Jazz 98.5 FM, WSAX-LP & WSAX-DB, is Columbus' 24 hour jazz radio station and number #1 low-power FM (LPFM) community radio station in Ohio, serving over 1.1 million residents in Central Ohio.  This website is the official radio station website for Jazz 98.5 FM.

In November 2013, SEMM Foundation applied to the FCC for an LPFM license to create
a 24 hour jazz format station to provide educational content and broadcast services to the community in the absence of having no jazz radio station in Central Ohio, as well as to
replace the previous time shared, twelve hour pilot jazz programming SEMM Foundation
created on a separate station.

Our thanks to you for supporting us, telling others about us, and more importantly, for allowing us to come into your home, office,  your vehicle and life.

Our Mission

Jazz 98.5 FM, WSAX-LP is committed to supporting community
events, music education, musicians and the music that has been overlooked or under represented by other radio media.  We rely on
the work of volunteers for our operations and administration. 
Individuals interested in volunteering, please click here.

A Word About Our Programming We asked listeners to play a role in selecting the types of jazz they like most.  In short, we asked how you'd like your jazz brewed.  There are over 30 different names given to describe jazz and the sub-genres that have grown out of the various styles that have developed over the years.  Listeners completed a survey selecting the various forms of jazz they would like for Jazz 98.5 to play and below are the results. We gave listeners a choice of 30 styles to choose from with the ability to add a version not listed.  Although debated, from a novice's viewpoint, many styles closely resemble each other and because some names actually refer to describing the same sub-genre, we combined the styles into three basic groups.  We grouped the various styles together if we believed them to be somewhat similar.  The styles were grouped into what some refer to as CLASSIC JAZZ, SMOOTH/CONTEMPORARY JAZZ and the remaining styles into an OTHER JAZZ category. More importantly, the survey helped confirm our idea to develop our Live Hosted jazz music shows and programming around the different sub-genres.  We invite and encourage you to tune into the different hosted shows throughout the week to enjoy jazz brewed just the way you like it and also tune into other shows to allow us to brew another style we're confident you'll discover and enjoy. Our approach is not any more scientific than we've described.  In only one response we received, there was the suggestion that we not play a certain sub-genre ... Don't play this jazz or that jazz, etc.  We hope listeners will enjoy the whole jazz experience, be receptive to listening to other styles without condemning the others. Here's the breakdown of what Columbus prefers    Classic Jazz Styles 42%    Smooth/Contemporary Jazz Styles 51%    Other Jazz Styles Combined   7% Do the results above mean that Columbus and Central Ohio is a Smooth/Contemporary Jazz kind of town? You be the judge! Don't worry, we play it all! Thank you for discovering us and allowing us to come into your home, car and life. Regards, Jazz 98.5 FM, WSAX