WERQ-FM facts for kids

WERQ-FM (92.3 FM) is a radio station in Baltimore, Maryland. It plays popular urban music and is owned by a company called Urban One. This company is the biggest one that serves African American listeners in the United States. The station's main offices are in Woodlawn, near Baltimore.

WERQ-FM sends out a strong signal of 37,000 watts. Its broadcast tower is located on Park Heights Avenue in Baltimore. WERQ-FM also uses HD Radio technology. This means it can broadcast extra digital channels. One channel (HD-2) plays urban gospel music from its sister station, WWIN. Another channel (HD-3) plays talk shows for the Black community, just like WOLB.

History of WERQ-FM

Early Days: WYOU and WSID-FM

The station first started broadcasting on January 30, 1961. It was called WYOU and was a sister station to WSID (1010 AM). On October 2, 1961, WYOU changed its name to WSID-FM. This name showed its connection to the AM station.

In its first few years, WSID-FM often played the same music as WSID. The AM station was a "daytimer," meaning it only broadcast during the day. So, after sunset, the music continued only on the FM station until midnight.

By late 1968, WSID-FM started playing different music for several hours each day. It began playing "Underground Rock," which is a type of progressive rock music. This new music style gradually took over the station's entire broadcast schedule.

The WLPL Years

With the new rock music style, the station changed its name to WLPL. These letters stood for "Wonderful Land of Pleasant Listening." In 1969, WLPL started broadcasting all day and night. It played a mix of popular Top-40 songs and Album Rock.

By 1972, the station fully switched to a Top 40 format. It also began broadcasting in FM stereo, which made the sound much better. WLPL became a very popular Top 40 station. In 1977, the station's program director, Bill Parris, won an award for his work at WLPL.

Some well-known people who worked at WLPL during this time included Kris Earl Phillips and Casey Jones. However, the station's popularity dropped when another station, WBSB (now WZFT), started playing similar Top 40 music in 1980. WLPL also had to broadcast with less power for a while because of a fire at its tower.

Changing Sounds: WYST-FM

WLPL stopped playing Top 40 music in the summer of 1981. On November 16, it became WYST, and the "FM" was added to its name the next year. WYST played "Oldies" and "Adult Contemporary" music, calling itself "92 Star." At first, many people listened to WYST, but its popularity soon went down.

In February 1991, WYST tried a new music style called "Hot Adult Contemporary." This plan didn't work well because another station, WWMX, was already very popular with that music style. WYST's listener numbers kept falling, and by mid-1991, it was one of the least listened-to radio stations in Baltimore.

The Birth of "92Q" (WERQ-FM)

The story of "92Q" began in August 1991. WYST's owner decided to change the station's music to a "Rhythmic Contemporary" style. This new style was given the nickname 92Q. A month later, the station officially changed its call letters to WERQ.

The idea for 92Q came from William Parris, who had a lot of experience with Top 40 radio. Jeffrey Ballentine was the first Program Director for 92Q. Two consultants, Steve Kingston and David Tate, also helped create the new station.

After 92Q started, WERQ's listener numbers quickly went up. This happened as WBSB's Top 40 station became less popular. At first, 92Q played more dance music with some pop songs. But by the end of 1991, it became a mix of Top 40 and Urban Contemporary music. Over time, 92Q became a pure Urban Contemporary station.

Urban One Takes Over

In the fall of 1993, the company that owned WERQ-FM started selling its radio stations. This happened after the death of its founder, Richard Eaton. WERQ-FM was sold to Radio One, which later changed its name to Urban One. By 1995, WERQ was known as a full "Mainstream Urban" music station.

Since 1996, WERQ has been one of the most popular radio stations in Baltimore. This has been shown by listener surveys from companies like Arbitron and Nielsen.