Hometown Wilmington Media is shuffling sounds among several of its local radio holdings.

In an announcement Monday, the media company said that it is launching a country music format on its 93.7 and 106.3 FM frequencies beginning at noon Monday. The new format, The Dude, is “a country radio station featuring the hottest stars, the latest songs and, most importantly, a listener-driven format,” Hometown Wilmington Media general manager Beau Gunn said in a news release.

“In keeping with the tradition of being your hometown connection, we wanted a country radio station that played the songs listeners wanted to hear,” Gunn said in the release. “We want your input. We want to play the country music Wilmington wants to hear; not music that was selected in Atlanta or New York.”

In a telephone conversation Monday afternoon, Gunn said that programming decisions are made locally, both by the company's staff and, soon, by its "lab"-- a listener advisory board that will provide input on what they want to hear.

"We've always listened to our listeners; we're very democratic," he said.

For more information about the listener advisory board, go to GottaLoveTheDude.com.  

Gunn also said that The Dude, while focusing on popular artists' current top singles, will have the capacity to explore especially lesser-known songs by established singers as well as music from emerging artists. And if there is a country act coming to the area, The Dude will have the capability of airing its music to pique listeners' interest, he said.

Meanwhile, Port City Radio, an all-news format, has found a permanent home on 95.9 FM and 1180 AM, which until recently aired classical music as Bach Radio.

The November changeover from classical music to news and information was made in anticipation of changing the format of 93.7 and 106.3 FM from news and information to The Dude, Gunn said, explaining that Hometown Wilmington Media didn't want to do all the format shuffling at once.

“We’re committed to continuing to offer Wilmington its only all-news radio station where you can find local news and sports from Port City Daily, financial and market updates from the Wall Street Journal, national news from CBS News and, of course, traffic and weather every 10 minutes,” Gunn said in the release.

In addition to The Dude and Port City Radio, Hometown Wilmington Media is the parent company of 98.3 The Penguin and 103.7 The Bone.