WDCJ (104.1FM) is ancontemporary hit radio;Latin pop;reggaeton;tropical music formatted radio station in theWashington, D.C., metropolitan area. The station is licensed toWaldorf, Maryland, and is co-owned withWKYS,WMMJ,WOL,WPRS andWYCB and has studios located inSilver Spring, Maryland, with a transmitter located just east of Waldorf.

For many years, 104.1 FM was known as WXTR-FM, anoldies station known as "Xtra 104", which began in 1976. WXTR, which had been purchased by Liberty Broadcasting, was soon paired with theFrederick, Maryland-licensed WZYQ (103.9 FM) (which aired a Top 40 format), in an attempt to attain better signal coverage for WXTR-FM. From that point on, both stations operated as a simulcast throughout a variety of formats: firstoldies, thenall-1970s music.^[3]

Finally,Bonneville purchased the WXTR-FM/WZYQ combo, and, under program director Dale O'Brian, changed the format over tocontemporary hit radio at 11 am on July 15, 1996, as "Z104" with the call letters WWZZ and WWVZ.^[4][5][6][7] "Z104" was Washington, D.C.'s first Top 40 station since the flip ofWAVA to Christian programming in 1992. The station was also known for its community efforts and donation drives for local charities.

On October 1, 2001, due to new competition fromWIHT (which had a full-market signal), Z104 switched to amodern adult contemporary format, playing music by the likes ofDave Matthews Band,Goo Goo Dolls andThird Eye Blind.^[8] The format proved an effective alternative to WIHT and to local stationsWWDC (DC101) andWHFS (HFS 99.1), both of which specialized inhard rock. The simulcast also dropped the "Z104" name in favor of "More Music 104" and simply "104" for a while, before reverting to the "Z104" name on April 8, 2004, at 8:04 am.^[9] Furthermore, as a member of the Nationals Radio Network, it offered radio coverage of a large portion of theWashington Nationals games during the team's inaugural season in 2005.

On January 4, 2006, at noon, WWZZ went off the air due to a multiple-station format change arranged by Bonneville International. One of the most popular stations in the Washington, D.C., area,all-news stationWTOP, expanded its reach by adding 103.5 to its collection, though a new radio station, "Washington Post Radio", took over WTOP's previous frequencies on March 30, 2006. The previous occupant of 103.5, the classical music stationWGMS, was moved to the Z104 frequencies. The final full song played on "Z104" was "Soul To Squeeze" byRed Hot Chili Peppers. The opening lyrics of "I Will Remember You" bySarah McLachlan were then played, but the song was cut off by general manager Joel Oxley announcing the changes, thanking the staff and listeners, and, in a rare move, redirecting former listeners to competing stations in the area.^[10]

On January 22, 2007, at 3 pm, after the announcement of the end of WGMS (which had aired on various frequencies in the Washington market for 60 years), 104.1/103.9 flipped toadult hits, branded as "George 104".^[11][12] At the time of the format change, Bonneville announced that it had reached a deal withpublic radio stationWETA-FM to return the latter station to a classical format. WETA hired Jim Allison, the longtime program director of WGMS, and Bonneville donated its 15,000-disc WGMS music library to WETA. Bonneville also gave WETA the right to use the WGMScall sign.^[13] The format change to "George" took place after an abortive effort by Bonneville in late 2006, to sell the two frequencies toWashington Redskins ownerDaniel Snyder. Snyder planned to buy WGMS to convert it to asports radio format, adding its frequencies to theTriple X ESPN Radio network.^[14] Snyder withdrew from the preliminary purchase agreement, however, citing "a change in the radio climate" and hopes that "a better signal will soon become available in the market." News accounts suggested that a comment toThe Washington Post from an unnamed Bonneville executive, who said Snyder had offered "50 percent more than WGMS was worth", had stalled the negotiations.^[15]

The station used the "George" moniker (as inGeorge Washington) for its adult hits instead of the usual "Jack FM", which is trademarked. The call sign for 104.1 FM would be changed to WXGG on February 1.

"George 104", however, only lasted about three months. Bonneville announced a local marketing agreement withRadio One for the 104.1 signal on April 6, 2007.^[16] 103.9 FM was switched on the same date to a simulcast of WTOP (as WTLP), while the 104.1 frequency went dark in anticipation of a format switch ("George", meanwhile, moved to WTOP-HD2, though it would eventually be discontinued altogether).

"Praise 104.1" and its current format launched the next morning (Easter Sunday).^[17] On April 24, WXGG changed its call letters to WPRS-FM. Radio One would acquire the station outright in July 2007, with the sale closing a year later.^[18][19] In 2019, WPRS's HD2 subchannel began broadcasting programming from sister stationWTEM.

• Facility details for Facility ID 74212 (WPRS) in theFCC Licensing and Management System
• WPRS inNielsen Audio's FM station database
• The end of WGMS classical programming (audio)
• Z104's farewell note via the wayback machine

38°37′07″N76°50′39″W / 38.61861°N 76.84417°W /38.61861; -76.84417

• HD Radio stations
• 1961 establishments in Maryland
• Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States
• Radio stations established in 1961
• Urban One stations
• Waldorf, Maryland

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