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A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
It's been a century since 650 WSM, the Grand Ol' Opry station that's on every Dxers list, went on the air. As it celebrates its first 100 years, the famous station has somehow defied the decline in the business and remains a radio powerhouse.
As the linked article points out, in an era when there's giant turnover in the biz, it also has a history of stability, with some employees staying there for decades.
And it also contains the kind of trivia I love - what do the three call letters actually stand for? Its original parent company was National Life, an insurance firm.
"WSM’s call letters were an acronym for the National Life slogan — “We shield millions” — and the station was used to enhance the brand identity."
Who knew?
From Billboard:
WSM Turns 100: How One Nashville Station Leaned On Innovation To Make Radio History
- RadioAaron
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
Interestingly, the station is now owned by The Opry itself.
- mace
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
I think at one time WSM played top 40 during the day and Country at night. I remember seeing one of their charts with Pat Sajak on the cover.
- darcyh
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
Up until COVID, WSM was one of the last (maybe the last) station that was live 24 hours a day through the week. On the weekend they ran some automation.
Their evening man Eddy Stubbs, was often the MC at the Grand Old Opry. The show would finish and he would run back to the studio. Eddy was a great radio personality that often told great and always positive stories about the songs / artists he played. WSM was known as "The Aircastle of the South".
Last edited by darcyh (September 11, 2025 9:27 pm)
- turkeytop
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
Back in the 1990s WSM announced they would be flipping to an all sports format. There was such an outcry from their listeners they backed off on it.
After all is said and done, more is usually said than done.
- WindsorWatcher
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
While my passion is classical music, my wife and I enjoyed listening to Jeff Hoag online at bedtime. Suddenly, he was gone from WSM. Haven't been able to find a reason.
- RadioActive
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Re: A 100-Yr.-Old Radio Station Where Employees Rarely Quit
Just noticed that on Monday (Sept. 15th), NBC has a three hour special called "Opry 100: A Live Celebration."
In addition to celebrating the legendary country institution, it will feature some well known country artists. Not exactly my cup of tea, but I hope they'll spotlight at least some of the legends of the past who helped make it famous for a century (including people like Minnie Pearl and Hank Williams.)
And because they're so intertwined, we'll see if there are any mentions of WSM on the show.
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