WPZA (107.9 MHz FM, Air1) is a

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 ...

broadcasting a

contemporary worship music Contemporary worship music (CWM), also known as praise and worship music, is a distinct genre of Christian music used in contemporary worship. It has evolved over the past 60 years and is stylistically similar to pop music. The songs are of ...

format. It is licensed to

Canton, Illinois Canton is the largest city in Fulton County, Illinois, United States. The population was 13,242 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 14,704 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The Canton Micropolitan Statistical Ar ...

and serves the Peoria radio market. The station is currently owned by

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 ...

History

WPZA was known as WBYS-FM for many years on 98.3 FM with an easy listening format. In August 1997, the station was upgraded to 25,000 watts and moved to 107.9 FM. This allowed the station to target the Peoria market, and in late 2004 switched to a Classic Hits format as "CD 107.9". WPZA is one of only 5 radio stations in the Peoria radio market with a Class B signal. In July, 2008, a tornado took down the original tower constructed in 1947 for sister station WBYS, and a new tower was constructed and registered in March, 2009. On December 27, 2010, WCDD changed the format to country, branded as "CD Country 107.9". On December 11, 2020, WCDD was sold to EMF (Educational Media Foundation) for $170,000, pending a flip to

Air1 Air1 is an American Christian radio network owned by the Educational Media Foundation (EMF), a non-profit Christian ministry. It primarily broadcasts contemporary worship music, and is a sister to the EMF's K-Love network. History On July 15, ...

. The station signed off on March 31, 2021, at 6:00 PM CDT to make way for the switch to Air1, with " A Boy Named Sue" from

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

being the final song played on the format before signing off. On March 31, 2021, Illiana Communications, LLC closed the sale on WCDD to EMF,Indiana-Illinois Cluster Sold
/ref> who changed the call sign to WPZA. Meanwhile, the country format has now moved to WBYS and rebranded as "94.1 BYS."

Sports coverage

From 2012 to 2014, WCDD served as the broadcast home of the Peoria Rivermen, during the team's years in both the AHL and

SPHL The SPHL (formerly the Southern Professional Hockey League) is a professional ice hockey independent minor league based in Huntersville, North Carolina, with teams located primarily in the southeastern United States as well as Illinois and India ...

. The team's broadcasts came internet-exclusive after the expiration of the 2-year deal with the station.

References

External links

* Canton, Illinois PZA Educational Media Foundation radio stations Air1 radio stations {{Illinois-radio-station-stub