WILD (1090 AM) is a radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts. The station airs a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

format, and is owned by Blount Communications, through licensee Blount Masscom, Inc. The station operates during daytime hours only. Its transmitter is located in Medford.

History

WILD first went on the air in 1946 as WBMS, with a

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

format. Eventually, the station went to a "popular music" format, briefly adopted the call letters WHEE, then went back to being WBMS. By the end of the 1950s, the call letters were changed to WILD under owner

Bartell Broadcasters The Bartell Group, later known as Bartell Broadcasters, Bartell Family Radio, Macfadden-Bartell, and the Bartell Media Corporation, was a family-owned company that owned a number of radio stations in the United States during the 1940s through the 1 ...

, who tried a personality DJ and music format. The station's history is best known for a long-lasting

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...

format which began in the late 1950s (after several years in which Italian-language programming and rhythm and blues programs for the black community shared the station's schedule). WILD became the respected voice of Boston's black community for many years. In 1958, Nelson Noble acquired the license of the station. In September 1966, WILD was sold to Dynamic Broadcasting Corporation owned by Leonard E. Walk. In 1972, the Sheridan Broadcasting Corporation purchased Dynamic Broadcasting. In August 1980, locally based Nash Communications, owned and operated by Kendall Nash, bought WILD. When Nash died in 1999, his wife, Bernadine, took the helm of the station's operations. WILD first saw competition when WZOU flipped to a rhythmic contemporary hits format as WJMN ("Jam'n 94.5") in 1993. However, it was not until 1999, when African American-owned Radio One entered the market with WBOT, that WILD saw real competition for Boston's African American population.

Local ownership ends

In May 2000, Radio One took control of WILD through a

local marketing agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...

, which became an outright purchase later that year. After purchasing the station, Radio One slowly evolved WILD from a rather mainstream

urban adult contemporary Urban adult contemporary, often abbreviated as urban AC or UAC, (also known as adult R&B,) is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have hip hop music on ...

format to a format that focused more on classic

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...

. In addition, the syndicated

Tom Joyner Thomas Joyner (born November 23, 1949) is an American retired radio host, former 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 ...

morning show was added to the lineup, with the former morning host ("Coach" Willie Maye) relegated to giving local updates on the show. On October 20, 2005, Radio One moved the urban adult contemporary format to the dial position of WBOT. The move replaced "Hot 97.7" for most of the day, but WBOT's

mainstream urban Mainstream may refer to: Film * ''Mainstream'' (film), a 2020 American film Literature * ''Mainstream'' (fanzine), a science fiction fanzine * Mainstream Publishing, a Scottish publisher * ''Mainstream'', a 1943 book by Hamilton Basso Mu ...

playlist remained from 4:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. WBOT subsequently picked up the call letters of

WILD-FM WZRM (97.7 FM, ''Rumba 97.7'') is a radio station in the Boston, Massachusetts market licensed to Brockton, Massachusetts, carrying a Spanish CHR radio format. Owned and operated by iHeartMedia, it serves the Metro Boston and South Shore are ...

. The move cleared the 1090 frequency for a new format, so when WILD signed on at sunrise on October 20, it was reborn as a new

urban contemporary gospel Urban/contemporary gospel is a modern subgenre of gospel music. Although the style developed gradually, early forms are generally dated to the 1970s, and the genre was well established by the end of the 1980s. The radio format is pitched prima ...

formatted station, ''Praise 1090'', based on the success of

WPZE-FM WPZE (102.5 FM) is a commercial Christian radio station licensed to Mableton, Georgia, and serving Metro Georgia. It is owned by Urban One and airs an urban gospel radio format. Studios and offices are at Centennial Tower in Downtown Atlant ...

in Atlanta and

WPPZ WPPZ-FM (107.9 FM) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to serve Pennsauken, New Jersey in the Philadelphia radio market. The station is owned by Urban One, through licensee Radio One Licenses, LLC, and broadcasts an Urban Oldies format. S ...

in Philadelphia. The "Praise 1090" format was short-lived. On January 30, 2006, the 1090 frequency changed formats again. WILD became the Boston affiliate for the company's African American-targeted

news/talk Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featur ...

network, featuring

Michael Eric Dyson Michael Eric Dyson (born October 23, 1958) is an American academic, author, ordained minister, and radio host. He is a professor in the College of Arts and Science and in the Divinity School at Vanderbilt University. Described by Michael A. Fletch ...

Warren Ballentine Warren Ballentine (born May 13, 1973) is an American motivational speaker, attorney, political activist, and radio talk show host. Biography Early years Ballentine was born and raised on Chicago's South Side, where he attended and graduated ...

Al Sharpton Alfred Charles Sharpton Jr. (born October 3, 1954) is an American civil rights activist, Baptist minister, talk show host and politician. Sharpton is the founder of the National Action Network. In 2004, he was a candidate for the Democratic ...

and

2 Live Stews The ''2 Live Stews'' was an American syndicated sports talk radio show originating from WQXI (AM) 790 The Zone, in Atlanta, Georgia hosted by brothers Doug and Ryan Stewart. The hosts and cast Both brothers were born and raised in Moncks Corne ...

WILD-FM is sold

On August 21, 2006, radio industry website All Access reported that

Entercom Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...

bought WILD-FM and changed the format (after a "stunt") to rock (a simulcast of

WAAF WAAF may refer to: * w3af, (short for web application attack and audit framework), an open-source web application security scanner * Women's Auxiliary Air Force, a British military service in World War II ** Waaf, a member of the service * WAAF (AM ...

), a move designed to improve WAAF's signal in the Boston and South Shore areas. WILD-FM flipped to the simulcast at 5:30 p.m. on August 22. The sale of WILD-FM meant that the Tom Joyner morning show would return to AM 1090, and WILD would revert to contemporary inspirational and gospel music, ending the news/talk format. The news/talk format subsequently returned that December. In the summer of 2008, the station flipped to a various/brokered format on weekdays and classic soul and gospel on weekends. From December 2008 to May 31, 2011, WILD was the Boston affiliate for Radio One's African American-targeted news/talk network.

China Radio International

In June 2011, the station became a full-time affiliate of

China Radio International China Radio International (CRI) is the state-owned international radio broadcaster of China. It is currently headquartered in the Babaoshan area of Beijing's Shijingshan District. It was founded on December 3, 1941, as Radio Peking. It late ...

. In 2016, Radio One sold WILD to Radio Boston Broadcasting, a company 78-percent owned by Universal Broadcasting Group and 22-percent owned by AIM Broadcasting, for $888,326.16.Jacobson, Adam.
A WILD Exit From Boston For Radio One
, ''Radio & Television Business Report''. September 9, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2020. Radio Boston Broadcasting had been operating the station through an LMA. The station was taken silent on November 4, 2019.

Life Changing Radio

Effective October 29, 2020, the station was sold to Blount Communications for $80,000, and the station returned to the air, airing a Christian format branded "Life Changing Radio" as part of a simulcast with 760 AM

WVNE WVNE (760 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Christian radio format. Licensed to Leicester, Massachusetts, United States, the station serves the Worcester area. The station is owned by Blount Masscom, Inc. and features programming from the Sa ...

Leicester, Massachusetts Leicester ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 11,087 at the 2020 United States Census. History What is now Leicester was originally settled by the Nipmuc people and was known by them as ''Towtaid''. On January 27 ...

.Deal Digest: iHeart Buys First AM In Washington Market
, ''InsideRadio''. September 3, 2020. Retrieved December 22, 2020.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control

ILD ILD may refer to: Organizations * Independent Lutheran Diocese a small Confessional Lutheran Association in the United States. * International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party, a minister-level department of the Chinese gover ...

Radio stations established in 1946 1946 establishments in Massachusetts