WLAV-FM

Infobox Radio station
name = WLAV-FM


city = Grand Rapids, Michigan
area =
branding = "97 LAV-FM"
slogan = "Classic Rock 97 LAV-FM"
airdate =
frequency = 96.9 FM (MHz)
format = Classic rock
erp = 50,000 watts
haat = 149 meters
class = B
facility_id = 41680
callsign_meaning = Leonard Adrian Versluis (original owner)
former_callsigns =
owner = Citadel Broadcasting
sister_stations = WBBL, WHTS, WKLQ, WTNR
webcast = [http://www.wlav.com/article.asp?id=494422 Listen Live]
website = http://www.wlav.com/
affiliations =

WLAV-FM (96.9 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a classic rock music format in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It is the dominant classic rock-formatted radio station in the market and is generally a top ten performer in the Grand Rapids ratings.

WLAV-FM began broadcasting by 1948. The station was a simulcast of WLAV-AM 1340 in its early days, but began to break the simulcast in the early 1970s to play AOR music at night. In 1974, it became western Michigan's first full-time AOR station and was an instant success. On Memorial Day, 1991, the station changed to a modern rock-based format, since it felt that modern rock was the direction that progressive rock was heading in. However, there was a considerable backlash and numerous complaints were received to the radio station because they eradicated a heritage format. By the fall of 1992, WLAV switched back to a more classic rock-driven format and continued refining the format during the 1990s. Citadel Broadcasting has owned the station since acquiring it from Bloomington Broadcasting (doing business as Michigan Media) in 2000.

Sources

* [http://www.michiguide.com/dials/rad-j/wlav.html Michiguide.com - WLAV-FM History]

External links

*FMQ|WLAV
*FML|WLAV
*FMARB|WLAV