WZRH (FM)
| City | Picayune, Mississippi |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Branding | Nash FM 106.1 |
| Frequency | 106.1 MHz |
| First air date | 1991 |
| Format | Country |
| ERP | 28,000 watts |
| HAAT | 201 meters (659 ft) |
| Class | C2 |
| Facility ID | 27951 |
| Former callsigns | WJOJ-FM (1982-1984, CP) WRMH (1984-1989, CP) WZRH (1989-1998) WKSY (1998-2006) WMTI (2006-2015) WZRH (2015-2017) |
| Owner |
Cumulus Media (Radio License Holding CBC, LLC) |
| Sister stations | KKND, KMEZ, WZRH |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | nashfm1061.com |
WRKN (106.1 FM, "Nash FM 106.1") is a country music-formatted radio station serving the New Orleans area. The Cumulus Media outlet broadcasts at 106.1 MHz with an ERP of 28 kW, and is licensed to Picayune, Mississippi. Its studios are located at the Place St. Charles building in Downtown New Orleans and the transmitter site is outside Covington, Louisiana.
The station signed on in 1991 as WZRH with a Top 40/Rock format as "Z 106.1, New Orleans' Untamed Radio." However, this station is most remembered for what it became in 1992: 106.1 the Zephyr with an edgy, alternative rock format.
"The Zephyr" was the first true commercial alternative station in the New Orleans area, and had quite a following. Kenny Vest was the station's Program Director and Christian Unruh was the first Music Director; Scot Fox, Christian "West" Unruh, Grant Morris, Ross "The Ross Man" Shields, Michelle Hinch (Blake), Zach The Roll Model, Wolfgang, Denver Crabb, and Darren Gauthier were just some of the more recognizable DJ's at the station. The station hosted "Zephyrfest" for a number of years drawing in thousands of rock revelers to New Orleans' City Park. The station attained very respectable ratings and had a large impact on the local music scene in the nineties.
In 1996, "106.7 The End" was launched. This was the beginning of the end for The Zephyr, as The End cut into their ratings significantly. In 1997, the station was sold to Baton Rouge-based Guaranty Broadcasting. On May 12th of that year, the station was flipped to country as WKSY ("Kiss Country 106.1"). Christian Unruh, banned from the station along with the former staff when the format change was imminent, managed to enter the station an hour before Midnight and host the last hour, calling each of the former DJs and letting them each say their goodbyes. The last song played on The Zephyr was "Radio, Radio" by Elvis Costello.
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