Hot AC and Smooth Jazz While the station was still a construction permit, it was assigned the WLBI call letters by the
Federal Communications Commission on December 13, 1991. After it was built, it signed on the air on April 22, 1992. It was known as "The Great 98" and was powered at 6,000 watts, a fraction of its current output. It had a
hot adult contemporary format but was a rimshot station, north of Birmingham. Its tower was on a hill off Arkadelphia Road, west of Warrior, with studios set up in a trailer. The station was built by Terry Bentley Lowery and Danny Bentley, both with broadcasting interests in
Oneonta, Alabama. In 1994, the station became known as "98 Lite", and changed to a
soft adult contemporary format. In 1995, WLBI began adding
smooth jazz programming and eventually morphed into a fulltime smooth jazz station. It continued to broadcast as "98 Lite".
Urban AC On July 24, 1996, after years of struggling in the ratings, it segued to Urban AC music. It began using the slogan, "98.7 Kiss-FM, Smooth R&B and Classic Soul". It switched call letters, becoming WBHK on July 1, 1996. ==References==