WLZX-FM (99.3

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 ...

) is a radio station in

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence, Massachusetts, Florence and ...

. The station has 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, and is owned by Saga Communications. WLZX-FM is also simulcast on the second

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. HD radio generally simulcast, simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD R ...

channel of

WAQY WAQY (102.1 FM) is an American radio station in Springfield, Massachusetts, broadcasting a classic rock format. Since the late 1980s, the station has been known as "Rock 102". History The station signed on December 17, 1966, as WCRX. The call l ...

(102.1 FM) in Springfield, as well as

translator station A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...

W253CD (98.5 FM) in East Longmeadow. From 2017 to 2025, it was also simulcast on WLZX (1600 AM), also in East Longmeadow.

Programming

WLZX-FM airs an active rock format. The station also carries

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...

and

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

games.

History

What is now WLZX-FM went on the air November 1, 1965, as WHMP-FM. In 2000, Saga Communications purchased WHMP-FM and

WHMP WHMP (1400 AM) is a commercial radio station broadcasting a news/talk format. Licensed to Northampton, Massachusetts, it serves the Pioneer Valley, with studios on Hampton Avenue. It is owned by Saga Communications, and operates as part of its ...

from Clear Channel, which operated WHMP-FM as the "Rock Alternative". Lazer 99.3 went live on September 11, 2000. On February 3, 2017, WLZX-FM rebranded as "Lazer 99.3 & 105.1" and began simulcasting on WLZX (1600 AM, formerly WHNP) and FM translator W286DB (105.1 FM) in

East Longmeadow, Massachusetts East Longmeadow is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, situated in the Pioneer Valley region of Western Massachusetts. It had a population of 16,430 at the 2020 census. East Longmeadow is southeast of downtown Springfiel ...

. As WHNP, the 1600 AM facility had simulcast the talk format of sister station

. The station subsequently rebranded as "Lazer 99.3 & 98.5", in reflection of the translator's move to 98.5 FM as W253CD. The WLZX stations switched to 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 in the summer of 2017, but returned to the active rock format at 6:00a.m. on February 4, 2020. The stations added '' The Toucher and Rich Show'', a syndicated morning show based at

WBZ-FM WBZ-FM (98.5 FM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, serving Greater Boston and much of surrounding New England. Owned by the Beasley Broadcast Group, WBZ-FM is the Boston affiliate for Fox Sports Radio; t ...

in Boston, on May 9, 2022; they dropped the program in 2023. Saga Communications surrendered the WLZX AM license in May 2025. Translator W253CD now receives "Lazer" programming from the second HD Radio channel of

Translators

In addition to W253CD (98.5), which is fed by WAQY-HD2, WLZX-FM has two translators: W232BW (94.3) in Amherst at 250 watts, which simulcasts its HD2 channel, a classic hits station branded as "Rewind 94.3"; and W245BK (96.9), also a 250-watt facility in Amherst, which simulcasts WLZX-FM's HD3 channel, an

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as well as for a radio format playing this music. Since 2 ...

station branded as "Pure Oldies 96.9".

References

External links

* * * * * * * * LZX-FM Radio stations established in 1965 Northampton, Massachusetts Mass media in Hampshire County, Massachusetts 1965 establishments in Massachusetts Active rock radio stations in the United States {{Massachusetts-radio-station-stub