WQLT-FM (107.3

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 ...

, "Q107") is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

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 A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) 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 part ...

Florence, Alabama Florence is a city in, and the county seat of, Lauderdale County, Alabama, Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the state's northwestern corner, and had a population of 40,184 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Florence is l ...

, United States. The station airs an adult hits

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 broadcasting, ...

, with a heavy emphasis on oldies. It is owned by the Big River Broadcasting Corporation and is operated by the family of noted record producer

Sam Phillips Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American disc jockey, songwriter and record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, R ...

, a native of Florence. The studios and offices are located on Sam Phillips Street in Florence. WQLT's

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...

is located off New Cut Road in

Tuscumbia, Alabama Tuscumbia is a city in, and the county seat of Colbert County, Alabama, Colbert County, Alabama, United States. The population was 9,054 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, and was estimated to be 9,169 in 2023. The city is part of ...

. 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 ha ...

(ERP) of 93,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), 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 quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

s and a

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 above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is ...

(HAAT) of 1,017 feet, WQLT's signal can be heard throughout Northwest Alabama, Northeast

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and South-Central

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

Programming

WQLT-FM broadcasts a wide range of classic hits, mixing both current and classic

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 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

and adult hits music. In addition to its usual music programming, WQLT-FM is an

affiliate Affiliation or affiliate may refer to: * Affiliate (commerce), a legal form of entity relationship used in Business Law * Affiliation (family law), a legal form of family relationship * Affiliate marketing * Affiliate network or affiliation platfo ...

of the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

football radio network. It also carries news updates from

Fox News Radio Fox News Radio is an American radio network owned by Fox News. It is syndicated to over 500 AM and FM radio stations across the United States. It also supplies programming for three channels on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. History In 2003, ...

. Its current on-air lineup includes Your Morning Show with David Havens, Middays with River Jones, Afternoons with Chip Valentine, and nights with Nina Jackson. The station also runs "Funkadelic Friday" on Friday Nights, "Saturday Night At The Oldies" on Saturday Nights, and "Radio Therapy with Henry Green" on Sunday Nights.

History

This station began regular broadcasting on August 8, 1962, with 4,600

s of

on 107.3

as WOWL-FM. Owned by Radio Muscle Shoals, Inc., it was 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 ...

AM 1240 The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 1240 kHz: 1240 AM is a regional (Class B) frequency outside the coterminous 48 United States (Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, & U.S. Virgin Islands), and a local frequency (Class C) within ...

WOWL (now WBCF). On August 15, 1965, the station began broadcasting with 25,000

s of effective radiated power as WJOI-FM. Owned by WJOI Radio, Inc., it was the FM

of WJOI (1340 AM, now known as WSBM). On May 29, 1967, the station's call letters were changed again, this time to WQLT. WQLT and its AM sister were acquired by Big River Broadcasting Corporation on February 21, 1973. Big River Broadcasting is owned by the family of Sam Phillips, the legendary

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

and

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

member most notable for founding

Sun Records Sun Records is an American independent record label founded by producer Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee on February 1, 1952. Sun was the first label to record Elvis Presley, Charlie Rich, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Jo ...

and discovering

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. The station's signal was boosted to 100,000 watts in 1978 and the station was assigned the current WQLT-FM call letters by the

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

on December 1, 1978. This was the first regional top-40 station to serve the entirety of North Alabama and forced several AMs in the area to change format. Q-107's original line-up offered six-hour shifts featuring George Bryant 6 AM to Noon, Maury Buchanan Noon to 6PM, Steve Jefferies 6PM to Midnight, Kerry Mitchell Midnight to 6AM. Weekends Featured Booker T. Ken Maynor hosted Saturday Night at the Oldies for many years. Bill Reeves served as Operations Manager and Production Director. Al Hammond was news director.

Translators

WQLT-FM's programming is also carried on a

broadcast translator 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 ...

station to extend or improve the coverage area of the station.

References

External links

* {{Florence-Muscle Shoals Radio QLT-FM Adult hits radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1962 Florence, Alabama 1962 establishments in Alabama