Cincy Radio: WKRP Call Letters Return to Air

The Oasis, a three-station radio network serving Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati and Dayton, has secured a call-sharing agreement with North Carolina-based nonprofit Oak City Media, allowing multiple stations to adopt the famous WKRP call letters from the classic TV sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati."

Owner Jeff Ziesmann confirmed the move. The flagship rebranding change will see independent rock station 97.7 WOXY-FM become WKRP-FM. Its signal will broadcast from the former WPFB-FM tower in Middletown, reaching listeners from Cincinnati to Dayton. Under the agreement, the WOXY call letters will move to the former WYDB-FM (94.5) in Englewood, a northern Dayton suburb, retiring the WYDB calls. WNKR-FM (106.7) in Dry Ridge, Kentucky, will remain unchanged. All three stations will adopt the WKRP branding while keeping their existing programming.

The rebranding, completed over about a month by Ziesmann and business partner Randy Michaels, preserves the network’s current personalities — including Dave Mason, Earnie “The Fat Man” Brown and John “BMAN” Beaulieu — and its signature oldies format featuring hits from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

Ziesmann said the iconic WKRP calls are instantly recognizable and will help the stations stand out while honoring the beloved TV series. “Those are arguably the most famous call letters associated with Cincinnati radio, even though it was a television series about an imaginary radio station,” he told The Enquirer. 

“We had a pretty good existing underlying radio station, and we’re not really changing that. We’re not jettisoning The Oasis brand completely." 

The Oasis has been successful since Ziesmann began operating the three-station network in 2002, drawing 135,000 to 145,000 weekly listeners, unconfirmed by Nielsen. He hopes the WKRP association will boost the network’s profile and attract new audiences familiar with the show. Fans should notice no major on-air changes.