WDAS-FM is a
Urban Adult Contemporary radio station that features
R&B ,
Classic Soul , and is
Licensed to the city of
Philadelphia . WDAS broadcasts at an effective radiated power of 16,500 watts (16.5
Kilowatts (kW) ) from a
Class B signal, from a tower located in the Roxborough section of
Philadelphia . The main competitor of WDAS in the Philadelphia market is
WRNB , which broadcasts on the 107.9 frequency. WDAS used to feature the
Tom Joyner Morning Show, until WRNB won the rights to the syndicated morning show. WDAS is owned by
Clear Channel Communications .
WDAS is one of at least two "legendary" radio stations in Philadelphia, pioneers in a format so successful that listenership is passed on from generation to generation. In Philadelphia's African American community, WDAS is the FM equivalent to the perennially popular KYW Newsradio 1060. Widely regarded as the originator of the Urban Contemporary format it plays today, WDAS continues to occupy its roost amongst the 3 top radio stations in the Delaware Valley as of December 2005 Arbitron ratings,
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WDAS came on the air in August , as the Philly Sound laid the musical groundwork for
Disco , the station too began to integrate more
Disco into the station's playlist to go along with its rising popularity. By the end of the decade, WDAS introduced its listenership to the new genre of
Rap playing
Sugarhill Gang ,
Curtis Blow and again showcasing local talent like Frankie Smith (of "Double Dutch Bus" fame). By 1980, WDAS was the number-one music station in Philadelphia
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WDAS' activistic voice was as powerful as its musical one. Legendary broadcasters George "Georgie" Woods and Ed Bradley shaped the political voice of the station[http://www.broadcastpioneers.com/georgiewoods.html],[http://phillymemories.tripod.com/id15.htm]. WDAS earned its position as the "voice of the [Black] community"
The station was sold in November
1979 to black-owned Unity Broadcasting Network, and it honed the
Urban Contemporary format in
1980 . By
1982 , new competition from forced the station to concentrate on
Urban Adult Contemporary Music - Rap music was removed from the playlists. It also further leveraged its community involvement and public affairs programming aimed at the black community. The station moved away from the
Disco music into more to urban hits. The station introduced a new slogan was ''"105.3 WDAS-FM, Say It Loud, We're Black And We're Proud"''. Despite these efforts,
WUSL , which played primarily black artists geared to both black and white audiences, won the urban ratings battle.
By
1989 , evolved into a successful, community-oriented Urban Adult Contemporary format after that, and '''
WDAS-AM ''' had flipped to
Urban Gospel in 1989. In
1994 , Unity Broadcasting sold both WDAS stations to
Beasley Broadcasting . In
1995 , when the
Tom Joyner Morning Show went syndicated nationwide through
ABC , became a flagship affiliate. In May
1996 , Beasley sold WDAS to Evergreen which owned '''WUSL''', making and '''WUSL''' sister stations. In 1997, Evergreen and Chancellor merged to form Chancellor Media and later restructured in 1999 as AMFM, Inc. In 2000, Clear Channel Communications acquires AMFM along with several of the top urban radio stations in the United States.
- 5:30AM to 10AM - '' The Steve Harvey Morning Show ''
- 10AM to 3PM - Patty Jackson
- 3PM to 7PM - Michael Baisden
- 7PM to 12AM - Tony Brown
- 12AM to 5:30AM - Jerry Wells
- Saturday 3PM to 8PM - Gary Shepherd
- Sunday 8AM to 9AM - "Keep Hope Alive" with Reverend Jesse Jackson
- Sunday 9AM to 12PM - Ed Long
- Sunday 3PM to 7PM - Gregg Evans
- Sunday 7PM to 12AM - Joe "Butter" Tamburro
- Richard Lewis
- Joe Tamburro
- - Thea Mitchem
- - Jo Gamble
