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WVBE FM

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City
  
Lynchburg, Virginia

Branding
  
"The Vibe"

Broadcast area
  
Metro Lynchburg

First air date
  
1948

Slogan
  
"Today's Best R&B and Old School"

Frequency
  
100.1 MHz (also on HD Radio)

WVBE-FM is an Urban Adult Contemporary formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Lynchburg, Virginia, serving Metro Lynchburg. WVBE-FM is owned and operated by Mel Wheeler, Inc.. and is simulcast on WVBB 97.7 FM in Elliston-Lafayette, Virginia. A simulcast was offered on 610 AM in Roanoke, Virginia until 2016 when it flipped to sports.

History

WVBE-FM 100.1 began its history in 1948 as WWOD-FM, originally at 940 watts. It had a sister station on 1390, WWOD, now WKPA. WWOD-AM was the second station to go on in Lynchburg after WLVA-AM. WWOD-FM was religious until it became WKZZ on May 12, 1979 and carried a country format until April 1, 1984, when it became a locally programmed CHR format until 1991.

On November 21, 1991, the station was purchased by Aylett Coleman of Roanoke and began a simulcast with CHR formatted WXLK "K92" in Roanoke to provide an improved signal in Lynchburg and took the call sign WLYK, which stood for "Lynchburg's K92." The following year, WLYK boosted power, going from a Class A to Class C3 station. The stations were later sold a few years after Coleman's death to Mel Wheeler Inc.

On April 19, 2001, the station became Vibe 100, with an R&B format, changing calls to WVBE-FM on March 13, 2002. The change was necessitated by the addition of the former WSLC-AM as a Roanoke-based simulcast signal for "Vibe 100", which took the calls WVBE.

On January 20th, 2016, WVBE-FM started broadcasting in HD Radio.

References

WVBE-FM Wikipedia