Classic Rock Is Changing. So Is Cleveland’s Classic Rock Radio.

On its 40th anniversary, WNCX 98.5-FM leaders reflect on the Cleveland radio station’s rock ‘n’ roll soundscape and history.

by Annie Nickoloff | Jul. 18, 2026 | 5:00 AM

Photos courtesy WNCX

What defines the “classic” part of “classic rock”? Cleveland’s classic rock radio station would know. WNCX 98.5-FM has been showcasing the genre for 40 years.

Of course, the classics stay classic. The station’s mix today still rotates ’60s and ’70s songs that frequented the airwaves decades ago. A Friday morning show hosted by WNCX program director Dom “Nard” Nardella features songs by Tom Petty, Foreigner and Led Zeppelin, plus a fitting inclusion of Ian Hunter’s “Cleveland Rocks.”

But there are also the new classics: a crop of artists that have slid into the genre, who all became established after WNCX debuted its classic rock format. That same Friday morning show also mixes in songs like Pearl Jam’s “Alive,” Metallica’s “Enter Sandman,” Collective Soul’s “Shine” and 3 Doors Down’s “Kryptonite.”

It all blends together into one continuous mix of well-loved rock tunes. Yet, the host occasionally fields listeners’ frustrations in phone calls: “Why are you playing this new stuff?”

“I hate to break it to you,” Nard says, with a laugh, “I mean, it's hard to admit, but Nirvana and Soundgarden and Pearl Jam are classic rock. That's from 1991. That's a long way back. Not putting a label on the era, but '91 — that's classic rock.”

WNCX first debuted in 1986 with a far-ranging rock format, then quickly shifted to a classic rock format in early 1987, according to The Plain Dealer archives. It’s preserved that same format through multiple ownership changes and mergers, up to today.

Jeff Miller has been working at the station for 30 of its 40 years. Miller, Audacy’s senior vice president of the Cleveland Market, oversees WNCX, along with Audacy’s other local stations: 92.3 The Fan, Star 102 and Q104.

A range of managers, DJs, hosts and syndicated programs have defined WNCX's history. Bill Louis led the station as its program director for many years, before Nard was promoted to the position in 2022. The station remains best-known for its long-running programs by renowned broadcaster and comedian Howard Stern, iconic Cleveland heartland rocker Michael Stanley and programmer Paula Balish, known for her “Paulapalooza” features.

“Over 40 years, NCX has been a very consistent radio station,” Miller says. “When people hit that button on the radio dial, they know what they're in for, and that it’s a good product.”

But while the sound itself is consistent, the roster of artists crafting that sound have shifted. New generations of bands continuously find influence in classic rock, and have been added to the mix.

“Classic rock doesn’t seem so much to be from ‘this exact year,’ and it goes to ‘this exact year,’ and 'this little pocket is classic rock,'” Nard says. “It changes with the listener, and as the listeners age, the music changes, too.”

So, what’s the next addition in classic rock? What’s going to be the next new stuff on the air?

It's hard to say.

“I don’t feel that a lot of these bands have the same staying power anymore,” Nard says. “I mean, maybe Linkin Park can hop over to classic rock. But I don’t see Interpol, or Modest Mouse, or anything like that hopping over into the classic rock genre.”

To celebrate its 40th anniversary, WNCX is hosting a concert featuring Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers tribute band Petty City and Eagles tribute band Tequila Sunrise at Northfield Park Racino on Saturday, July 25. The station will continue its anniversary celebration at Journey’s Rocket Arena show on Nov. 12.

Tom Petty, the Eagles, Journey: All three are makers of classic rock, and all are parts of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Miller points out.

“We're really one of the few pure rock stations on the air in the United States. It's a format that not everybody can figure out how to program, and it doesn't have success in a lot of places. But here in Cleveland, home of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, it fits,” Miller says. “I really think NCX is a true representation of the heartbeat of Clevelanders."

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Annie Nickoloff

Annie Nickoloff is the senior editor of Cleveland Magazine. She has written for a variety of publications, including The Plain Dealer, Alternative Press Magazine, Belt Magazine, USA Today and Paste Magazine. She hosts a weekly indie radio show called Sunny Day on WRUW FM 91.1 Cleveland and enjoys frequenting Cleveland's music venues, hiking trails and pinball arcades.