WJMZ-FM (107.3 FM) is a commercial

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

licensed A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...

Anderson, South Carolina Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Anderson County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 28,106 at the 2020 census, and the city was the center of an urbanized area of 75,702. It is one of the principal cities in the Green ...

and serving the

Upstate South Carolina The Upstate is the region in the westernmost part of South Carolina, United States, also known as the Upcountry, which is the historical term. Although loosely defined among locals, the general definition includes the 10 counties of the commerc ...

region, including Greenville and

Spartanburg Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest city in the state. For a time, the Offic ...

. The station is owned by SummitMedia and airs an

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 ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when radio was compelle ...

. It is among the highest rated stations in the Greenville/Spartanburg

radio market A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...

, according to

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

. WJMZ is licensed by the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisd ...

(FCC) to broadcast with an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ...

(ERP) of 100,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...

s with a tower at 1,010 feet

height above average terrain Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site is above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it ...

(HAAT). Its studios are located at Noma Square in Downtown Greenville, and its

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to ...

is located off Massey Road in Pendleton.

History

107.3 began as WANS-FM on October 24, 1967, the FM

sister station In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement. Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...

to 1280

WANS WANS (1280 AM) is a southern gospel radio station located in Anderson, South Carolina, United States. The station is licensed by the FCC to broadcast with 5 kW. during the daytime and 1 kW. directional at night. Station history WANS 12 ...

. They broadcast out of studios in Anderson on Clemson Boulevard. WANS-AM-FM were highly rated

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

radio stations through the 1960s and 70s, with the AM station eventually switching to

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as wel ...

music, while the FM continued playing the hits. After being a top 40 powerhouse for many years, owner Radio Anderson sold them to Degree Communications, another local owner, in 1988. The new owner cut staff, promotions and other costs. The AM once again

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simult ...

the FM station. Ratings dropped in a drastic way. By 1990, the station was bankrupt. WANS-FM flipped from

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet ...

-formatted WWMM as "Magic 107.3" in February 1992 after the station was sold to Desert Communications for $3 million. In 1994, due to low ratings and facing competition from WMYI and

WSPA-FM WSPA-FM (98.9 MHz, "Magic 98.9") is an adult contemporary radio station licensed to serve Spartanburg, South Carolina and covering the Upstate region, including Greenville and Spartanburg. The Audacy, Inc. outlet is licensed by the Federal Com ...

, the

format was dropped. 107.3 WWMM changed its format and

call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assig ...

to urban contemporary as "107.3 JAMZ", WJMZ-FM. In 1995, AmCom Carolinas Inc. sold WJMZ to WROQ owner ABS Communications Inc., for $5.3 million. ABS immediately took over WJMZ in 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 ...

. In 2001, the station was sold to

Cox Media Group CMG Media Corporation (doing business as Cox Media Group) is an American media conglomerate principally owned by Apollo Global Management in conjunction with Cox Enterprises, which maintains a 29% minority stake in the company. The company pri ...

, a major radio, TV and newspaper owner based in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

. WJMZ carried the station slogan, "The Peoples' Station" until 2003, when it changed to "Today's R&B." In 2009, WJMZ-FM earned a

Marconi Award :''"Marconi Award" links here. Note that in the Netherlands, the radio academy awards are also called Marconi Awards.'' The Marconi Radio Awards are presented annually by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) to the top radio stations and ...

as Urban Station of the Year from the

National Association of Broadcasters The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a trade association and lobby group representing the interests of commercial and non-commercial over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States. The NAB represents more tha ...

. In 2010,

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...

Kelly Mac won the Marconi Award for Medium Market Personality of the Year. On July 20, 2012, Cox Radio, Inc. announced the sale of WJMZ-FM and 22 other stations to Summit Media LLC for $66.25 million. The sale was consummated on May 3, 2013.

HD radio

WJMZ-FM HD2

WJMZ-FM HD2 broadcasts an

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

format branded as ''X98.5'' (relayed on FM translator

W253BG W253BG (98.5 FM) is an alternative rock radio station located in Greenville, South Carolina area. Although licensed as a broadcast translator prohibited from carrying its own programming, it broadcasts under a legal loophole allowed by the ...

98.5 FM Greenville).

WJMZ-FM HD3

WJMZ-FM HD3 broadcast an adult hits format branded as ''99.5 Jack FM'', relayed on FM translator

W258CB W258CB (99.5 FM) is a radio station translator in Greenville, South Carolina. Owned by Tower Above Media, the station simulcasts a classic hits music format branded as ''Awesome 99.5'' from an HD Radio subchannel of SummitMedia's WJMZ-FM. Hi ...

99.5 FM Greenville). On June 1, 2021, WJMZ-HD3 and W258CB changed their format from adult hits to 1980s hits, branded as “Awesome 99.5”.Greenville Gets Awesome On 99.5
Radioinight - June 1, 2021

WJMZ-FM HD4

WJMZ-FM HD4 simulcasts sister station WHZT in order to increase its coverage area in Spartanburg County.

References

External links

* * * * {{Urban Radio Stations in South Carolina JMZ-FM 1963 establishments in South Carolina Radio stations established in 1963 Urban adult contemporary radio stations in the United States