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Another Former Big Rocker Sold & Going All Religious In Detroit
Those in Windsor and near the border are more than familiar with the call letters WDRQ-FM. A one-time great rocker in Detroit, it's seen better days and is now a country music station. But soon it will go beyond beliefs, the latest outlet having been sold to a religious broadcaster.
Cumulus has cut the place loose, and it will soon be in the hands of Family Life Broadcasting, another station relying on listener donations.
Cumulus Media Sells WDRQ Detroit To Family Life Broadcasting System
From its better days, when it was rivals with CKLW, and wound up the #1 Top 40 station in Motown for a time.
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Another source notes that one of those out of a job with the sale is a guy who once worked for ten years as the P.D. of CHUM-FM.
WDRQ-FM To Be Sold
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Thread Starter- georgio1
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Re: Another Former Big Rocker Sold & Going All Religious In Detroit
We need a whole lot more of Jesus and a lot less rock 'n roll
Linda
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Re: Another Former Big Rocker Sold & Going All Religious In Detroit
I believe Bell (Pure Country 89) says thank-you?
One less listening choice to compete with for Country music.
OR
is there a station down the dial with lower ratings that just might go Country in Detroit??
- georgio1
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I Saw the Light
H. Williams
- paterson1
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Re: Another Former Big Rocker Sold & Going All Religious In Detroit
WDRQ FM started to beat CKLW in the late spring/summer of 1977. However by mid 1979 they had slipped out of the top 20 stations in Detroit. January '79 they surprisingly dropped top 40 for an all disco format. Ratings tumbled and they never recovered.
Agree WDRQ's format change might help Windsor's Real Country or 103.9 CHOK Sarnia a little. Both send a decent signal across the border. However the Detroit market still has three country stations (2 in Canada and one in the US). Detroit's other country station, WYCD had a good book last April. None of the Canadian stations market themselves in Michigan anymore, so any gains for Real Country or CHOK could mostly be local listeners.
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Re: Another Former Big Rocker Sold & Going All Religious In Detroit
WDRQ sold for $10 million and Detroit will now have 3 full power religious FM stations. Listeners in Detroit can also tune in other regional AM and FM faith radio stations from outside of the city. No word if WDRQ will have any local programming, the other two religion FM outlets do not. Some more detail from the Detroit Free Press..
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"WDRQ was modeled on sister KCBQ San Diego and helmed by a programmer stolen from a rival San Diego station, Jerry Clifton. Even more than rival AM powerhouse CKLW, WDRQ embodied the Detroit history of R&B and rock together. Plus, WDRQ didn’t have to play CKLW’s (often softer and poppier) Canadian-content records. When I heard that summer ’73 aircheck of WDRQ, it was one of the first Top 40s about which I thought, “This is really obnoxious. This is great.”
Listening To The Last Days (& Last 50 Years) Of WDRQ
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