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WLUM-FM (102.1 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The station airs an Alternative rock radio format branded as "FM 102/1". The station is owned by the estate of former Green Bay Packer Willie Davis and his company, All-Pro Broadcasting. WLUM is run as a partnership with co-owned WZTI and Shamrock Broadcasting's WLDB as a group called the Milwaukee Radio Alliance. WLUM-FM is a Class B FM station, with an effective radiated power (ERP) of 8,800 watts. The studios are on Good Hope Road in Menomonee Falls and the transmitter site is in Milwaukee's North Side, near the Milwaukee River at Lincoln Park. History Show tunes (1960-1964) The station signed on the air in September 1960 (1960-09). The original call sign was WMKE, letters from word Milwaukee. The station's studios were on North Avenue in Milwaukee. WMKE had a format that was primarily Broadway show tunes. The owners boasted that WMKE was the nation's first "all-tape radio station", meaning that all programming originated from reel-to-reel tape or other tape formats, rather than phonograph records. They believed tape delivered higher quality audio. Gospel/R&B (1964-1979) The station was sold in 1964. It became WAWA-FM. The new format featured black gospel music. It also sometimes simulcast the rhythm and blues (R&B) format of the then-sister station WAWA (1590 AM) throughout the 1960s and most of the 1970s. Disco (1979-1982) Former Green Bay Packers defensive end and businessman Willie Davis purchased WAWA-AM-FM. He split the programming of the two stations on February 14, 1979, switching WAWA-FM to WLUM (short for We Love YoU Milwaukee!). At that point, 102.1 FM had its own distinct format focusing on disco music. At the time, the disco format was hot. WLUM was the second station in Milwaukee to adopt the All-Disco format, as WNUW had already beat them to it in October 1978. The success of the disco format was short-lived, with both stations shifting their programming by August 1979. WLUM shifted to a rhythmic contemporary sound in the summer of 1979. Co-owned 1590 WAWA, a daytimer station, later picked up the WLUM call letters. The AM station was long hampered by a weak signal, and when All Pro Broadcasting purchased stronger station WMVP 1290 AM, the WAWA format and programming moved there. As a result, 1590 AM went silent in 1988, and its broadcast license turned in to the FCC. Rhythmic (1982-1991) In 1982, WLUM began adding more Urban music. By the summer of 1983, the station's format morphed into a Rhythmic Contemporary Hits presentation with the brandings "WLUM FM 102", "WLUM 102 Milwaukee's Hot FM", "Club 102 WLUM", "Power 102 WLUM", "WLUM 102 FM". It settled on "Hot 102 WLUM", airing a mix of dance music (including Freestyle, House and Club Imports) and Top 40 hits (including Rock and Modern/Alternative tracks). By 1989, WLUM was featuring shows like "Casey's Top 40" and "American Dance Traxx" as it began to shift further towards a Dance-leaning direction that was loosely patterned after Power 106 in Los Angeles. Veteran Rhythmic program director and future consultant Rick Thomas was in charge, before moving on to launch XHITZ San Diego's Rhythmic format in April 1990. Also during this period, noted radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge briefly did an air shift at Hot 102. Top 40 (1991-1994) By late 1991, WLUM evolved into a straightforward Top 40 - CHR presentation. More hip-hop was added to the playlist by the following year, to better compete with upstart rival WKKV-FM "V-100.7" for the urban audience. By late 1993, it began shifting back to a Dance-leaning direction. It used the moniker "Hot 102 WLUM, Milwaukee's Party Station". This lasted until the Summer of 1994, when it shifted back to mainstream Top 40. Alternative (1994-1998) By 1994, WLUM began tweaking the on-air presentation. Hip-hop was slowly being phased out and more modern rock was added to the playlist. Owner Willie Davis had a desire to distance his station from the violent image of most rap and hip-hop music. He was disappointed to find out that the station had begun to carry a nightly hour of uncensored music after the FCC's "safe harbor" regulations were not in effect. A record homicide count in Milwaukee and several area violent crimes also played into the decision. On December 1, 1993, Wauwatosa West High School assistant principal Dale Breitlow was murdered by a former student, and the station immediately pulled Dr. Dre's "Dre Day" and Eazy-E's "Real Compton City G's" in reaction, dropping their usual music and allowing those affected to call-in about how the shooting affected them. The modern rock music was well received by listeners. In October of that year, the station adopted alternative rock full-time, as "New Rock 102ONE." That left the Milwaukee market without a Top 40 station until the launch of WXSS-FM 103.7 in 1998. Adult alternative (1998-1999) Over the years, the format underwent tweaking. After adding more classic rock tracks to the playlist, the station began a brief run with an adult album alternative (AAA) format on June 23, 1998. After stunting with elevator music, a voice broke said, "Thank you for holding. This concludes our broadcast day." This was followed by Jimi Hendrix's version of The Star-Spangled Banner to launch the new format. Artists played during this AAA era included Rolling Stones, Nirvana, Melissa Etheridge, Led Zeppelin, Dave Matthews Band, and The Doors. Active rock (1999-2002) The move to AAA was unsuccessful. So in December 1998, WLUM switched to hard rock with the syndicated Mancow Muller from Chicago in the morning. The station initially avoided much of the then-popular nu metal music that WLZR 102.9 played, but added a great deal to the playlist by 2001. Nonetheless, WLUM was consistently a distant second to market leader WLZR. As a straight-ahead rock station, WLUM experienced some of its lowest ratings ever. The bottom came after the September 11 attacks, which caused many rock stations to shift quickly from hard rock tracks judged inappropriate in the aftermath and change away from aggressive formats. Alternative (2002-present) In March 2002, WLUM began making more changes. Mancow's morning show was dropped. Most of the hard rock music on the playlist was deleted and modern rock music returned to the playlist. By September, the station was once again a full-time reporter to alternative rock airplay charts for radio industry trade magazines. The station still experienced low ratings, as it worked to shake its male-oriented hard rock image. The station made heavy use of consultants who crafted a rather tight playlist. In March 2003, the Indianapolis-based Bob and Tom was added in morning drive time to compete against Bob & Brian up the dial on WLZR. But Bob & Tom's older audience (where it was often programmed on classic rock stations) proved incompatible for the rest of WLUM's younger-skewin.... Discover the Ting Cosper popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Ting Cosper books.