So long, Ariana; hello, Aretha: Milwaukee's 106.9 FM switches from current hits to 'pure oldies' format

It's goodbye, 2021 Top 40, and hello, 1960s-'70s Top 40 for Milwaukee's 106.9 FM. 

It's no April Fools' joke. LaTonya Lucas, marketing and promotions director at Milwaukee Radio Group, confirmed that the station switched formats from current hits to "pure oldies" Thursday, and changed its call letters from WNRG-FM to WRXS-FM.

Early songs played on WRXS ranged from Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools" to the Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night," and from the Beach Boys' "Barbara Ann" to Fats Domino's "Ain't That a Shame." The station debuted commercial-free on Thursday — not unusual when a station makes a sharp shift in its programming. 

"Milwaukee's Pure Oldies," as the station is dubbing the format, is a complement of sorts to other Milwaukee Radio Group stations in Milwaukee, including WKLH-FM (96.5), which has been a classic-rock haven for years, and WJMR-FM (98.3), which plays a mix of contemporary and old-school R&B. 

Milwaukee Radio Group is owned by Saga Communications.

WRXS is also a complement to Milwaukee's other oldies-leaning radio stations, like WRIT-FM (95.7), which has a playlist dominated by 1980s music, and WZTI-AM (1290), the 1970s-centric music station that brands itself Fonz FM (it also airs at 100.3 on the FM dial). 

According to Nielsen ratings for February, posted last week by AllAccess.com, then-WNRG had a 1.5% share of the overall Milwaukee radio audience, good for 16th place overall among stations that subscribe to Nielsen's rating service. 

Contact Chris Foran at chris.foran@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @cforan12.