WKLQ (94.5

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

, "The Q 94.5") is an FM

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting 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 rad ...

licensed to

Holland, Michigan Holland is a city in Ottawa County, Michigan, Ottawa and Allegan County, Michigan, Allegan counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located in the West Michigan, western region of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Lower Peninsula, the city is si ...

. Owned by

Cumulus Media Cumulus Media, Inc. is a broadcasting company of the United States and is the second largest owner and operator of AM and FM radio stations in the United States ahead of Audacy and behind iHeartMedia iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdi ...

, the station broadcasts an

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, ...

format serving the

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

market.

History

When launched, 94.5 was occupied by WKLQ, with a

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently 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. "To ...

/ CHR format as ''"Hit Rock! The FM 94 KLQ"'' that started in 1984. But by the early 1990s, the station flipped formats to an

active rock Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...

format. In 1996, the station added

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American broadcaster and media personality. He is best known for his radio show, ''The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from 1 ...

to the morning lineup. By 1999, the station had tweaked into Alternative and became known as ''The [email protected] KLQ''. After a few years of struggling with the rock format, the station flipped to WTNR and

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

on October 11, 2004 as ''94.5 The New Thunder Country'', later branded as ''Thunder 94-5''. On October 27, 2011, WTNR completely revamped the station's playlist by adding gold tracks not previously played on the station. These included songs by artists from the 1990s and early 2000s like

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...

Shania Twain Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( ; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time and the best-sel ...

Brooks & Dunn Brooks & Dunn are an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1988 through the suggestion of songwriter and record producer, Tim DuBois. Before thei ...

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He is known for performing a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country", as well as writing many of his own songs. Jackson has recorded 21 studi ...

among others. On February 3, 2014, the station rebranded under Cumulus's Nash FM brand. On January 4, 2019, WTNR returned to the ''Thunder'' branding, and added a simulcast on 107.3 WBBL-FM to replace its

sports talk Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sport, sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-low comed ...

format, with both stations branding as ''Thunder 94.5 & 107.3''. The simulcast would be short-lived; on January 19, 2019, WTNR dropped ''Thunder'' and flipped to

as ''The Q 94.5''. The WKLQ calls (warehoused by a co-owned AM talk radio operation in Whitehall, MI) were reinstated on February 6, 2019 to match the new branding.

References

Michiguide.com - WTNR History

External links

* * {{coord, 42.856, N, 85.963, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title KLQ (FM) Adult album alternative radio stations in the United States Holland, Michigan Cumulus Media radio stations Radio stations established in 1961 1961 establishments in Michigan