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WTWV-FM (92.9
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
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 to
Suffolk, Virginia Suffolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. As of 2020, the population was 94,324. It is the List of cities in Virginia, 10th-most populous city in Virginia, the largest city in Virginia by bou ...
, and serving
Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond, and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point near whe ...
. The Station Flips to Christmas Music on November and December. WTWV-FM is owned and operated by
Max Media Max Media is a company that owns radio stations throughout the United States. It is based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. History Max Media was founded in 2001. Prior to this, some of the company's management had run the TVX Broadcast Group from 1 ...
. It airs an
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 ...
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, ...
using the branding "92.9 The Wave." Studios and offices are on Greenwich Road in
Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the most populous city in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeastern Virginia. It is the sixth-most populous city in the ...
. The
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 off Greenbrook Drive in Suffolk.


History


Early years as WXYW, WFOG

WTWV-FM first
signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...
the air in December 1965 as WXYW. It was owned by the Suffolk Broadcasting Company, along with AM 1460 WLPM (now defunct). WXYW was largely
automated Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human intervention in processes, mainly by predetermining decision criteria, subprocess relationships, and related actions, as well as embodying those predeterminations in machine ...
, playing a beautiful music format of mostly instrumental versions of pop songs, as well as
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...
and Broadway show tunes. In 1970, the
call sign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally as ...
was switched to WFOG, since the
Tidewater region Tidewater is a region in the Atlantic Plains of the United States located east of the Atlantic Seaboard fall line (the natural border where the tidewater meets with the Piedmont region) and north of the Deep South. The term "tidewater" can be ...
of Virginia, along the
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
coast, often experiences fog. The station's
easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...
sound lasted for more than 20 years. In 1985, WFOG was acquired by JAG Communications of Virginia. JAG updated the easy listening format by adding more vocals, in an effort to attract younger listeners. WFOG changed hands again in 1989, being bought by the Sunshine Wireless Company for $8 million. Sunshine Wireless deleted the instrumentals and moved WFOG to a
soft 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 ...
format, known as "Lite Favorites."


Soul classics and oldies

Barnstable Broadcasting acquired WFOG-FM in April 1999. On September 10, 1999, Barnstable converted the station to urban oldies as "Soul Classics 92.9." The call letters were also changed to WWSO-FM. The "Soul Classics" format lasted only two years. On December 16, 2001, the station changed formats again, this time going to
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 ...
, branded as "Oldies 92-9." The first song of the new format was
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
' " A Hard Day's Night." The WFOG call letters returned on December 5, 2003, when the classic country format on 100.5 FM shifted to AM and displaced the
adult standards Adult standards (also sometimes known as the nostalgia or Big Band format) is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations. Adult standards started in the 1950s and is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly tho ...
format on WFOG (now WVXX). Not long after, in 2004, the moniker changed to "92-9 WFOG," reflecting the change in call letters.


92-9 The Wave

In early 2005, Max Media purchased WFOG, and the rest of the Barnstable cluster, making the stations locally owned and operated. Later that year, on July 1, the station changed its moniker to "FM 92-9 WFOG." To mark the switch, it played a countdown of the top 100 songs for each year from 1965 to 1985. Then, at 6 a.m. on July 21, "WFOG" signed off with
Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by thei ...
' " Catch a Wave." Max Media then flipped the station to
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 ...
as "92-9 The Wave," with " Forever Young" by
Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...
as its first song. The call letters switched to WVBW. After airing an adult contemporary format for several years, the station transitioned to more of an adult hits format, with an emphasis on older music. Barry Michaels was the morning
drive time Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this c ...
host for the station since the beginning of the oldies format. In July 2005, Michaels was let go by the new owners, who had hired Dick Lamb, the former morning host from rival station WWDE-FM, known as "2WD." In the weeks leading up to the Lamb's debut, it was hinted that he would return to the air on The Wave. Lamb recorded a TV commercial saying that he would be the host of a new morning show on The Wave. This was also mentioned on the station's bumpers between songs. On September 12, 2005, Lamb made his return to the airwaves as the new morning host for The Wave, along with his "2WD Breakfast Bunch" sidekick Paul Richardson. Jennifer Roberts, the only remaining member of the former morning show, also joined them. A contest was held to name the new morning show. Voters picked "Dick Lamb and the Morning Wave." On May 3, 2011, WVBW segued from Adult Hits to Classic Hits, though no personnel changes were made. The station now plays hits of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, competing with
iHeartMedia 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 ...
-owned WVMA until that station flipped to
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 ...
in April 2012. In September 2018, the station shifted its musical focus from classic hits to adult contemporary while maintaining its "Wave" branding. On June 26, 2022, radio industry website ''RadioInsight'' disclosed that Max Media had applied to move the WVBW call letters to what was WVHT, its sister station; upon the move, 92.9 would change its call letters to WTWV-FM. The change was approved by the FCC on June 29.


References


External links


92.9 The Wave Online
* {{Max Media TWV-FM Radio stations established in 1967 Max Media radio stations 1967 establishments in Virginia Mainstream adult contemporary radio stations in the United States