Groove FM was the second pirate radio station to be brought on air by Scott Davis, the founder of Exile FM. From the very start Groove had many of the old Exile presenters on board, which were joined by some of the key members of Unique FM, as well as few totally new to the West Midlands pirate scene.
With a strong line up of presenters from the very start, Groove FM first broadcast tests on 99.7FM over the Christmas and New Year period of 1998. The station then returned broadcasting dance music every weekend from late February 1999. Throughout that year with its format of upfront Dance, House and Trance music, the station built up a massive following, similar to that of its predecessor (Exile), with excellent signal coverage due to the stations transmitter being once again housed in Dudley flats.
After a good run throughout 1999, Groove went off the air for a few months after the Christmas and New Year broadcasts, due to the stations studio lease coming to an end. The station then returned to the air from a new studio in the spring of 2000, joined by a few new presenters. 2000 was to be Groove’s best year, with the line up even stronger than the previous year, and the phone line going non-stop during peak time shows.
Although many of the old skool pirate radio fans still regard Exile as the better of the two stations, in some ways Groove was superior, boasting some of the best presenting and produced shows heard on a West Midlands pirate station, as well as at times much better audio quality than its predecessor.
Groove had its first studio raid in early December 2000, and although the station attempted to get back on air for the Christmas and New Year period, the station suffered from a few technical difficulties and decided to go off the air for a while.
During the summer of 2001 Groove FM broadcast test transmissions most weekends with back to back dance mixes. Although there were the odd live show during that summer, Groove’s next full return was in late September of that year. Unfortunately after beginning to once again build up a large following, in early December 2001 Groove FM was raided again by the authorities.
A brief test transmission went out in the February of the following year, but due to the management of the station being prosecuted and having a CRCA injunction brought against them, Groove FM has not been heard since.
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