Classic rock will soon sound different on northern Michigan radios: WKLT has a new owner.
Blarney Stone Broadcasting, which operates rock station WQON (Q 100.3) in Grayling, has bought several stations from Northern Broadcast, Inc., including WKLT.
Blarney Stone intends to simulcast WQON on WKLT.
“We believe that listeners in northern Michigan have a vast musical desire to hear more than just the same 300 songs over and over again,” says Sheryl Coyne, the president of Blarney Stone Broadcasting. “So we are going to transition [WKLT] … into a larger music library focused on listener requests.”
The sales also include WFCX and WFDX, which are currently called the Fox FM. Coyne says the plan is to rename that service "the Trail," and play a mix of pop, classic rock and country music.
Coyne would not reveal the price of the deal. She says she will, once things are finalized with the Federal Communications Commission.
Coyne bought WQON with her husband in 2012 and started Q 100.3 in 2013.
“Traverse City used to be a $20 million radio market before 2008,” Coyne says. “It’s now between a $12 and $14 million radio market. I believe we have an opportunity to increase the economic growth of radio in northern Michigan.”