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| Broadcast area | Capital District |
| Frequency | 107.7MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 107.7 GNA |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country music |
| Subchannels |
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| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WPBZ-FM,WQBK-FM,WQSH,WTMM-FM | |
| History | |
First air date | December 5,1973 |
Former call signs | WGNA (1972–1988) |
Call sign meaning | "Good News Albany" (tag of aborted launch format) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 72118 |
| Class | B |
| ERP | 12,500 watts |
| HAAT | 300 meters (980 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 42°38′13.2″N73°59′49.4″W / 42.637000°N 73.997056°W /42.637000; -73.997056 |
| Translator | SeeSound of Life Radio § Translators |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | wgna |
WGNA-FM (107.7MHz) is acommercial radio station licensed toAlbany, New York, and serving theCapital District. The station is owned byTownsquare Media and broadcasts acountry music format.
WGNA-FM has aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 12,500 watts. Itstransmitter is in theHelderberg Escarpment tower farm inNew Scotland. WGNA holds the distinction of having the longest unchanged format (in terms of commercial stations) in the Capital District, having been a country music station since its launch in November 1973, and being one of two commercial Albany FM radio stations to have never changed theircall sign, with 92.3WFLY as the other.
WGNA originally was not slated to take the country format it has long dominated. The 107.7 frequency had been awarded to the owners ofChristian radio stationWHAZ. WGNA was due tosign on with an alternate Christian format. WHAZ would concentrate on Christian talk and teaching, while the FM station would play Christian music. The GNA in thecall sign would stand for "Good News Albany".
These plans went on hold when WHAZ's owner died several weeks prior to the planned sign-on of WGNA. In a pinch, his children took over the station. The station signed on with a country music format on December 5, 1973, at 6:00 p.m.[2]
For its first five days, the country music played uninterrupted. On December 10 at 6:00 a.m., disc jockeys began hosting the country sound.[2] Going against established country stationWOKO, WGNA became a success, even though not all radios could receive FM signals in that era. WHAZ was eventually sold off and, in 1978, WOKO left the country format. In 1988, then-WGNA owner Barnstable Broadcasting purchased WOKO and turned it into an AMsimulcast of WGNA (with the FM taking the WGNA-FM call sign as a result). WGNA 1460 AM would occasionally break away from the simulcast for sports coverage.
In 1990, noted Albany broadcaster Fred Horton became program director at WGNA. He led the station to become #1 in almost everyArbitron ratings book. On April 13, 1994, Barnstable sold WGNA to the radio group headed by TV hostMerv Griffin. Griffin's group later sold its stations to Capstar Broadcasting in 1996. Two years later, the WGNA stations ended up as part of AMFM, Inc., a forerunner to today'siHeartMedia.
In 1997, longtime program director Fred Horton left the station to programWYNY in New York City and was replaced by former MTV executive, Ronald E. "Buzz" Brindle, who programmed Country 107.7 until April 2007. Brindle had previously programmedWGY and had launchedWYJB "B95.5" in the Albany market.
Under Brindle's leadership, WGNA broadened its listener base by replacing its country-focused morning show with the more mass appeal "Sean & Richie Show" in order to attract non-country fans from WFLY, WPYX, and WYJB and then convert them into country listeners. During Brindle's 10-year tenure at WGNA, the station strengthened its reputation within the country music industry and garnered several CMA awards and nominations.
After AMFM merged withClear Channel Communications in 2000, WGNA-AM-FM was sold withWPYX,WABT,WTRY (AM) andWTRY-FM to Clear Channel Communications which, in turn, sold WGNA-AM-FM, WABT,WQBK-FM,WTMM andWQBJ to Regent Communications (now Townsquare Media) due to market concentration concerns. TheFederal Communications Commission does not want one company to dominate too large a portion of aradio market.
In February 2002, the simulcast with 1460 AM ended when Regent sold that station toABC Radio. ABC used it to bring itsRadio Disney format to the Capital Region under the call letters WDDY. It now broadcastsCatholic religious programming asWOPG.
WGNA has enjoyed a fairly stable air staff, as most of WGNA's on-air talent have been a part of the Country 107.7 team for more than 10 years, including:
Notable departures from the on-air staff include:
Recent additions to the on-air staff include:
At the time of its launch, WGNA was one of the first FM country music stations in the Northeast and with its powerful signal was able to reach and even rate in markets far from the Capital District where country music was either nonexistent or on low-power AM stations. As Baby Boomers who grew up with Rock and Pop in the Northeast moved into their mid-30s and early 40s, bought homes in the suburbs and raised families, they discovered that they could relate to the stories told in country music. It was not just for people who grew up on farms and in rural areas. Country music stations inGlens Falls,Utica, theHudson Valley and evenSpringfield, Massachusetts, owe some debt to WGNA's success and/or influence in those areas.
Nationally, WGNA has been a nominee several times for the "Medium Market Station of the Year" award at both theCountry Music Association Awards and by theAcademy of Country Music. R.E. "Buzz" Brindle was nominated in 2005 forRadio & Records's "Country Program Director Of The Year" award. In terms of air talent, afternoon personality Kevin Richards was the winner of the CMA's 2006 Medium Market Personality of the Year award. As well as morning show hosts, Sean McMaster and Richie Phillips winning the CMA Personality of the year award in 2000, and a couple New York State Broadcasters Awards for Personality of the year.
WGNA-FM has been the #1 station (12+, 25-54 adults) in most ratings trends and books in the Albany market thoughWGY,WFLY,WRVE,WPYX andWYJB have all unseated WGNA from this position on various occasions. Despite attempts by competitors, such asWCDA/WPTR-FM (96.3 FM) in the mid-to-late 1990s,Galaxy Communications'WEGQ (93.7 The Eagle) from 2004 to 2005, Pamal's simulcast ofWFFG-FM (Froggy 107.1) on its Albany104.9 FM signal in 2005, and most recently, Pamal's second attempt at a country format (also on 104.9 FM and later moving toWKLI-FM 100.9, asThe Cat), WGNA-FM has faced little significant direct competition on the country music front.
During the late summer and fall months, WGNA-FM formerly airedNew York Jets football games during conflicts whenWTMM-FM was playing aNew York Yankees game until the 2018 season, when New York Jets conflicts moved toWQSH; prior to the 2011 season however, WGNA-FM was the main home for the New York Jets.
Every year, most recently at the Altamont Fairgrounds inAltamont, WGNA hosts a major festival known as the WGNA CountryFest which attracts a crowd of nearly 30,000 country music fans. Previous CountryFests have been at the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs.
WGNA-FM has been licensed forHD Radio operations since 2006, operating HD-2 and HD-3 sub-channels. The HD-3 sub-channel is leased to theSound of Life Radio Christian radio network for their translator, W235AY.
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | HAAT | Class | Transmitter coordinates | FCC info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W235AY | 94.9 FM | Albany, New York | 60892 | 250 | 274.3 m (900 ft) | D | 42°38′13.3″N73°59′49.5″W / 42.637028°N 73.997083°W /42.637028; -73.997083 (W235AY) | LMS |