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WPKR (99.5 FM, "99.5 PKR") is a
country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
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
Omro, Wisconsin Omro is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,652 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is located along the Fox River (Green Bay tributary), Fox River, approximately 10 miles west of Oshkos ...
, that serves the Oshkosh, Appleton and Fond du Lac areas. It started as a simulcast of Green Bay-based country music station WPCK. Since then it has split off and is its own entity. The station is 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 ...
. WPKR's studios are located on Washburn Street in Oshkosh (with an auxiliary studio on Victoria Street in Green Bay), while its transmitter is near Rosendale.


History

From 1971 to July 1990, WLKE 1170 kHz (now WFDL) had an FM sister station at 99.3 FM, first known as WLKE-FM, which broadcast an in-house beautiful music format from 1971 to 1976. Then later the call letters were changed to WGGQ ("99Q"). 99Q was an automated station and played Drake-Chenault's top-40 rock format "XT-40" using reel to reel tapes from 1976 to 1981. The call letters were changed back to WLKE-FM from August 1981 to May 1984, and an automated country music was aired. Then, in May 1984, the WGGQ call letters were brought back and "99Q" was once again back on the air using Satellite Music Network's All Hit Radio format (later renamed "The Heat") until July 1990, when the station flipped to country as "Packer Country". The AM and FM then had separate ownership after July 1990, with WGGQ moving to 99.5 MHz and changing its city of license from Waupun to
Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...
and later to Omro. In 1997, an ownership change saw the station's programming being simulcasted on WPCK (104.9 MHz), a station serving the Green Bay area and licensed to
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
, with both stations utilizing the "Packer Country" branding. Both stations would eventually be acquired 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 ...
, who would break off the simulcast in November 2003, with WPCK keeping a country format but adopting its own identity, "Kicks 104.9." WPCK would again be under common ownership with WPKR in 2013 after
Clear Channel Communications iHeartMedia, Inc., or CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc., formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc., a company founded by ...
, which acquired WPCK and four other Green Bay area Cumulus stations in 2009, sold its Green Bay stations back to Cumulus. (Under Clear Channel ownership, Cumulus continued to operate the five stations that Clear Channel acquired, including WPCK.) In June 2011, WPKR would reunite with WPCK in a simulcast, branded as "99.5 and 104.9 The Wolf," incorporating new and existing elements from both stations. The "Wolf" branding would give way on May 24, 2013, to the new branding of "Nash FM, 99.5 and 104.9;" WPCK and WPKR were two of six Cumulus country stations to adopt the "Nash FM" branding that day, part of Cumulus' plan to nationally expand its multimedia "Nash FM" country branding, which was launched earlier in 2013 at its
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
station, WNSH. Cumulus Media filed for bankruptcy protection in early 2018. On March 27, 2018, WPCK and three other Cumulus stations ( WTOD/ Toledo, OH, KJMO/
Jefferson City, MO Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Missouri. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 United States census, ranking as the List of cities in Missouri, 16th most popu ...
, and WNUQ/
Albany, GA Albany ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Located on the Flint River, it is the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, Dougherty County, and is the sole incorporated city in that county. Located in Southwest Geo ...
) were placed into the Cumulus Reorganization Divestiture Trust for a future sale. Shortly after this, the simulcast between WPCK and WPKR was broken. While both stations retained the country format and "Nash FM" branding, the stations began airing separate programming and separate airstaffs. Following the sale of WPCK to
Educational Media Foundation Educational Media Foundation (formerly EMF Broadcasting, abbreviated EMF) is an American nonprofit Christian media ministry based in Franklin, a suburb of Nashville. EMF is the parent company of K-LOVE and Air1—the world's largest contempor ...
in October 2019, WPCK switched over to their
K-LOVE K-Love (stylized as K-LOVE) is an American Christian radio network. Owned by the Educational Media Foundation (EMF), a non-profit Christian ministry, it primarily broadcasts contemporary Christian music. As of June 2019, the network's progr ...
network just before midnight on December 31, 2019, following a farewell message advising listeners to turn to WPKR. On April 5, 2021, WPKR dropped the "Nash FM" branding and rebranded as "99.5 PKR".WPKR Drops Nash-FM Identity
Radioinsight - April 5, 2021


Previous logo


References


External links


WPKR official website
* {{coord, 43.829, N, 88.668, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title PKR Country radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1974 Cumulus Media radio stations