WLXC

Infobox Radio station
name = WLXC


city = Columbia, South Carolina
area = Midlands, South Carolina
branding = 103.1 Kiss FM
slogan = "The Best Variety Of R&B Hits And Classic Soul"
airdate = 1982
frequency = 103.1 MHz
format = Urban Contemporary
power =
erp = 6,000 watts
haat = 94 meters (309 feet)
class = A
facility_id = 54794
coordinates = 34° 03' 05" N, 81° 00' 07" W
callsign_meaning = Lexington (previous city of license)
former_callsigns = WPDN (1982-1986), WMMC (1986-1988), WPRH (1988-1989), WOMG (1989-2008)
owner = Citadel Broadcasting
licensee =
sister_stations = WISW, WOMG, WNKT, WTCB
webcast = [http://mmslb.eonstreams.com/citadel_sc_columbia_wlxc_fm_fast Listen Live]
website = [http://www.kiss985fm.com kiss985fm.com]
affiliations =

WLXC (103.1 FM), also known as "103.1 Kiss FM", is an Urban Contemporary formatted radio station located in Columbia, South Carolina. The station is licensed by the FCC to broadcast at 103.1 FM MHz with a ERP of 6000 Watts to the city of Columbia, SC.

Station History

103.1 FM was allocated to Columbia beginning in 1976. The construction permit for the 3 kW. station was awarded in June of that year to MIDCOM Corporation, a group made up of Rev. I. DeQuincey Newman, J.E. Dickson, Bob Parnell, & Bob Cook. Construction for the station was held up for several years by appeals filed by Nuance Corp, the owners of crosstown AM Urban Contemporary outlet WOIC and one of the dismissed applicants for the proposed FM."New FM Radio Station Gets Approval For Construction", "Columbia Record", October, 5, 1981.]

Eventually, the FCC sided with a lower court, approving the station to be licensed to MIDCOM in October 1981. Finally in 1982, the station hit the air as WDPN with an Urban Contemporary and Jazz music format with its studios and tower located in the Columbia suburb of Dentsville.

Ratings for the new outlet were at a 4.2 in its first Arbitron ratings period. ["WCOS Top In Radio Ratings, Newcomer WDPN Scores Well", "The State", January 25, 1983.] However, the station was overshadowed not only by the well-established WOIC, but competition from Sumter-based FM Urban Contemporary outlet WWDM, which became the dominate Urban outlet in the market. By 1985, WDPN was acquired by WOIC's parent company, Nuance Corporation and WPDN's studios were moved into WOIC's facility at 910 Comanche Trail in West Columbia. Ratings for both stations began to decline.

In early 1986, both WDPN and WOIC were acquired by Alpha Communications. a group headed up by legendary air personality Chuck Dunaway (of WABC-AM and KLIF fame). WOIC was left Urban, while WDPN changed to Top 40/Crossover (a mixture of Top 40 and R&B music) as "C-103". The new call letters became WMMC. Almost overnight, the station's ratings increased. By early 1987, the station had evolved more toward a mainstream CHR format.

By early 1988, what gains that C-103 had made were slowly being eroded by rival CHRs WNOK and new upstart WYYS (now WLTY). The station was sold to Price Broadcasting, which changed the station's call letters to WPRH and the handle to Power 103 on May 2nd, but kept the previous Top 40 format. This move did not work as the station's ratings spiraled downward within a year's time.

On April 15th, 1989, after a week where the station experimented with a brief Album Rock format, Magic 103.1 was born, taking the new call letters of WOMG. This was the market's first FM Oldies station since WWGO's (now WMFX) attempt 3 years prior (WODE, now known as WOIC, was doing Oldies on AM during this time, but would change formats by the end of the year). At the start, Magic 103.1 was more focused on music from 1956 through 1968, but as time moved on, music from the 1970s were added into the format as well.

In February 1991, after the station had experienced a significant dip in the ratings, the station reimaged itself as Oldies 103, focusing on the music from 1964 to 1973. The basic format remained ever since, although in recent years, music from the late 70s was re-added into the format. The Oldies format is now heard on WLXC.

In 1997, after years of planning and delays, the station was finally able to increase its power from 3kw. to 6kw.. This move solidified its signal coverage in the Columbia metro area. However, even with its new wattage, and Gamecock Basketball and Baseball rights, the station's power makes it inaccessible to western Lexington County, into Calhoun and Orangeburg; WQKI-FM in Rowesville, SC blocks its signals. Those complaints led to Citadel Broadcasting moving the WNKT tower from St. George to Eastover, changing its market, and flipping that station to a sports station in order to carry Gamecock sports to a more accessbile area.

On April 1st, 2008, Citadel moved the Oldies format from 103.1 FM to 98.5 FM. The Urban Contemporary format then heard on 98.5 FM moved to 103.1 FM, along with the WLXC calls. The WOMG calls were moved to 98.5 FM [Otis R. Taylor, Jr., "Radio Station Switcheroo," "The State", April 1, 2008.] .

The station is owned by Citadel Broadcasting.

History of the Urban Contemporary Format

On March 4th 1999, at 3 p.m., WLXC signed on at 98.5 FM with its present Urban Adult Contemporary format under the "98.5 Kiss FM" handle. The station ran commercial free in its first two weeks on the air using a mixture of local and Dallas-based ABC Radio Network "The Touch" Urban AC format air talent, including morning man Carlton Booth. Several week later, Carlton Booth morning show was dropped for the syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show.

With the addition of Joyner and local afternoon host Kevin Holiday, WLXC's ratings jumped to fourth place in its first book (Summer, 1999), one of the strongest debuts in Columbia radio history for a new station.

In 2005, WLXC achieve success when it went to #1 12+ in the summer Arbitron ratings with a 7.5 share, it's highest to date. However, ratings slipped to 11th place in the next book as WWDM reclaimed the top spot.

References

External links

* [http://www.kiss985fm.com Kiss-FM's website]
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