WCFB
| Company type | Commercial broadcaster |
|---|---|
| Industry | Radio broadcasting |
| Founded | 1947-03-31 |
| Headquarters | Orlando , United States |
Area served | Greater Orlando area |
| Products | Urban adult contemporary music format radio station |
| Owner | Cox Media Group |
| Website | star945 |
WCFB (94.5 FM) is a commercial broadcaster licensed to Daytona Beach, Florida, catering to the Greater Orlando area. Owned by Cox Media Group, the station features an urban adult contemporary music format. Its studios and corporate offices are situated on North John Young Parkway in Orlando. Weekday programming includes the nationally syndicated Rickey Smiley Morning Show, supplemented by urban contemporary gospel at 5 a.m., and a Quiet Storm segment during evening hours.
Operating with a robust 100,000-watt Class C signal, WCFB’s coverage spans from St. Augustine through Ocala to Kissimmee. The station’s horizontal polarization transmits at 97,500 watts, increasing to 100,000 watts when beam tilt is applied. Its transmitter tower is positioned off Redlands Drive in DeLand.
History
The station commenced operations on March 31, 1947, under the call letters WNDB-FM, marking it as Florida’s inaugural standalone FM station. The following year, its owner—the News-Journal Corporation, publisher of the Daytona Beach News Journal—added an AM station, WNDB (1150 AM). For approximately twenty years, WNDB-FM primarily simulcasted its AM counterpart. In 1973, the call sign was changed to WDNJ, and the format shifted to beautiful music with elements of classical selections.
In 1978, the station adopted a soft adult contemporary format as WWLV, branded Love 94.5. Following acquisition by New City Communications, on September 25, 1992, WWLV transitioned to country music as WCFB, known as Young Country B94.5, featuring personalities such as "Big" Steve Kelly and Buzz Jackson. On May 11, 1995, WCFB evolved into a Rhythmic AC format before settling into Urban Adult Contemporary under the name Star 94.5. This change established WCFB as a prominent urban radio presence in Orlando, particularly after competitor WJHM altered its format.
In 1997, ownership of WCFB transferred to Cox Media Group.
A tornado struck on February 2, 2007, temporarily taking WCFB off the air by damaging its transmitter site near Pine Lakes. The station resumed transmissions from temporary facilities before returning to a rebuilt tower in Paisley by November 2007 and ultimately moving back to Pine Lakes in October 2008.
On November 26, 2014, WCFB switched from Urban AC to classic hip hop and replaced the syndicated "Tom Joyner Morning Show" with The Steve Harvey Morning Show. Due to unfavorable listener feedback, the station reverted to Urban AC in December 2014 while relocating classic hip hop shows to its HD3 subchannel.
HD2 and W297BB
WCFB-HD2 broadcasts using the HD Radio hybrid system. In 2014, this HD2 channel began simulcasting on FM translator W297BB at 107.3 MHz. Previously airing Christian AC programming via WREH and simulcasting iHeartMedia's WRUM-HD2, this translator was acquired by Cox in August 2013.
Starting June 16, 2014, after discontinuing an urban gospel format on HD2, WCFB-HD2 and W297BB initiated a "Wheel of Formats" stunt featuring both a Christian Contemporary format titled Rejoice 107.3 and a soft adult contemporary format called 107.3 The Dove. Following a continuous 40-hour loop of The Beatles’ "Revolution", at noon on June 19 the stations officially launched an alternative rock format branded as "X107.3," debuting with Bastille’s "Pompeii". Additionally, this HD2/translator combo aired Jacksonville Jaguars games when sister station WDBO was occupied with Miami Dolphins broadcasts.
On February 22, 2016, after stunting with Newcleus' "Jam On It," W297BB/WCFB-HD2 flipped to Spanish Hot AC under the name 107.3 Solo Éxitos. After adjusting this format and transferring "Éxitos" to WOEX on June 29, 2020, WCFB-HD2 adopted the national feed of ESPN Radio, before eventually going silent.
The HD2 channel was reactivated in March 2022 to simulcast former sister station WPYO, ahead of its sale to Spanish Broadcasting System and subsequent format change. On April 1, 2022, WPYO's prior CHR format fully transitioned to WCFB-HD2 as "Power Orlando," kicking off with "Heat Waves" by Glass Animals. This "Power Orlando" brand outlasted similar CHR programming previously aired on the HD2 subchannel of WDBO-FM, which lasted only several months.