WAMO Is Back In The 'Burgh

It's not just urban radio that returns to Pittsburgh Monday. It's WAMO, that storied Uptown eminence that served the black community for nearly 50 years before falling silent in 2009.

According to a story by William Loeffler in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, WAMO100 officially return to the air today with program director Tim Steele anchoring the weekday morning DJ slot, followed by Mia at midday, Mike Jax in the afternoon and Jay Stylz on nights. Weekend programming has yet to be determined.

At a Friday news conference, the station's new management said they realized those call letters carried a significant responsibility beyond their ostensible commercial identity as "Pittsburgh's Home for Hip Hop and R&B."

Pittsburgh has lacked a full-time urban radio station for nearly two years since WAMO-FM and WAMO-AM were sold to St. Joseph Missions, a religious broadcasting entity.

The new incarnation will simulcast hip-hop and R&B as 660 AM WAMO (official calls WPYT), which will broadcast from sunrise to sunset with a reach of approximately 60 miles. The FM station is a translator W261AX -- WAMO 100.1 -- will broadcast 24 hours with a reach of 15 to 20 miles.

Both will broadcast from the former WPYT-AM in Wilkinsburg. Martz Communications Group of San Francisco purchased the station last year from the Langer Broadcasting Group in Framingham, Mass., for $290,000. Martz Communications operates five other stations in Michigan and New York.

Martz Communications Group president Tim Martz said it was obvious that the city needed an urban radio station.

General Manager Laura Varner Norman said WAMO100 eventually will add public service programming and community outreach, such as street fairs and neighborhood cleanups. She said the station will provide 12 new jobs by the end of the year. A Sunday morning gospel music show is planned. The station already has begun recruiting volunteers through their WAMO 2.0 Street Team on its website.

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