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WTKK switches to music format

WTKK-FM made its switch from talk to music Wednesday, rebranding itself as ­Power 96.9 with an urban contemporary format at the conclusion of the final “Jim & Margery” morning show, hosted by Jim Braude and Margery Eagan.

A format change by ­WTKK, a talk radio station since 1999, had been reported for weeks, but Greater Media Inc., the owner, did not make an announcement until Tuesday and kept the music genre a secret until it unveiled the new name and slogan — “Jamz for Boston” — for the station on Wednesday. The first song played under the new format was Rihanna’s “Diamonds.”

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Governor Deval Patrick surprised Braude and Eagan by appearing in the studio for an interview that was scheduled to be conducted by phone. Other prominent political figures, including US Senator Scott Brown and a former Republican nominee for governor, Charlie Baker, called in to the farewell program. The Globe’s editor, Brian McGrory, also was a guest.

“It was fun, much as that sounds strange for a swan song,” Braude said after the show. “Looking back, I’d like to think we brought smart, civil, funny dialogue to the air for 13 years.”

WTKK posted a low 2.3 share of Arbitron ratings in December. The switch to music leaves former rival WRKO-AM as the only non-sports radio­ station in the Boston market dedicated to an all-talk format.

The NewsTalk969.com website remained active on Wednesday, but a new site, Power969.com, was launched with live streaming of the station’s new music.

Callum Borchers

Callum Borchers can be reached at callum.borchers@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @callumborchers.