminated on May 1, 2006. 92.5 FM subsequently became WLAW-FM, "The Outlaw," airing a blend of country music and Southern Rock.
Move to internet only broadcast
On May 28, 2009, WKLQ was replaced on 107.3 FM by sister station WBBLWBBL
WJRW is a radio station broadcasting a News/Talk format in Grand Rapids, Michigan. WJRW is branded as NEWSTALK 1340 WJRW, West Michigan's LIVE & LOCAL Leader...
, which was previously on the AM dial, and WKLQ was made an exclusive web-station. The Grey and Kluck Morning show was pulled off the air. Warren Kluck went to do the Kevin Matthews Morning Show. Michael Grey went on to The Starting Line Up with Bret Bakita.
This move left a current void in the West Michigan area for new active rock enthusiasts and left its competitor (97.9 WGRD) the main source for new rock in this area. However, competitor WBFX
WBFX
WBFX is a radio station broadcasting a mainstream rock format, serving the Grand Rapids, Michigan market. Its signal is heard as far east as Owosso, Michigan, as far north as Reed City, Michigan, and as far south as Portage, Michigan....
101.3 FM, owned by Clear Channel Communications
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...
, reacted to the loss of WKLQ by adding more music from the 1990s and later to its rotation, tweaking from a pure classic rocker to a gold-based mainstream rock
Mainstream rock
Mainstream rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.-Format background:...
outlet.