Country 106.5 WYRK - Buffalo

Contact Information

Location

14 Lafayette Square, Buffalo, NY, 14203

Phone

(716) 644-WYRK or (716) 644-9975

Website

http://www.wyrk.com

I'm a student at Buffalo State College and this is an article posting for a web publishing and social media course with Maria Pabico.

History

Country 106.5 WYRK is the only country music formatted radio station in the Buffalo, New York area. Its listening area ranges from nearby cities surrounding the downtown area, all the way out to East Aurora, Niagara Falls, and even parts of Ontario, Canada. It broadcasts from the Rand Building located in Lafayette Square, Downtown Buffalo, from the 12th floor. According to the Arbitron rating service, it is the most listened to station in all of Western New York. It's considered a medium market station where as in comparison, Los Angeles would be large market and Toledo would be a small. It is owned and ran by Townsquare Media whom are also in charge of sister stations WBLK, JOY FM, and JACK FM. The 106.5 frequency first signed as WBEN in 1946, then went to 102.5 and WTSS, and is now 106.5 WADV, a standards station. WYRK is the first station in Western New York to air via stereo signal. There are a few syndicated programs aired throughout the week such as "Bob Kingsley's Country Top 40", "CMT Country Countdown USA", and the newest as of 2013, "Taste Of Country Nights".

Background

Taken from the stations official website, there are numerous on air personalities and most of them have been there for over 13 years. Clay Moden, Dale Mussen, and Josh Mule all host the well-known morning show called "The Breakfast Club". During the show, they play today's country hits and all time favorites while also including a number of contests, jokes, trivia, weather and traffic updates, and the local news. Listeners are encouraged to call in and play games and then are in to win prizes. These prizes range from gift cards and movie passes, to trucks and trips. Next, Brett Alan comes in and works the afternoon show. He has worked a night show for years, but just recently switched over to afternoon hours. During the noon hour, listeners can request a song that they want to hear through email, phone, or social media websites. This show is called "Noon Tunes" and it has been around for nearly a decade. Wendy Lynn hosts the late afternoon/early evening shift. She is the Program Director of the station, so she is in charge of not only deciding what songs will played and when, but she has a number of other responsibilities as well. Listener feedback is very important. At 5 o'clock, the "Drive At 5" airs, and this is an hour-long show with the most requested songs of the day. There are many requested songs at the station over a given week, and you will hear most of them just in this hour. After Wendy, comes the brand new syndicated evening show called "Taste Of Country Nights", hosted by Jeremy Robinson. Weekends, over nights, and holidays are all hosted by a number of other on-airpersonalities such as "The Dean of Country", Rob Banks, Jill Daniels, Adam James, Heather Voss, and Jess Taylor. They don't have a set schedule and they just fill in accordingly.

Overview

A "Listen Live" feature is located on the website which allows fans to listen at home from their own computer or from the office. There is also a new mobile app available which allows the station to be streamed from smart phones all over the country. On the stations website, you'll also find a "play list" with both the most recently played songs and another with the top played songs of the station. Listeners can be part of something called the "Country Club" where they sign up and get the latest news, are eligible for certain contests, can win prizes, have early access to ticket presales for concerts, and get other exclusive offers just for being a member. There is no cost and you can also participate in other activities such as playing games that earn you points for more prizes.

There are always numerous contests going on at the station. Smaller, more frequent ones such as winning CDs, movie passes, merchandise, and gift cards for being the right caller are known as "Listen In To Win" and "Win It Before You Can Buy It". There are bigger contests as well, where winners can get concert tickets to all of the events and shows, meet and greet passes, or sometimes even cash. WYRK has been known to give away cars, trucks, and fly away trips to VIP events and award shows in addition.

There are also many local sponsorships and local supporters of the station. Some places that are affiliated to the station are Napa Auto Parts, Subway, Fichte Endl and Eyecare, Atwal Eyecare, Chiacchia & Fleming, Seize The Deal, and Song Pop. The station has an official website, a Facebook, a Twitter, and email and phone contacts. The site is user friendly and it's easy to get a hold of someone if need be. There are constant weather updates, latest news postings, a local events calendar, school closings, daily deals, and more.

Throughout the year, there are many events that take place and many concerts come through the area as well. Many of them are set up and ran solely by the station itself. Some of these events are known as "The Chocolate Affair", "Pizza Madness", "Beer Fest", and "The World's Largest Yard Sale", while more also having more generic events such as kid's shows, summer family concerts and BBQs, and the regular concerts. Every year there is a promotion called the "Mega Ticket", where at least 5 different A-list artists come to play at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center. Packages are available at a discounted price. One ticket package will get you the same seat to all 5 of the shows.

WYRK hosts their own annual concerts as well. They are a series called "The Taste Of Country". One is a huge production that takes place every June at Coca Cola Field in Downtown Buffalo, and there are two smaller acoustic shows; typically one in the spring and one in the fall. These take place at small, intimate venues such as UB and Sheas Performing Arts Centers. At the acoustic shows, fans get to meet an artist of their choice after they perform. The June "Taste Of Country" has been put together every year for over a decade and there have been many attendance records broken. There are usually more artists are on the bill as well. According to the station, these shows are all about wanting to bring new talent to Western New York. All of the artists that are scheduled to perform at these shows are brand new, up-and-coming acts that have never been seen in Buffalo before.

Event Calendar

March 1 - Miranda Lambert, Dierks Bentley, Lee Brice in Rochester 7 - Pizza Madness 19 - Diversity Job Fair 20 - Acoustic Show featuring Kip Moore, Greg Bates, and Maggie Rose 21 - Wine/Food Event 26 - Carrie Underwood & Hunter Hayes

April 20 - Buffalo On Tap Beer Fest

May 1 - Dinner with Delilah 11 - World's Largest Yard Sale 26 - Tim McGraw, Brantley Gilbert, Love & Theft 27 - Jack's BD Party TBA - Kid's Show

June 14 - Taste Of Country

July 12 - Brad Paisley, Chris Young, Lee Brice 21 - Toby Keith with Kip Moore TBA - Summer Family Concert & Picnic

August 9 - Keith Urban, Little Big Town, and Dustin Lynch in Canadaigua 17 - Jason Aldean, Jake Owen and Thomas Rhett 21 - Kenny Chesney, Eli Young Band, Kacey Musgraves TBA - Tribute Band Jam

September 7 - Rascal Flatts with The Band Perry 10 - Diversity Job Fair 21 - World's Largest Yard Sale TBA - Acoustic Concert

October 19 - Berenstain Bears 25 - Old Soul Party

November 9 - Taste of Home Cooking School TBA - Winter Taste Of Country