WMXD
Encyclopedia
WMXD is a Clear Channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...

-owned Urban AC FM
Frequency modulation
In telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...

 radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...

 station in Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, that broadcasts on the frequency of 92.3 MHz. WMXD, which bills itself as "Today's R&B and the Best Old School Jamz," is consistently a very highly rated station in Detroit's 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...

 ratings reports, frequently showing up at number one or close to it. The station operates with 45,000 watts of power from an antenna located on the Cadillac Tower building in downtown Detroit. WMXD is licensed for HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...

 operations and plays contemporary Christian music on its HD-2 side channel. The studios were housed for years at Detroit's Penobscot Building
Penobscot Building
The Greater Penobscot Building, commonly known as the Penobscot Building, is a skyscraper and class-A office building in downtown Detroit, Michigan. Rising 566 feet , the 47-story Penobscot was the tallest building in Michigan from its completion in 1928 until the construction of the Renaissance...

 until November of 2009, when Clear Channel moved them to their corporate owned studios in Farmington Hills
Farmington Hills, Michigan
Farmington Hills is a community in southeastern Michigan. It is the largest city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Its population was 79,740 at the 2010 census...

.

WLIN/WCAR-FM Years

Detroit’s 92.3 FM begins with a construction permit with the call letters WIPE, held by jazz disc jockey Sleepy Stein
Sleepy Stein
Alex N. "Sleepy" Stein was a jazz disc jockey and radio station owner. When he acquired KNOB in Signal Hill, California, he made it the world's first all-jazz radio station.Stein lived in Miami and Havana, graduating from the University of Havana...

 and Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini was an American composer, conductor and arranger, best remembered for his film and television scores. He won a record number of Grammy Awards , plus a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously in 1995...

. In 1961, David Kelly formed Downriver Broadcasting and purchased the construction permit for WIPE from Stein and Mancini. Downriver Broadcasting signed on the new station on November 2, 1962, with the call letters WLIN, with studios on Fort Street in Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park, Michigan
Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It lies in an area of cities and communities known as Downriver. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 census . The settlement was organized as a village in 1921, and reorganized as a city in 1925. The area was originally home to...

 and tower on top of Detroit’s Cadillac Tower; the studios were built and transmitter installed by chief engineer Art Lebermann. WLIN’s original aim was to program a full-service variety format for the downriver Detroit area. However, in 1963, the station relocated its studios to the Lafayette Plaisance high-rise apartment complex in downtown Detroit, and the format became all jazz music.

In 1964, Hy Levinson, owner of successful “good music” outlet WCAR
WDFN
WDFN is a sports-talk radio station in the Detroit, Michigan, market. It broadcasts in the AM radio band at 1130 kHz. WDFN is owned by Clear Channel Communications, and until the end of the 2008-09 NBA season, was the flagship station for the Detroit Pistons....

 (1130 AM), purchased WLIN and rechristened it WCAR-FM on December 8 of that year. WCAR-FM initially broadcast from 6 a.m. to midnight and simulcast its AM sister’s conservative MOR format 100% during that time. In 1969, Levinson hired consultant Ken Draper to modernize the music format for both WCAR-AM and FM, and the music mix was adjusted from conservative MOR to contemporary MOR. WCAR-AM eventually made a brief attempt at Top 40 in 1971-1972; by then, WCAR-FM was fully separately programmed, remaining a contemporary MOR outlet.

Tower 92/WCXI-FM

In February 1977, it was announced that Levinson was selling WCAR-AM/FM to Gene Autry
Gene Autry
Orvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s...

’s Golden West Broadcasters, Inc., but staying on as a consultant. Golden West in October of that year changed WCAR-FM’s MOR format to the syndicated “Great American Country
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...

” package from Drake-Chenault
Drake-Chenault
Drake-Chenault Enterprises was a radio syndication company that specialized in automation on FM radio stations. The company was founded in the late-1960s by radio programmer and deejay Bill Drake , and his business partner, Lester Eugene Chenault...

. In the summer of 1978, the stations moved into new studios in the then-new Renaissance Center, and WCAR-FM’s country format was transplanted onto the AM station, which became WCXI, while the FM station adopted the calls WTWR and an Adult Top 40/Oldies
Oldies
Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day....

 hybrid format under the name Tower 92 (an homage to the station’s new digs). Tower 92 was partly live, partly automated, with the air staff including Jack Kirkwood, Joey Ryan, Kurt Kelly, Kevin Sanderson, Ron Tavernit, Russ Gibb, and Tom Shannon, and Steve Schram as program director. The station was only a moderate ratings success, but the most successful format on 92.3 FM to that time.

In late 1981, Tower 98 transitioned from its Hot AC/Oldies hybrid to full-out Top 40 under the guidance of programmer Todd Wallace, and saw a slight improvement in the ratings in the Winter 1982 Arbitron report. Nevertheless, Golden West wanted to strengthen its country-music position in the market against WWWW-FM
WDTW-FM
WDTW-FM is a classic rock formatted radio station in Detroit, Michigan. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications. WDTW-FM is licensed for HD Radio operations; its secondary channel carries Clear Channel's "Pride Radio" format, which features music geared toward the LGBT audience...

 "W4 Country" 106.7, and so Golden West pulled the plug on Tower 92 in May 1982, after only 15 weeks of the Top 40 format, and changed the station to WCXI-FM, programming a country music format separate from WCXI-AM in an effort to forge a two-pronged competition with the successful WWWW-FM
WDTW-FM
WDTW-FM is a classic rock formatted radio station in Detroit, Michigan. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications. WDTW-FM is licensed for HD Radio operations; its secondary channel carries Clear Channel's "Pride Radio" format, which features music geared toward the LGBT audience...

 "W4 Country" 106.7. WCXI-FM and WCXI-AM had distinct personalities, with WCXI-FM being a contemporary hit country format and WCXI-AM taking a more full-service approach and focusing more on traditional country.

92 Music/92-3 The Wave

In 1986, Fritz Broadcasting acquired WCXI-FM (pairing it with successful AM talk station WXYT) and changed the station to WNTM "92 Music," a satellite-fed adult contemporary format. Since Detroit already had four AC stations, "92 Music" sank to the bottom of the ratings, perhaps due to its lack of live and local air talent.

92.3's next format was New Age
New Age music
New Age music is music of various styles intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management or to create a peaceful atmosphere in their home or other environments, and is often...

 (a precursor of today's Smooth Jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....

 format, mixing contemporary jazz with new-age instrumentals and soft soul vocals) in December 1987 as WVAE, "92-3 The Wave," modeled after Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

' successful KTWV
KTWV
KTWV is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside–San Bernardino and Ventura County areas on 94.7 FM. KTWV airs a hybrid Smooth AC radio format branded as "94.7 The Wave"...

. Much of the programming on WVAE was satellite-fed, and the station also featured comedy bits at the top of each hour to introduce the new hour. "The Wave," an attempt to appeal to the "yuppie
Yuppie
Yuppie is a term that refers to a member of the upper middle class or upper class in their 20s or 30s. It first came into use in the early-1980s and largely faded from American popular culture in the late-1980s, due to the 1987 stock market crash and the early 1990s recession...

" audience, never achieved high ratings, but did have a loyal audience, though it was in competition with beautiful music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...

 WJOI and longtime jazz station WJZZ
WDMK
WDMK is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan broadcasting at 105.9 mHz, owned by Radio One. The station is positioned as 105-9 Kiss, Detroit's Best R&B with a current-based Urban Adult Contemporary format playing mostly current R&B with some Neo Soul and a little old school mixed in...

, which began to play more contemporary jazz, new age and fusion material around that time.

Mix 92.3

In 1989 the station became "The Mix" as WMXD. Originally starting out as a Rhythmic Adult Contemporary
Rhythmic Contemporary
Rhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...

 outlet and playing a wide variety of adult R&B and pop music, WMXD would evolve into its current Urban AC format by late 1991 under the guidance of operations manager Kris McClendon. Ratings success came quickly after the station tapped the then-underserved Detroit audience for classic soul music
Rhythmic oldies
Rhythmic Oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, disco or dance genres of music. Playlists may span from the 1970s through the early 1990s...

 along with current adult R&B product. By 1993, the station was showing up regularly in the top 10 of Detroit's Arbitron ratings, and the format has endured since, surviving several ownership changes. In 1994, the station was sold from Fritz Broadcasting to Booth American, which merged with Broadcast Alchemy shortly afterward to become Secret Communications. WMXD and longtime Detroit urban contemporary powerhouse WJLB
WJLB
WJLB, is a Clear Channel-owned Urban Contemporary radio station in Detroit that broadcasts on 97.9 megahertz frequency. The station is known on-air as FM98 WJLB. This is the station that began the career of Urban radio legend and video jock, Donnie Simpson...

 were now - and still are - sister stations. Just a few months later, Secret sold the stations to Chancellor Media, which later merged with Evergreen Media to become AMFM, which was swallowed up by Clear Channel in 1999.

The Steve Harvey Morning Show

Until late June 2005, Mix 92.3 was Detroit's outlet for the popular syndicated 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:...

 morning show. In June 2005, Radio One relaunched its "Kiss FM" gold-based Urban AC format on the 105.9 frequency (now WDMK
WDMK
WDMK is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan broadcasting at 105.9 mHz, owned by Radio One. The station is positioned as 105-9 Kiss, Detroit's Best R&B with a current-based Urban Adult Contemporary format playing mostly current R&B with some Neo Soul and a little old school mixed in...

), moving 105.9's hip-hop format to 102.7 (now WHTD
WHTD
WPZR is an urban gospel formatted radio station licensed to Mount Clemens, Michigan, and serving the Detroit metropolitan area...

) and grabbing Joyner for mornings on 105.9. WMXD subsequently brought in a parade of celebrities such as soul singer Kenny Lattimore
Kenny Lattimore
Kenny Lattimore is an American R&B singer. Among his most popular hits were "Never Too Busy" and "For You".- Early career :...

 to host the morning show until a permanent replacement could be found. The station finally signed on as an affiliate of the Steve Harvey
Steve Harvey
Broderick Steven "Steve" Harvey is an American actor, comedian, entertainer, television and radio personality and best-selling author. He is best known as the star of the WB sitcom The Steve Harvey Show, and as one of the four comedians featured in the Spike Lee film The Original Kings of Comedy...

 Morning Show, syndicated by Clear Channel's Premiere Radio Networks out of WBLS
WBLS
WBLS is an urban adult contemporary FM radio station in New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz. WBLS is owned by Inner City Broadcasting Corporation along with sister station WLIB...

 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 (although WBLS itself is Black-owned by Inner City Broadcasting Corporation
Inner City Broadcasting Corporation
The Inner City Broadcasting Corporation is an American media company based in New York City. ICBC is notable for being one of the first broadcasting companies wholly owned by black people...

), and the station's morning and overall ratings have remained strong. Soon enough, WMXD also became the afternoon home to the Love, Lust and Lies Show with 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:...

, as well as the home of "The Sweat Hotel" with Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat is an American R&B/soul, singer-songwriter, record producer, radio personality and a major contributor to the new jack swing era.-Music career:...

. Although the addition of Love, Lust and Lies and The Sweat Hotel made Frankie Darcell's midday show the only local daypart on WMXD during weekdays, the station's ratings did not suffer.

As of September 2009, Michael Baisden was dropped from the lineup to accommodate a more local direction; WDMK has since picked up the afternoon program. Frankie Darcell returns to the afternoon lineup on the regular time slot in following the cancellation of Baisden on September 14, 2009. Mix is now once again live and local from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Mix 92.3 currently ranks at #10 (4.3) in the Detroit market according to the November 2010 PPM ratings release.

Airstaff

The current lineup (as of July 2010): Starting out the day on the morning drive is The Steve Harvey Morning Show with Steve Harvey
Steve Harvey
Broderick Steven "Steve" Harvey is an American actor, comedian, entertainer, television and radio personality and best-selling author. He is best known as the star of the WB sitcom The Steve Harvey Show, and as one of the four comedians featured in the Spike Lee film The Original Kings of Comedy...

, Shirley Strawberry, Nephew Tommy, Carla Ferrell & Tracey McCaskill (News). Midday programming is the "Lunchtime Music Cafe" with Oneil Stevens. Afternoons are hosted by Frankie Darcell. Wrapping up the day on nights is The Sweat Hotel with Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat is an American R&B/soul, singer-songwriter, record producer, radio personality and a major contributor to the new jack swing era.-Music career:...

, and The All Night Mix with Keil Lamont on overnights.

Other notable programming includes Back Jam Live with Donafay on Friday nights at Lucky's in Southfield . Weekend's/Fill-ins include Chris Boyd, Foody and Gerald McBride.

HD Radio

Mix 92.3 is licensed for HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...

 operations. The station featured an Urban Gospel format (provided by Clear Channel's iHeartRadio
Iheartradio
iHeartRadio is a Clear Channel Radio network to aggregate local radio brands, personalities and on-demand content. It is best known as a mobile application...

) on its HD2 side channel until August 2010, when Clear Channel entered into an agreement with Educational Media Foundation, operators of the K-Love
K-LOVE
K-LOVE is a Contemporary Christian music radio programming service in the United States operated by the Educational Media Foundation. As of January 2011, K-LOVE's programming is carried on over 440 FM stations and translators in 45 states. K-LOVE claims an audience of 250,000 people each week via...

 format of contemporary Christian music, to program WMXD-HD2. K-Love programming has been heard on WMXD-HD2 since. WMXD-HD2 also feeds four translators around the Detroit metro area - 98.3 W252BX and 102.3 W272CA, both licensed to Detroit; 105.5 W288BK, licensed to Rochester Hills
Rochester Hills, Michigan
Rochester Hills is an affluent city in northeast Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 70,995. The city of Rochester is bounded on the north, south, and west by Rochester Hills...

; and 106.3 W292DK, licensed to Westland
Westland, Michigan
Westland is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located about west of downtown Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 84,094.-Politics:...

- which are owned outright by EMF.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK