Ray Koob returns to Philly radio tonight on 98.1 WOGL

Longtime radio host Ray Koob is returning to Philly airwaves tonight after being laid off at 102.9 WMGK last month, thanks to a new part-time position at 98.1 WOGL.

"It's exciting to be back on the airwaves of my hometown," Koob told the Inquirer of his new role in a phone interview. "I just want to thank the team here at WOGL for making me feel right at home."

As per his new gig, Koob said he will host WOGL's 7 p.m. to midnight time slot — the same block he had at WMGK — on Mondays and Tuesdays. An Entercom spokesperson confirmed Koob's new part-time gig, and added that he will fill in for other hosts as needed. The station's weeknight slot previously featured host Angela Mason from Monday to Friday.

Koob previously let fans know of his return to radio via a Facebook posting last week, in which he wrote that he would "continue my Philadelphia radio journey" as a part-time host at WOGL.

"I just want to say how moved and loved I have felt by the support ALL of you have shown me during the last few weeks," Koob wrote. "Philadelphia is ABSOLUTELY 'The City That Loves You Back.'"

With his move over to WOGL, Koob becomes the latest big-name Philly radio host to join the station's staff. Last year, fellow former WMGK host Marilyn Russell joined WOGL after being laid off at 95.7 BEN-FM.

Koob was laid off at WMGK in May after 16 years at the station, where he hosted "Ray Koob in the Nighttime" from 7 p.m. to midnight on weeknights. Following his departure from the station, Koob told the Inquirer that WMGK is "an amazing station, and I'm happy to be a part of the family."

A Bucks County native, Koob started his career in Philly radio in the 1980s as an intern at WMMR's The Morning Zoo, which served as an early springboard for current local radio legends like Pierre Robert and John DeBella. From there, he moved into a promotions director position at the station, and launched his beloved "Rockers" program in 1988.

After leaving the station in 1990, Koob continued to host Rockers through 1996. After moving the show over to 94.1 WYSP, Koob left Philly radio to work as vice president of promotions at CMC International Records in Raleigh, North Carolina. "Rockers" continued with other hosts through 2009, and WYSP changed formats to focus on sports radio as WIP in 2011.

Koob, meanwhile, returned to Philly radio in 2002, when he took his weeknight position at WMGK. During his time there, he became known for his blocks of Led Zeppelin and Rolling Stones songs — "Get the Led Out" and "Jones for the Stones," respectively — before his layoff at the station last month.

"The best endings are endings of your own choosing," Koob wrote on Facebook at the time of his layoff. "This sucks today, but there's always tomorrow!"

Koob's layoff was the latest at WMGK following parent company's Beasley Broadcast Group's acquired of Greater Media in 2016. The arrangement of the $240 million deal also included the purchase of stations including WMMR, BEN-FM, and 97.5 The Fanatic. Earlier this year, Beasley indicated in a release that it lost $3.2 million in the first quarter of 2018.

As the release indicated, the decline in income was due in part to price adjustments in connection with Beasley's acquisition of Greater Media.

Despite laying off personalities like Koob and Russell from Beasley stations since the Greater Media acquisition, CEO Caroline Beasley told the Inquirer in 2016 that the company didn't have plans to alter Philly's list on-air talent.

"Why would we get rid of a Preston and Steve or a John DeBella?," she said in 2016. "That's what we're paying for. Why tear that apart?"