WHHL
Encyclopedia
WHHL, known as "HOT 104.1", is a Urban Contemporary
radio station
serving the St. Louis
area. The Radio One owned outlet broadcasts at 104.1 MHz with an ERP of 50 kW and is licensed to Hazelwood, Missouri
and formerly licensed to Jerseyville, Illinois
. Its transmitter is located in St. Louis, Missouri
, just outside of Forest Park
.
By 1997, the Top 40 format was dropped for Adult Top 40 as "Alice 104.1". The next year, that was gone and replaced by an extreme rock-music sound of WXTM-FM and became known as "Extreme Radio 104dot1". But by 2000, that format would be replaced with an All-80s and 90s format called "The Mall" (WMLL-FM), which gradually evolved to a Hot AC format. That too would also go away on November 1, 2003, when the station started stunting with Christmas music until December 25th, which then changed stunts to a "wheel of formats" by playing music from any given genre.
At Noon on January 8, 2004, the stunting stopped and the station flipped to an Adult Standards format as WRDA, "Red @ 104.1". The station specialized in Swing, Jazz, and "Music with Class" as they called it. Many St. Louisans enjoyed Red, but Emmis Communications
sold it to Radio One, for $20 million in September 2004. The station flipped to its current format on October 1, 2006 at Midnight. The call letters would change to WHHL (Where Hip Hop Lives) to match the "Hot 104.1" handle. Radio One would take full possession of the station in 2006 after running it under an LMA (Local Marketing agreement).
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...
radio station
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...
serving the St. Louis
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
area. The Radio One owned outlet broadcasts at 104.1 MHz with an ERP of 50 kW and is licensed to Hazelwood, Missouri
Hazelwood, Missouri
Hazelwood is a second-ring suburb of St. Louis, located in northwestern St. Louis County, Missouri. The population was 25,703 as of the 2010 census. Hazelwood, a northern suburb of St. Louis, is located north of Lambert-St...
and formerly licensed to Jerseyville, Illinois
Jerseyville, Illinois
Jerseyville is a city in Jersey County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the city had a total population of 8,465. It is the county seat of Jersey County, and is also the largest city in the county. The city's current mayor is Richard Perdun.Jerseyville is a part of Southern...
. Its transmitter is located in St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, just outside of Forest Park
Forest Park
-Towns and villages:*Forest Park, Ontario, Canada*Forest Park, Georgia, USA*Forest Park, Illinois, USA*Forest Park, Ohio, Hamilton county, Ohio, USA*Forest Park, Ottawa County, Ohio, USA*Forest Park, Oklahoma, USA...
.
History
The station began targeting St. Louis in 1983 as Country music station WKKX-FM (Kix-104). However in 1994, they would switch frequencies with WKBQ and its Top 40 format (from 106.5).By 1997, the Top 40 format was dropped for Adult Top 40 as "Alice 104.1". The next year, that was gone and replaced by an extreme rock-music sound of WXTM-FM and became known as "Extreme Radio 104dot1". But by 2000, that format would be replaced with an All-80s and 90s format called "The Mall" (WMLL-FM), which gradually evolved to a Hot AC format. That too would also go away on November 1, 2003, when the station started stunting with Christmas music until December 25th, which then changed stunts to a "wheel of formats" by playing music from any given genre.
At Noon on January 8, 2004, the stunting stopped and the station flipped to an Adult Standards format as WRDA, "Red @ 104.1". The station specialized in Swing, Jazz, and "Music with Class" as they called it. Many St. Louisans enjoyed Red, but Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
sold it to Radio One, for $20 million in September 2004. The station flipped to its current format on October 1, 2006 at Midnight. The call letters would change to WHHL (Where Hip Hop Lives) to match the "Hot 104.1" handle. Radio One would take full possession of the station in 2006 after running it under an LMA (Local Marketing agreement).