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WXSS (103.7 FM) is a commercial radio station licensed to
Wauwatosa, Wisconsin Wauwatosa ( ; colloquially Tosa) is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 48,387 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Wauwatosa is a suburb located immediately west of Milwaukee and is part of the Milwa ...
United States, and serving
Greater Milwaukee The Milwaukee metropolitan area (also known as Metro Milwaukee or Greater Milwaukee) is a major metropolitan area located in Southeastern Wisconsin, consisting of the city of Milwaukee and some of the surrounding area. There are several defini ...
and Southeast Wisconsin. It broadcasts a
contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (CHR, also known as contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top ...
format and is owned by
Audacy, Inc. Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corp., it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning over 220 radio stations across 47 media ...
Its studios are on West Grange Avenue in Hales Corners. WXSS is a Class B FM station, 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 18,000 watts. 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 on North Humboldt Boulevard in the Milwaukee " tower farm" complex near
Estabrook Park Estabrook Park is a Milwaukee County park in the village of Shorewood, Wisconsin and is home to the WITI TV Tower and the historic Benjamin Church House. It was named for Charles E. Estabrook, a distinguished Wisconsin lawyer and politician, a ...
and the
Milwaukee River The Milwaukee River is a river in the state of Wisconsin. It is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 19, 2011 Once a locus of industry, the river is now the ...
in the northeastern part of the city. WXSS broadcasts using
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 ...
technology. Its digital subchannels carry a simulcast of sister station
WSSP WSSP (1250 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, owned by Audacy, Inc. It airs a sports radio radio format, format known as "105.7 The Fan". Most of its programs are from Infinity Sport ...
on HD2, and "
Channel Q Channel Q (stylized as CHANNEL Q) is an LGBT community, LGBT lifestyle talk radio, talk and electronic dance music, EDM top 40 radio network created, owned, and operated by Audacy, Inc. The network airs on the Audacy internet radio service, as ...
", Audacy's
LGBTQ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, Gay men, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (sexuality and gender), questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, Asexuality, asexual, ...
and
dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance musi ...
service, on HD3. The HD2 subchannel feeds
FM 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 tr ...
W289CB at 105.7 MHz.


History


Early years (1961-1971)

The original
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 WTOS, a reference to its city of license when it signed on in 1961 with a MOR format. WTOS later flipped to 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 ...
format that also featured ethnic programming. In March 1969, new owners switched the station's format to
progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...
, going head-to-head with WZMF.


Beautiful music (1971-1993)

The inexperienced owners lost money with the format, and in 1971, a new owner adopted a beautiful music format and the WEZW call sign. WEZW was a huge ratings success for the following two decades.


Adult contemporary (1993-1995)

As the format withered away on radio dials across the country during the late 1980s and early 1990s, WEZW tweaked the format in 1993 by adding
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 ...
music with vocals. WEZW made an even more abrupt change in March 1995 by changing its calls to WAMG and branding to ''Magic 103.7'' with the slogan "Continuous Soft Favorites".


Rhythmic adult contemporary (1996-1998)

Unable to compete with WLTQ, they flipped to a
Rhythmic Adult Contemporary Rhythmic adult contemporary, often abbreviated as rhythmic AC or RAC, is an adult contemporary radio format. The format focuses primarily on rhythmic contemporary, rhythmic hits aimed towards an adult audience, often resembling a mixture of the cla ...
format during
Labor Day Labor Day is a Federal holidays in the United States, federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the Labor history of the United States, American labor movement and the works and con ...
weekend in 1996, keeping the "Magic" branding, but changing the slogan to "Rhythm & Romance." The playlist featured
rhythmic oldies Rhythmic oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, R&B, disco, or dance genres of music. The playlists spans from the 1960s through the 2000s. They depend on market conditions and may be designed for African-American or Hispani ...
, current R&B and Pop/Dance in addition to
soft AC 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, ...
. Much of the airstaff was changed; however, some features including "Lovesongs" (with a different host) and "The Sunday Jazz Brunch" remained.


Top 40 (1998-present)

On June 19, 1998, WAMG flipped to the current Top 40/CHR format as "103.7 Kiss FM", and changed call letters to WXSS. The first song on "Kiss" was " Everybody" by
Backstreet Boys Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson (musician), Kevin Richardson. The band formed in 1993 in Orlando, Flori ...
. The flip brought the format back to the Milwaukee market for the first time since
WLUM-FM WLUM-FM (102.1 Hertz, MHz) is a commercial radio, commercial FM radio, FM radio station in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station airs an alternative rock radio format branded as "FM 102/1". The station is owned by the estate of former Gr ...
dropped it for
alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (Kamen Rider), Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an altern ...
in 1994. The station debuted with 10,000 songs in a row without commercials, as many CHR stations have done, and was promoted and followed by a $10,000 giveaway. The current Vice President of Operations, Brian Kelly, was in charge of the launch, which included imaging by Mitch Craig. The station was branded as ''The All New, All Hit 103.7 Kiss FM'' from the time it started until February 2003. In February 2003, the station tweaked its playlist to
Rhythmic CHR Rhythmic contemporary, also known as Rhythmic Top 20, Rhythmic Top 30, Rhythmic Top 40, Rhythmic CHR or rhythmic crossover, is a primarily American music-radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and upbeat R&B hits. ...
and branding to ''103.7 Kiss FM, The New #1 Hit Music Station''; by August 2003, the station switched back to mainstream CHR. However, by 2009, WXSS shifted again to a Rhythmic-leaning direction with a heavy emphasis on R&B/
hip-hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hi ...
, dance and pop hits, while playing only the most popular rock music. WXSS received new competition in May 2010, when
WRNW WRNW (97.3 FM) is a commercial radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, known as "97.3 The Game". It airs a sports radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The studios are on West Howard Avenue in Greenfield. WRNW is a Class B FM s ...
ditched its '80s-based classic rock format to go Top 40/CHR. WRNW's parent company
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 ...
(the former Clear Channel Communications) owns the rights to the " Kiss FM" branding, though when WXSS launched in 1998, Clear Channel was still in the process of acquiring their Milwaukee stations, and the strategy of expanding the Kiss FM branding across Clear Channel's stations nationwide had not yet been implemented, allowing Entercom to claim the name in the Milwaukee market. WRNW would flip to
sports talk Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sport, sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-low comed ...
in November 2018 after eight years and not-so-impressive ratings. In September 2012, WXSS picked up new competition from WZBK-FM, who switched formats from classic country to rhythmic Top 40 as WNRG. The competition lasted until April 2021, when the station flipped to oldies, thus leaving WXSS as the only CHR station in Milwaukee. Following changes to Audacy-owned stations nation-wide in July 2021, all local DJs outside of the morning show were replaced with syndicated personalities from other markets.


Past personalities on KISS FM


Mornings

The Joe Show with Joe Caruso, Van "The Man" McNeal, and Ginger Jordan was the first morning show when the station signed on. The show later was helmed for a short time by Van and Ginger, after the departure of Caruso. Former KDWB afternoon jock Michael Knight then joined to form Knight In The Morning. Later, Van moved to nights on KISS and Michael and Ginger welcomed former KDWB production director Rahny Taylor as the third host and executive producer. Later, when Rahny and Michael were moved to clustermate Hot A/C WMYX and Ginger departed the station, KISS mornings were handled again by Van McNeal, this time with KISS production assistant Tony Zamboni as co-host. Just months later, Van moved to afternoon drive on KISS and Rahny Taylor returned to KISS FM, along with former KISS night and afternoon host Wes McKane, to form the "Wes & Rahny In The Morning". Later, former WIFC FM night jock Alley Faith joined Wes and Rahny, to form "Wes, Rahny, and Alley". In 2013 Rahny departed the station for K-Love/Air1 in Sacramento. Crosstown WRNW afternoon host, Riggs, replaced him to form "Wes, Riggs & Alley." In late 2015, Wes left Kiss to host mornings on sister station, WMYX. In September 2016, Ryan Gibbons joined the show from KZOK Seattle as full-time "Producer Gibbons". The show was then known as simply "Riggs and Alley". In October 2022, Riggs announced plans to depart the station.


Middays

JoJo Martinez held the midday position for about nine of those years. During JoJo's short time away from the station, former Atlanta radio personality and current XM disc jockey PJ held the job. JoJo moved to sister station WMYX in the summer of 2010 and Leigh McNabb, formerly of
WLRW WLRW (94.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station broadcasting a hot adult contemporary radio format. It is licensed to Champaign, Illinois, and serves Central Illinois. The station is owned by Saga Communications, and operates as part of its I ...
, WZOK and WMYX, hosted middays until 2015. In the fall of 2015, current music director, Nathan Graham began hosting middays. In 2018, JMatt became the station's midday host. In 2021, the out-of-market personality Julia began airing in middays.


Afternoons

The station signed on with former Jacksonville and Denver radio personality Greg Tanner in afternoons. Following his exit, former KISS night jock and current morning host Wes McKane held down PM drive. After Wes left to do nights at KDWB in the Twin Cities, Mat Mitchell, formerly nights at Mix 93.3 in Kansas City, held down afternoons. When Mat left to do mornings at Channel 963 in Wichita, then night host Van McNeal did afternoons. Van later left to do the same shift on sister station WMYX, which opened the door for Kraig Karson, the station's first night host, to do afternoons. In 2022, the out-of-market personality Josh "Bru" Brubaker began airing in afternoons.


Nights

When KISS signed on, current afternoon jock Kraig Karson served as the first night show host. When Kraig left for afternoons at the now defunct 103.5 The Beat in Chicago, current morning show host Wes McKane became the station's second night jock, coming from a similar role at 95.5 WIFC FM in central Wisconsin. After Wes moved to afternoons, former KDWB jock Zanny K. enter for a very short stint as the night time host. Zanny was followed by Van McNeal, who shifted into nights from mornings. Van's move back to mornings made way for B-Dub, who was inbound from HOT 104 in Mobile, AL. After about one year, B-Dub left for afternoon drive at Q102 in Philly and was replaced by Kracker, a.k.a. Pat Clark, who moved from a similar job at U92 in Salt Lake City. Upon Kracker's departure for mornings in Seattle at
KQMV KQMV (92.5 FM, " Movin' 92-5") is a commercial radio station licensed to Bellevue, Washington, and serving the Seattle-Tacoma-Puget Sound radio market. The Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. outlet airs a contemporary hit radio radio format. KQM ...
, former KISS part-timer Brett Andrews returned for the night slot, coming from HOT 97 in Las Vegas, where he hosted afternoons. Brett Andrews was the night host until May 2010, when he took another job in
Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
. After his move, HaZe, who formerly worked at KSLZ St. Louis, took over the night slot at KISS. After Haze left the station in 2011, Michelle McKnight stepped in. She left the station in the spring of 2014 for KTFM in San Antonio. Nathan Graham came to KISS to host nights in the fall of 2014. After segueing up to middays, he was replaced by longtime Milwaukee radio staple, DJ Gee-A. In 2022, the out-of-market personality Sean "Sonic" Leake began airing in evenings.


Overnights

Current overnight host is Z, who also works as Assistant Production Director for Entercom Milwaukee. Previous overnight hosts included Dave Michaels (Currently nights on
WRIT-FM WRIT-FM (95.7 MHz "BIG FM") is a radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It carries a classic hits radio format, switching to Christmas music for much of November and December. The rest of the year, WRIT focuses on hi ...
), Brett Andrews did fill in overnights in 2002 (Currently Program Director and Morning Show host at WRIT-FM), Jake Evans (Left for
WLUM-FM WLUM-FM (102.1 Hertz, MHz) is a commercial radio, commercial FM radio, FM radio station in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station airs an alternative rock radio format branded as "FM 102/1". The station is owned by the estate of former Gr ...
in 2002)


Klub KISS

Klub KISS, created in 2003, is a dance club mixshow featuring most of the songs played in regular rotation in remixed/dance mix form. It was so popular that in 2005 it spawned the 5 O'Clock Traffic Jam and PJ's Party Jam (later renamed Jojo's Party Jam upon Jojo's return to the Midday slot). Klub KISS is currently produced and hosted by night personality, DJ Gee-A.


HD Radio

The station has two
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 ...
subchannels. When WXSS commenced HD operations, their HD2 sub-channel carried the
standup comedy Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage (theatre), stage and delivers humour, humorous and satire, satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical comedy, physical acts. These ...
format of th
All Comedy Radio Network
Later, an HD3 subchannel was activated to
simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast") is the broadcasting of programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultaneously) ...
s sister
sports talk Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sport, sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-low comed ...
station
WSSP WSSP (1250 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, owned by Audacy, Inc. It airs a sports radio radio format, format known as "105.7 The Fan". Most of its programs are from Infinity Sport ...
. In August 2011, the WSSP simulcast moved to the HD2, replacing the All Comedy Radio Network, and the HD3 subchannel was turned off. As of June 2014, the 103.7-HD2 signal was translated in analog form on 105.7 FM over translator W289CB to give WSSP an FM signal within the main Milwaukee area. In the spring of 2019, WXSS-HD3 was launched to carry "The Oasis", an '80s-heavy adult contemporary playlist branded as "Relaxing Radio"; in mid-August 2019, it was switched to the LGBTQ+ network
Channel Q Channel Q (stylized as CHANNEL Q) is an LGBT community, LGBT lifestyle talk radio, talk and electronic dance music, EDM top 40 radio network created, owned, and operated by Audacy, Inc. The network airs on the Audacy internet radio service, as ...
. On October 5, 2020, WXSS-HD2/W289CB dropped the simulcast of WSSP and flipped to urban contemporary, branded as "Hot 105.7". The shift in format was likely intended to lure in nostalgia listeners, when
WLUM-FM WLUM-FM (102.1 Hertz, MHz) is a commercial radio, commercial FM radio, FM radio station in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station airs an alternative rock radio format branded as "FM 102/1". The station is owned by the estate of former Gr ...
utilized the same format under the branding of "Hot 102" from its 1979 launch until its 1994 transition to rock and alternative music (though the current incarnation of "Hot" has a more modern playlist), along with providing direct competition to WKKV, albeit in an automated form to start. The "Hot" format was dropped in October 2024, as W289CB returned to simulcasting WSSP.The Fan Returns to FM in Milwaukee
/ref>


References


External links

*

{{Entercom
XSS Cross-site scripting (XSS) is a type of security vulnerability that can be found in some web applications. XSS attacks enable attackers to inject client-side scripts into web pages viewed by other users. A cross-site scripting vulnerability may be ...
Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States Audacy, Inc. radio stations