WRKI

WRKI

Brookfield, Connecticut United States
Broadcast area	Greater Danbury and Bridgeport-New Haven
Frequency	95.1 MHz
Branding	I-95
Programming
Format	Classic rock
Affiliations	Compass Media Networks
Ownership
Owner	Townsquare Media (Townsquare License, LLC)
Sister stations	WINE, WDBY
History
First air date	July 14, 1957; 66 years ago (1957-07-14) (as WGHF)
Former call signs	WGHF (1957–1970) WINE-FM (1970–1976)
Call sign meaning	Rock, I-95
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	15391
Class	B
ERP	29,500 watts
HAAT	194 meters (636 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	41°29′36″N 73°25′44″W / 41.4934°N 73.4290°W / 41.4934; -73.4290
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Webcast	Listen live
Website	www.i95rock.com

WRKI (95.1 FM, "I-95") is a commercial radio station licensed to Brookfield, Connecticut, serving Fairfield, Litchfield and New Haven Counties in Connecticut. From its tower at more than 1200 feet above sea level (HAAT:194 m./674 ft.) WRKI's 29,500-watt signal can be heard in such large Connecticut cities as Bridgeport, Danbury, Stamford and New Haven.^[2]

The station is owned by Townsquare Media and it carries a classic rock radio format. The studios and offices are located on Federal Road (U.S. Route 202) in Brookfield; the station's transmitter is on Carmen Hill Road, also in Brookfield.

History[edit]

Top 40 WINE-FM[edit]

On July 14, 1957, the station signed on as WGHF.^[3] It was owned by the Eastern Broadcasting System. Sister station WINE 940 AM signed on in 1963 as a simulcast of WGHF. In 1970, the FM station's call sign was changed to WINE-FM.^[4]

WINE-AM-FM aired a popular contemporary format, playing the Top 40 hits of the day. Because WINE was an AM daytimer, required to sign off at sunset, WINE-FM continued the Top 40 sound into the night when WINE 940 was off the air.

Album rock I-95[edit]

WINE-FM stopped simulcasting the AM station at the end of 1976. At 6:00 p.m. on December 24, 1976, it switched to an album-oriented rock format. The first song played was "The Bitch Is Back" by Elton John. It switched its call letters to WRKI, using the name of a major interstate highway in its listening area, I-95.

The station's original slogan was "Fairfield County's Best Rock." In 1982 the station had a brief detour into modern rock and new wave music as "The Rock of the 80s" but soon returned to its album rock sound. The station has also been known as "The Non-Stop Rock Station", "Connecticut's Best Rock & Roll", "Connecticut's Rock & Roll Favorites", "Real Rock" and "Danbury's Rock Station" but has most consistently been and currently known as "The Home of Rock 'n' Roll."

WRKI and 940 WINE were acquired by Cumulus Media in 2002.^[5] Cumulus is one of the largest owners of radio stations in the U.S.

Townsquare ownership[edit]

On August 30, 2013, a deal was announced in which Townsquare Media would acquire 53 Cumulus Media stations, including WRKI and WINE, for $238 million. The deal was part of Cumulus Media's acquisition of Dial Global. Townsquare Media and Dial Global are both controlled by Oaktree Capital Management. The sale to Townsquare Media was completed on November 14, 2013.^[6]

Upon Townsquare taking control of WRKI, the new owner moved the station to classic rock. Unlike several Townsquare radio stations, WRKI kept most of the station's local disc jockeys.^[7][8]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• i95 official website
• WRKI in the FCC FM station database
• WRKI in Nielsen Audio's FM station database