M
Mark77
Guest
On January 21st, 2013 at exactly 9:47 AM EST, WRXP Newark, NJ flipped from a "Wheel of Formats" stunt loop to a brand-new country format. Branded as 94.7 Nash FM - no connection to New York Rangers forward Rick Nash - the new station marked the return of country music to the New York City market in almost 17 years. Country music was last heard on 103.5 WYNY, which became WKTU in February 1996. A later attempt at reviving WYNY and country music via a quadrocast of radio signals ultimately proved to be a failure.
The flip came after several weeks of speculation on this and other radio news websites. WRXP was originally WFME and Family Radio, a religious format that lasted for almost 50 years. However, on October 16th, 2012, Family Radio sold that frequency to Cumulus Media. The Family Radio format came to an end on January 11th, 2013, with 94.7 adopting new calls of WRXP, and temporarily switching to a simulcast of new sister station 95.5 WPLJ for a week. The simulcast came to an end on January 18th, with the station switching to the aforementioned stunt loop.
Radio news website like this one soon became a beehive of activity, with people trying to guess what WRXP's new format would be. The WRXP call sign was formerly linked to a pair of alternative rock formats on 101.9 FM (presently WFAN-FM) under two different owners. Many people were convinced that alternative would rise again from the ashes, while others believed that country was headed back to New York City.
Country ended up as the route Cumulus decided to take, and thus, 94.7 Nash FM was born. Cumulus reportedly has big plans for this new brand, with the hopes of expanding it far beyond the realm of terrestrial radio.
Below is a link to an extended clip of the transition to 94.7 Nash FM. Included is the last few minutes of the stunt loop, the launch montage, the first song played on 94.7 Nash FM, and the first legal ID.
http://www.mediafire.com/?4tt2ytb36juom7z
Enjoy this piece of New York radio history
.
The flip came after several weeks of speculation on this and other radio news websites. WRXP was originally WFME and Family Radio, a religious format that lasted for almost 50 years. However, on October 16th, 2012, Family Radio sold that frequency to Cumulus Media. The Family Radio format came to an end on January 11th, 2013, with 94.7 adopting new calls of WRXP, and temporarily switching to a simulcast of new sister station 95.5 WPLJ for a week. The simulcast came to an end on January 18th, with the station switching to the aforementioned stunt loop.
Radio news website like this one soon became a beehive of activity, with people trying to guess what WRXP's new format would be. The WRXP call sign was formerly linked to a pair of alternative rock formats on 101.9 FM (presently WFAN-FM) under two different owners. Many people were convinced that alternative would rise again from the ashes, while others believed that country was headed back to New York City.
Country ended up as the route Cumulus decided to take, and thus, 94.7 Nash FM was born. Cumulus reportedly has big plans for this new brand, with the hopes of expanding it far beyond the realm of terrestrial radio.
Below is a link to an extended clip of the transition to 94.7 Nash FM. Included is the last few minutes of the stunt loop, the launch montage, the first song played on 94.7 Nash FM, and the first legal ID.
http://www.mediafire.com/?4tt2ytb36juom7z
Enjoy this piece of New York radio history
.