Miss 103's 25th anniversary

[the golden boy]

Miss 103 turns 25 this year and while I'm not a fan of theirs (because I'm not a fan of country), I give credit where it's due. They've done something right to be consistently one of the top stations in the area and surviving all the various competitors, from WCKO to the current US 96.3.

A lot of people have been through their halls throughout the years, like Ted Hartley, Carol Taylor, Scott Mateer, Jenell Roberts (currently down the hall at Hallelujah) and current long-time personalities Rick Adams and Art Reed.

Do you have a favorite memory of Miss 103? Mine would be their around-the-clock coverage of Katrina's aftermath, which I've often referred as their finest hour.

 

[zzzz1973]

Fortunately,the people who developed the station,who aren't there anymore,found a niche in the market and was able to ride the wave of country popularity through the 80's to establish itself in a dominant position. When Keymarket bought WJDX,Inc. and changed WZZQ to WMSI it was a radical shift in the market,and caused a lot of talk, which ramped up the visibility of Jackson's first country FM station. Helped by a huge(for that day) advertising campaign, along with newsworthy negative efforts by the former album rock listeners,the station was highly visible in the marketplace, and the listeners responded positvely. The vision of Kerby Confer to establish FM country stations in southern markets was successful, along with consultant Rusty Walker's and OM Dave Perkin's efforts to position WMSI as a market leader. At its peak, Miss-103 had about three times the audience as it has today.
As a side note,didn't want to imply that the current staff is not responsible for the success of the station. For example, one common thread throughout the years has been the ageless News Director Randy Bell,who's had the Howard Lett Award more times than Jackie did.

 

[rfburns]

You have to give them credit for taking a chance 25 years ago. They definitely came along at the right time with the right people. I was there in the late 80's - early 90's and it was a fun place to work!

RFB

 

[zell]

Interesting group of characters you remember,there,G Boy.
One was fired for keying the GM's car,one's burned more bridges than Sherman did on the way to Atlanta,another two have spent a lot of time [EDIT], and other got the present gig thanks to a [EDIT] claim. Let's try another group.


[EDIT-personal attacks]

 

[mchatham103]

Hmmm...since I'm back with Clear Channel, do I post this? Ah, what the heck. My favorite Miss 103 moment was when I was at New South and doing some work on US96.3, and seeing the look on Rick's face before the Toby Keith concert when he saw our massive U.S. banner in front of the coliseum, dwarfing Miss 103's MDOT sign.

All in fun though guys. Congratulations. ;D

MC

 

[Scanman55]

How many of you remember the first country song played on MISS 103 ?????...... Give Up???? ..... It was " Tight Fitting Jeans " by Conway Twitty !!!!!!

 

[zzzz1973]

Guess the PC police came after ya, Sorethroat. Although, don't see how someone could accuse you of "personal attacks" when you didn't name any names. Saw a poster on another thread here totally attack someone BY NAME and the Mr. Moderator Sir didn't do a thing. Curious choice of enforcement. Guess it's always who ya know!

 

[smashedcd]

there was an icestorm around 1982 or 83. both of our locals were off the air. that is the weekend i discovered miss 103 gave a way stuff every hour. so with nothing else to do i listened just for the chance to call in. after about 2 days at about 3 in the morning i finally did it..i won a tshirt ...my favorite (and maybe only) memory of miss 103..

 

[robgrayson]

Of course, some of us old folks would remember this as being the 25th anniversary of the death of a great radio station.

 

[zell]

Guess the PC police came after ya, Sorethroat. Although, don't see how someone could accuse you of "personal attacks" when you didn't name any names. Saw a poster on another thread here totally attack someone BY NAME and the Mr. Moderator Sir didn't do a thing. Curious choice of enforcement. Guess it's always who ya know!

No sweat,Landecker guy! I was posting well- known facts, not attacks, but if that hurt feelings it's best to keep it under wraps. This message board pontification may not be my thing,so I'll just stay with talk radio.

 

[smashedcd]

Of course, some of us old folks would remember this as being the 25th anniversary of the death of a great radio station.

while i agree with you i do believe zzq would have flipped by now ..besides you have to be my age (38) or older to even remember wzzq. i actually didnt know they existed till they were gone. i heard them on a cassete tape that summer. i listened to baton rouge stations back then. z106 could have been like zzq. it was really good for the first few years. now its like any other classic rocker .200 song playlist..too many stopsets. anyway just some thoughts. hard to believe miss has been on for 25 years!!..also hard to believe its been 25 years since zzq!!

 

[beachguy3b]

Of course, some of us old folks would remember this as being the 25th anniversary of the death of a great radio station.

Absolutely. Great bunch worked there as well. I always feel sad when I think of what happened. And... what they would have been now isn't the issue. It's what they were at one time.

 

[TenFourRoger]

I was there from 90-95 and the station did well then , now and further on up the road because
of great people like Jenell Roberts, she had her first Radio job there and I was her immediate supervisor for a while and she was terrific. Her success at 95.5 is no surprise for those of you
who know her, because she is a pro. As for the reason they have had 25 year dominance. I spoke on a panel last year and was asked this same question, and I guess everybody thought I was gonna say something negative about them...FAR FROM IT, I said the success is due to
longevity of the staff, consistently having an unbeatable disaster response team (Katrina, The severe weather etc...) Randy Bell has a mountain of trophies and he should be proud, and there are many others who made that station great but I summed it up this way. "While I was PD, I alway's treated WMSI not as a great country station, I treated as a GREAT RADIO FAMILY that happened to play country music. I cheer them on and may it be another great 25 years.
Betcha thought you'd never hear that response but I am older now, and age help's you look through different glasses. I hope this is not a NO NO but I even look different, I am at a weight I have not been at in 15 years , Im Bald as a cue ball, and have my own Record label that makes my partner and I a nice living www.solarfirerecords.com

I say every one do what makes them happy. I do, and I get paid for doing what makes me happy.

I have another gospel artist I have a CD out on , Kenny Eldridge, (Marxan/Malaco) I also have a Holiday CD coming and a 30 city borders tour. Beats working for 25,000 a year 70 hours a week...

10/4/roger-out

Miss 103 turns 25 this year and while I'm not a fan of theirs (because I'm not a fan of country), I give credit where it's due. They've done something right to be consistently one of the top stations in the area and surviving all the various competitors, from WCKO to the current US 96.3.

A lot of people have been through their halls throughout the years, like Ted Hartley, Carol Taylor, Scott Mateer, Jenell Roberts (currently down the hall at Hallelujah) and current long-time personalities Rick Adams and Art Reed.

Do you have a favorite memory of Miss 103? Mine would be their around-the-clock coverage of Katrina's aftermath, which I've often referred as their finest hour.