WQUE-FM

WQUE-FM
Broadcast areaNew Orleans metropolitan area
Frequency93.3 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding"Q93"
Programming
FormatUrban Contemporary
AffiliationsPremiere Networks
Ownership
Owner
WFFX, WNOE-FM, WODT, WRNO-FM, WYLD, WYLD-FM
History
First air date
January 1, 1949; 76 years ago (1949-01-01) (as 105.3 WDSU-FM)
Former call signs
WDSU-FM (1949–1971)
Call sign meaning
"Q" is sounded out as in "Que" or "Cue"
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID11915
ClassC
ERP100,000 watts
HAAT300 meters (980 ft)
Links
Public license information
WebcastListen Live
Websiteq93.iheart.com

WQUE-FM (93.3 MHz, "Q93.3") is a commercial radio station in New Orleans, Louisiana. It airs an urban contemporary radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. It carries two nationally syndicated programs from co-owned Premiere Networks: The Breakfast Club in morning drive time and Way Up with Angela Yee in middays.[2] WQUE-FM's studios are on Howard Avenue in downtown New Orleans.

WQUE-FM is a Class C FM station. It has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts, the maximum for most FM stations.[3] The transmitter is off Behrman Highway in New Orleans' Algiers district.[4]

History

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The station signed on the air on January 1, 1949; 76 years ago (1949-01-01).[5] Its call sign was WDSU-FM, as the sister station of WDSU 1280 (now WODT) and WDSU-TV 6, which went on the air the previous year. WDSU-FM originally broadcast on 105.3 MHz and was powered at 17,000 watts, a fraction of its current output. It largely simulcast WDSU 1280, as affiliates of NBC Radio. The studios were at 520 Royal Street. In the 1960s, WDSU-FM moved to 93.3 MHz. (WWL-FM is now on the 105.3 frequency.)

The FM station took the WQUE call letters in 1971, playing Top 40 hits. The AM station became WGSO with a full service adult contemporary format of popular music, news and talk. Two years later, the radio stations were sold to Covenant Broadcasting.[6]

Around 1984, the AM station also took the WQUE call sign and the two stations returned to simulcasting, this time both as "Q93".[7][8] They continued as Top 40 outlets, competing with WTIX 690 AM (now WQNO).

In 1992, the two stations were acquired by San Antonio-based Clear Channel Communications (the forerunner to iHeartMedia).[9] Under Clear Channel, WQUE-FM made the transition to urban contemporary music. It has become one of the top stations in New Orleans. From 2006 to 2014, it was the home of the Steve Harvey Morning Show, which now airs on sister station 98.5 WYLD-FM. In January 2014, WQUE became the home of The Breakfast Club from co-owned WWPR-FM in New York City. It is hosted by Charlamagne tha God, DJ Envy and Jess Hilarious.

References

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  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WQUE-FM". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ q93.com/schedule
  3. ^ FCC.gov/WQUE
  4. ^ Radio-Locator.com/WQUE
  5. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1952 page 152. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
  6. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1977 page C-91. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
  7. ^ "Billboard" (PDF). World Radio History. February 11, 1984. Retrieved November 1, 2023. · ... Orleans has sent us their listen line number and an up- date of what they're up to. Simulcast in morning drive (with WQUE -FM,. Q -93) is ...
  8. ^ "Ten Great Radio Battles Of The '80s and Early '90s". Edison Research. April 2, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
  9. ^ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1999 page D-194. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
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29°55′12″N 90°01′30″W / 29.920°N 90.025°W / 29.920; -90.025