10/04/2025
After trying a few different directions, I’ve decided to switch WIWS back to country. (Cue the laughter — I realize I’ve probably been ridiculed on Facebook more times than the Coldplay couple.) The late ’60s experiment brought a lot of curious folks, but they only stuck around about ten minutes each then bailed — clearly not fully baked when I launched it.
Country is probably where we built the strongest foundation, and I still have tons of undubbed music and other material that never even made it to air. It makes no sense to let all that sit idle. And honestly, as a middle-aged man, I’m a little burnt out on the teen pop of the ’50s and ’60s. Sure, putting that back up would bring a few guaranteed listeners, but only a few — and there’s just no room for growth there.
The truth is, we’re down to maybe five listeners a day on a good day at this point, no matter what we do. The station’s been running on fumes — emotionally and financially — for a while now. Without real help, either from a benefactor or several committed supporters willing to handle both money and promotion, I probably won’t be able to keep it going much longer. I don’t need ideas. I need people who can and will spread the word — and part of that has to include rebuilding the financial support piece, because I can’t keep doing this alone.
I shut down Patreon earlier this year when I rolled WIWS into my design business, hoping it would eventually pay for itself, but with the coming marketplace and healthcare changes, that’s just not realistic anymore. And to be honest, WIWS isn’t promoting my design work — if anything, my yammering about it might even be distracting from my otherwise successful brand.
One side note: I often hear that the AM filtering annoys or fatigues people, but that’s literally the point — to recapture what listening to AM radio felt like. Classic country is a natural fit for that sound, but if you think it’s part of what’s turning people away, say so.
I’ve never been interested in just playing hits. Every radio person who gets involved says that first thing, but there are a million stations already doing that. Country just makes more sense because it’s more artist-focused, and that’s always been the heart of WIWS.
If you believe in what WIWS has been trying to do — preserving the sound, tone, and spirit of AM radio the way it used to feel — I’d love to hear from you. If someone in the country music world wants to help underwrite a year of it, I’d commit fully to seeing it through. Otherwise, the next month will likely be the true wind-down.
I’m open to input, but to be clear, I’m not looking for ideas — and I’m definitely not looking to take on a second job. I’ve had people approach me about becoming partners or providing audio for terrestrial stations, and I don’t need that kind of commitment. What we need are action people — folks willing to help spread the word, rebuild financial support, and actually move this ahead. Otherwise, it’ll finally be time to close the book on it in the next month or so. Now's the time to speak up!
live365: https://live365.com/station/WIWS-a02808
Apple/iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/wiws-radio/id1630120494
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.wiwsradio.app
Echo: "Alexa enable live three sixty five" and then, "Alexa play station double you eye double you ess Country radio."
