WHFS Sells Out the Deejay

7/5/2018 in DC, Maryland, Virginia by Dominic Charles

WHFS deejays Damian Einstein (far right) and Weasel (front) pose with musician Jesse Colin Young (second from right) and an {unidentified} record executive (far left) at WHFS headquarters in Annapolis, MD in 1983. (Photo source: Handout photo/Steve King).

On June 11, 1989, 8,000 people crowded into a Wheaton parking lot in front of Joe’s Record Paradise for what the Washington Post described as, “a grass-roots rebellion,” to protest the removal of beloved WHFS FM 99.1 deejay, Damian Einstein, from the airways. Attendees of what store owner Joe Lee dubbed “Damianfest,” included die-hard fans who fell in love with Damian’s expansive musical tastes which he revealed to listeners on his daily 9am-Noon slot, WHFS colleagues, and artists who owed some of their success to Damian’s ear for talent. Technically, according to new WHFS general manager, Alan Hay, Damian had not been fired so much as a “promoted” to an off-air role. However, to the horde gathered in Wheaton – and to thousands of dedicated listeners across the DMV – the move suggested something more ominous.

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Print found on t-shirts given out at Damianfest. Damianfest was held on June 11, 1989 in the Joe’s Record Paradise’s parking-lot in Wheaton, Maryland on June 11, 1989. The t-shirt was provided to Boundary Stones by Dick Bangham who was one of many fans who organized Damianfest. He is also currently coproducing a WHFS documentary with Jay Schlossberg titled “Feast Your Ears.” Check out the trailer for the documentary here: https://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/movies/bs-fe-whfs-20180110-story.html

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The next decade would be a roller-coaster ride for the station and its listeners. Catching the wave of suddenly-mainstream grunge music, WHFS took off in popularity. Ratings soared as deejays began jamming the repeat button more frequently than ever, playing the same Pearl Jam, Cranberries, Nirvana, and other alternative tracks over and over again. Ironically, grunge was the sort of hidden sound which WHFS deejays like Damian might have prided themselves in introducing to listeners in an earlier time. However, with the explosion of Nirvana’s Nevermind album in 1992, once proudly alternative music started to be played with regularity on more mainstream radio stations.

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On January 12, 2005, WHFS – which, by then was owned by Infinity Broadcasting, a branch of Viacom and the largest radio conglomerate in the country – departed from the Washington, D.C. airways. The end came abruptly. At noon, after the final chords of Jeff Buckley’s 1995 hit, “Last Goodbye,” faded, listeners heard an energetic greeting in Spanish:

Transmitiendo desde la ciudad capital de America: "Esta! Es! Tu! Nueva! Radio!"

"Transmitting from America's Capital City: This! Is! Your! New! Radio!"

{snip the rest, including the footnotes, which are worth looking at}

JAN 12, 2005, 2:19 PM

WHFS, R.I.P.
Kyle Gustafson

Just under two hours ago, venerable alternative radio flagship station WHFS, 99.1 on your FM dial, was taken off the air and replaced by “El Sol” which will play “a mixture of Salsa, Merengue and Bachata, targeting adults 25-54.” Ack! The move took many area radio listeners by surprise. Billboard Radio Monitor called the format change “a shocking move.”

“We have made clear our desire to expand into this burgeoning market and believe this move marks an important step in our commitment to Spanish radio,” Infinity president/CEO Joel Hollander said in statement. “There exists a tremendous opportunity for Infinity to launch a Spanish-language format in Washington, D.C. where almost 10% of the population is not being directly served. El Zol will be the most powerful Spanish radio station in the area and will provide listeners with the music, entertainment and information relevant to the many segments of the Latino culture.”

Color DCist shocked. Yes, the station played too much Good Charlotte (even playing an influential role in breaking the band nationally), other mall-ternative punk bands and mid 90’s grunge, but they peppered that with the occasional tune by Franz Ferdinand, The Killers and their indie rock peers. Savvy DCist readers have pointed out We have, at this moment, no alternative station, no college rock station, no AAA station, no indie station, nothing, nada. True indeed, but we’ll always have our iPods.

Worst of all? No more HFStival!