KKBT
Encyclopedia
KSWD is a Bonneville International
-owned radio station
licensed
to Los Angeles, California
, USA
. The station currently broadcasts a wide-ranging classic rock
format. A repeater in Newhall
, K261AB on 100.1 MHz, extends KSWD's coverage to the north of the Los Angeles area.
(1280 AM) in Long Beach.
format failing to gain ratings or billing, KIQQ brought in deposed KHJ heavyweights Bill Drake
and Gene Chenault, who contracted to program and manage the station.
In spite of bringing in former KHJ
powerhouse jocks, including Robert W. Morgan and The Real Don Steele, certain management and programming decisions are believed to have led to the demise of Drake-Chenault's run at 100.3. By 1975, Morgan and Steele were gone. Ultimately, the station cut costs drastically by airing a generic national format via satellite.
In the early 1980s “K-100” dropped its handle, and kept to the calls as "KIQQ” with a live and local aggressive CHR Top 40 format. The on-air lineup included Jeff Thomas, G.W. McCoy, and Francesca Cappucci. "Play Hits for Cash" was a regular promotion. KIQQ simulcasted the NBC
show Friday Night Videos
, and even had Wally George
as a weekend call in host. KIQQ also carried American Top 40
in 1983, after competing station KIIS-FM
lost AT40 over the playing of network commercials, forcing KIIS to create its own chart show, Rick Dees Weekly Top 40
.
By 1986, with competition from KIIS, KKHR, and KBZT
proving too intense (KIIS alone had a 10 rating in the Arbitron book), KIQQ became "100.3 K-Lite." That lasted for three years before the launch of another new format.
, which hired Scott Shannon
from WHTZ
in New York to program the station. They became KQLZ "Pirate Radio 100.3" in the spring of 1989, airing a Top 40
playlist heavily leaning toward rock. While they played a lot of heavy metal
they also mixed in some mainstream rock and even a few dance songs by artists like Madonna
. The first ratings books showed an initial spike, but faded rather quickly, once the novelty wore off. KQLZ eventually dropped the dance songs and went completely rock. Shannon was let go, and he eventually went back to New York to program WPLJ
.
(now CBS Radio
) in 1993 and the new owners ended the Pirate Radio format. Viacom brought KXEZ and its soft adult contemporary format back to life at 100.3 FM after a six-month absence from the FM dial. The KXEZ call letters and format were previously at 98.7 FM. In 1992, KXEZ had become KYSR and was named "Star 98.7".
format. The move was to go after listeners who have become disenfranchised with the increasing hip-hop content at KPWR
. In 1997, Chancellor would buy KIBB, added currents to its playlist and shifted directions to Rhythmic Contemporary Hits.
woman dancing placed near a building on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles), KIBB couldn't make a dent in the ratings. After two years and minor tweaks in its playlist and direction, KIBB fate was sealed when Chancellor decided to drop the format in November 1997 for yet another short-lived fad: Rhythmic Oldies
as "Mega 100". The call letters were changed to KCMG. Chancellor merged with Capstar in 1999, forming AMFM Inc.
. They chose to sell the 100.3 FM frequency and the intellectual property of KKBT, which was on 92.3 FM to Radio One
. KCMG's format and call letters would be retained and move to 92.3 FM.
When the switch was made on June 30, 2000, the formats remained the same, with 100.3 becoming KKBT, "100.3 the Beat" and 92.3 becoming KCMG, "Mega 92.3". In 2001 Mega's format on 92.3 did move in more of an Urban Adult Contemporary
direction, as the "Jammin' Oldies" format was starting to fade in popularity. Eventually KCMG became KHHT
"Hot 92.3," a direct competitor to KKBT. Soon afterward, KKBT released their morning team of Dre and Ed Lover plus afternoon drivers Baka Boyz.
During the first four years under Radio One, KKBT enjoyed modest success as it battled KPWR for the R&B/hip-hop crown. KKBT heavily promoted Steve Harvey
as its high-profile morning star and billed itself under the slogan of "Harvey & Hip-Hop". However, ultimately KKBT never overtook KPWR in the ratings. Harvey was also at odds with station management over the station's hip-hop content and refused to play questionable songs during his show until his departure from the station.
But in 2004, the station began showing signs of erosion in ratings, as it faced new competition. KDAY
debuted its own hip-hop format in 2004, siphoning off a good number of KKBT listeners. KXOL-FM
's flip to reggaeton
in 2005, took many of The Beat's Hispanic
listeners. KKBT went through a great deal of turmoil, with several popular airstaffers leaving or being dismissed from 2002 through 2006.
/Urban Talk
format dubbed "Rhythm & Talk". According to the press release that was featured on the station's website: "The new format, which will engage 25-49 year old adults, takes the best music of Urban Adult Contemporary stations and adds compelling content delivered by proven national personalities Tom Joyner
, Ananda Lewis
, Michael Baisden
, Wendy Williams
and Free
."
However, the 'Rhythm and Talk' emphasis did not succeed in the ratings, and the station dropped Free and Lewis first from the lineup. Williams, which aired on tape delay after midnight on weekends, was dropped later, and the Tom Joyner Morning Show was dropped when it could not compete with Steve Harvey on KDAY. Other on-air staffers also left the station; Baisden remained until KRBV's format flip in April 2008. Michael Baisden later landed on KDAY, before being dropped by the station in August 2009.
KKBT was the last full market Hip Hop/R&B station to use the Urban format as opposed to Rhythmic, not to mention the only one that covered the metro. However, much of its target audience tuned to other stations: Hispanics preferred KPWR and KXOL-FM
, African-Americans had KHHT, KJLH
, and to a lesser extent KTWV
as options; and in the meantime KMVN
debuted and targeted older listeners with dance pop from the 1980s to the present day. With that, ratings suffered, and speculation grew about its future. Emmis Broadcasting reportedly was interested in the station, but decided not to buy it.
Eventually, KKBT elected to go head-to-head with the Urban AC formats of KHHT and long-time Compton
-based KJLH . The station also hired Cliff Winston away from KJLH for afternoon drive.
in Washington, DC, WWIN-FM
in Baltimore
, and KMJQ
in Houston.
However, on December 29, 2006, Radio One instead unveiled "The New V-100". With that, an Urban heritage based era came to an end: The KKBT callsign was no more after 16 years, and "The Beat" branding forever erased as a piece of radio brand history was gone because KKBT was the very first radio station to carry "The Beat" moniker. The same moment, the calls were changed to KRBV. (Ironically, KRBV and V-100 was used on an Urban AC station in Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex in the mid to late-1990s. That station is now KJKK.) The imaging was similar in fashion to WRKS in New York City
, perhaps a reason being that Barry Mayo, the former general manager for WRKS, is consulting Radio One and thus wanted to use similar imaging for this station.
The re-imaging and airstaff changes did not help the station's ratings, however. At a stockholders' meeting in 2007, some investors called for KRBV to be sold, but company officials said that they had no plans to do so. One possible reason for this is that KRBV was the only Radio One-owned and operated station in the three leading markets in the U.S. (it does not own stations in New York City
or Chicago
). Also, a sale of KRBV would come at a loss to Radio One compared to how much it originally paid for it, possibly because of the residual effects of the frequency swap with KHHT.
for $137.5 million. The transaction closed in the second quarter of 2008. According to a spokesperson for Bonneville, the station would continue to be a music station, although there were rumors that the station would actually flip to news/talk (similar to sister station
s KTAR-FM
in Phoenix, Arizona
and WWWT in Washington, D.C.
). On April 3, Bonneville confirmed the adult album alternative
format. On their final day, April 7, 2008, KRBV's air staffers bid farewell to their listeners.
On April 8, 2008, Bonneville International took over the operations of KRBV, then dropped the Adult R&B format at midnight Pacific time
. The station began stunting as "Bruce Radio 100.3", playing all of Bruce Springsteen
's hits (in connection to his show that night at Honda Center in Anaheim, California
). After ten hours of playing "The Boss," KRBV made the following announcement: "Hello, and welcome to what we hope will be a new beginning for Southern California and music fans everywhere." At 10 a.m., the station became "100.3 The Sound" and the AAA
format officially began.
The new station offered listeners a wide selection of rock music, stretching from the '60s all the way to "last week," according to Bonneville vice president of programming Greg Solk and executive VP Drew Horowitz. In an interview from R&R
the day of the launch, Bonneville president and chief executive officer
Bruce Reese told the music trade, "It’s great to be back in L.A." He added that "we are truly excited about our new station -- 100.3 the Sound will be a music station that has absolute respect for the music and that features a broad playlist."
On May 14, 2008, the new call letters, KSWD, were officially introduced. The rights to these call letters had to be purchased from an FM station in Seward, Alaska
(currently KKNI
).
KSWD's new format and "The Sound" logo were loosely patterned after its then-sister station in Cincinnati, Ohio
, WSWD. But whereas KSWD's direction took a broader approach, WSWD focused mostly on 1990s and current fare (WSWD switched to a different format in 2009).
KSWD was the fourth station in the Los Angeles radio market to program a Triple-A format. KNX-FM
, KSCA
and KACD/KBCD
have featured the format in past years. The last of those stations also used the positioning statement "World Class Rock for Southern California."
In May 2009, KSWD dropped most of its new music for traditional, classic rock artists, although its playlist includes many more deep album tracks than their nearest competitors, KLOS
and KCBS-FM
. As a result, KSWD was pulled off Mediabase's AAA Reporting stations. The station is now seen as an AOR station playing a majority of recurrents with only a handful of currents. Rival KLOS
has since switched back to mainstream rock
.
On Friday, July 10, 2009, The Sound held a "Finally a KMET Friday" to honor past LA rock radio station KMET. The day featured many of the original DJs from the station and much of the original music, promos and sound clips from the station. The day concluded with a three-hour Bruce Springsteen live KMET concert from 1978.
On June 10, 2010, The Sound aired an A to Z countdown. More than 1,000 songs were played in alphabetical order by song title. The Sound's countdown was very similar to A to Z presentations on KLOS, which ended in 2008. A second edition of "The Sound A to Z" began on October 11, lasting just over a week and featuring more than 2,000 tunes. These promotions allowed listeners to enjoy not only the deep album tracks for which the station was becoming well known, but also tracks outside of the regular playlist, music that hadn't been heard on local radio for many years.
' featuring programming from the LDS Church on the HD3 channel.
, made his debut in the afternoon drive slot. Chanley currently works middays for the station. He previously did middays on former alternative station KLYY
and mornings on KACD/KBCD. Other notable weekday on-air hosts include Larry Morgan (morning drive), Julie Slater (afternoon drive), and Rita Wilde (who replaced Mike Powers in May 2011 to work evenings). Weekend hosts include Mimi Chen (who worked evenings on KSCA
in the 1990s), Cynthia Dee and Sheri Donovan.
Bonneville International
Bonneville International Corporation is a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation...
-owned radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
licensed
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
to Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The station currently broadcasts a wide-ranging classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
format. A repeater in Newhall
Newhall, California
Newhall is the southernmost and oldest district of Santa Clarita, California. Prior to the 1987 consolidation of Valencia, Canyon Country, Saugus, Newhall, and other geographically proximate settlements into the conglomerate city of Santa Clarita, it was an independent but unincorporated town...
, K261AB on 100.1 MHz, extends KSWD's coverage to the north of the Los Angeles area.
History
100.3 FM debuted in the 1950s as a background music station with the call letters KMLA. Later, it became KFOX-FM, the country sister station to KFOXKFRN
KFRN 1280 AM is a non-commercial traditional Christian radio station licensed to Long Beach, California and serving the Los Angeles market, which runs programming from Family Radio. Its transmitter is located in Wilmington, California....
(1280 AM) in Long Beach.
KIQQ
In 1972, 100.3 FM was purchased by four businessmen who changed the call letters to KIQQ (K100), in an attempt to capitalize on its 100.3 MHz dial location. The next year, with the station's soft rockSoft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
format failing to gain ratings or billing, KIQQ brought in deposed KHJ heavyweights Bill Drake
Bill Drake
Bill Drake , born Philip Yarbrough, was an American radio programmer who co-developed the Boss Radio format with Gene Chenault via their company Drake-Chenault.-Early career:...
and Gene Chenault, who contracted to program and manage the station.
In spite of bringing in former KHJ
KHJ (AM)
KHJ Radio in Los Angeles, California broadcasts Spanish-language entertainment programming as La Ranchera. It was also one of America's most formidable Top 40 radio stations in the 1960s and 1970s as 93 KHJ before changing its format in 1980....
powerhouse jocks, including Robert W. Morgan and The Real Don Steele, certain management and programming decisions are believed to have led to the demise of Drake-Chenault's run at 100.3. By 1975, Morgan and Steele were gone. Ultimately, the station cut costs drastically by airing a generic national format via satellite.
In the early 1980s “K-100” dropped its handle, and kept to the calls as "KIQQ” with a live and local aggressive CHR Top 40 format. The on-air lineup included Jeff Thomas, G.W. McCoy, and Francesca Cappucci. "Play Hits for Cash" was a regular promotion. KIQQ simulcasted the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
show Friday Night Videos
Friday Night Videos
Friday Night Videos is an American music video show broadcast on the NBC television network from July 29, 1983 to December 30, 2000, and was the network's attempt to capitalize on the emerging popularity of music videos as seen on MTV...
, and even had Wally George
Wally George
Wally George, born George Walter Pearch , was an American conservative radio and television commentator...
as a weekend call in host. KIQQ also carried American Top 40
American Top 40
American Top 40 is an internationally syndicated, independent radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds and Ron Jacobs. Originally a production of Watermark Inc...
in 1983, after competing station KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM
KIIS-FM is a Los Angeles, California, USA-based radio station with a partial Top 40 musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications. KIIS is also simulcasted on KVVS in Rosamond, at 105.5 MHz...
lost AT40 over the playing of network commercials, forcing KIIS to create its own chart show, Rick Dees Weekly Top 40
Rick Dees Weekly Top 40
Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 is an internationally-syndicated radio program created and hosted by American radio personality Rick Dees. It is currently heard on over 200 radio stations worldwide and the American Forces Network. It is distributed domestically by Citadel Media Networks and...
.
By 1986, with competition from KIIS, KKHR, and KBZT
KLSX
KAMP-FM 97.1 FM, known on-air as 97.1 AMP Radio, is a Rhythmic Contemporary radio station in Los Angeles, California. The station is owned by CBS Radio.The station had long been known as KLSX before the call sign changed on June 30, 2009....
proving too intense (KIIS alone had a 10 rating in the Arbitron book), KIQQ became "100.3 K-Lite." That lasted for three years before the launch of another new format.
KQLZ - "Pirate Radio"
In 1989, KIQQ was sold to Westwood OneWestwood One
Westwood One was an American radio network and was based in New York City. At one time, it was managed by CBS Radio, the radio arm of CBS Corporation, and Viacom and was later purchased by the private equity firm The Gores Group...
, which hired Scott Shannon
Scott Shannon
Michael Scott Shannon is a radio disc jockey, current co-host of the "Scott and Todd in the Morning" show on WPLJ, host of The True Oldies Channel, and the official voice of The Sean Hannity Show.-Early Radio Career:...
from WHTZ
WHTZ
WHTZ — branded Z100 — is a commercial pop/contemporary hit radio radio station licensed to Newark, New Jersey serving the New York metropolitan area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
in New York to program the station. They became KQLZ "Pirate Radio 100.3" in the spring of 1989, airing a Top 40
Contemporary hit radio
Contemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
playlist heavily leaning toward rock. While they played a lot of heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
they also mixed in some mainstream rock and even a few dance songs by artists like Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
. The first ratings books showed an initial spike, but faded rather quickly, once the novelty wore off. KQLZ eventually dropped the dance songs and went completely rock. Shannon was let go, and he eventually went back to New York to program WPLJ
WPLJ
WPLJ is a radio station in New York City owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media. WPLJ shares studio facilities with sister station WABC inside 2 Penn Plaza in midtown Manhattan, and its transmitter is atop the Empire State Building. The station currently plays a Hot Adult...
.
Changing Ownership and Frequencies
Finally opting to leave the radio ownership business, Westwood One sold KQLZ to ViacomViacom
Viacom Inc. , short for "Video & Audio Communications", is an American media conglomerate with interests primarily in, but not limited to, cinema and cable television...
(now CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
) in 1993 and the new owners ended the Pirate Radio format. Viacom brought KXEZ and its soft adult contemporary format back to life at 100.3 FM after a six-month absence from the FM dial. The KXEZ call letters and format were previously at 98.7 FM. In 1992, KXEZ had become KYSR and was named "Star 98.7".
KIBB
In 1996, the station changed calls to KIBB ("B 100.3") and flipped to a dance-leaning Rhythmic Hot ACRhythmic Adult Contemporary
Rhythmic adult contemporary is a format used on stations in the United States and Canada. It usually gears toward an older audience, ages 25 to 54. Stations using this format play disco from the 1970s and early 1980s, dance/pop music, adult-friendly hip hop/old school tracks, R&B, dance/freestyle...
format. The move was to go after listeners who have become disenfranchised with the increasing hip-hop content at KPWR
KPWR
KPWR is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on an analog signal and in HD Radio...
. In 1997, Chancellor would buy KIBB, added currents to its playlist and shifted directions to Rhythmic Contemporary Hits.
KCMG
Despite the effort and a promotional campaign (one memorable ad featured a large billboard of a LatinaLatino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
woman dancing placed near a building on Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles), KIBB couldn't make a dent in the ratings. After two years and minor tweaks in its playlist and direction, KIBB fate was sealed when Chancellor decided to drop the format in November 1997 for yet another short-lived fad: Rhythmic Oldies
Rhythmic oldies
Rhythmic Oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, disco or dance genres of music. Playlists may span from the 1970s through the early 1990s...
as "Mega 100". The call letters were changed to KCMG. Chancellor merged with Capstar in 1999, forming AMFM Inc.
The Beat
Chancellor Media and Evergreen merged to become AMFM Broadcasting in 1999. Clear Channel's later purchase of AMFM would put them over the radio station ownership limits in Los Angeles. As a result, Clear Channel decided to keep the stronger 92.3 FM frequencyKHHT
KHHT is a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA with a Rhythmic Oldies musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications.-KFAC:...
. They chose to sell the 100.3 FM frequency and the intellectual property of KKBT, which was on 92.3 FM to Radio One
Radio One
Radio One, Inc is a U.S. company which owns and operates 69 radio stations in 22 American cities. The company is headed by Cathy Hughes, Chairman and her son Alfred Liggins, CEO. The company's target listeners are African Americans in urban areas...
. KCMG's format and call letters would be retained and move to 92.3 FM.
When the switch was made on June 30, 2000, the formats remained the same, with 100.3 becoming KKBT, "100.3 the Beat" and 92.3 becoming KCMG, "Mega 92.3". In 2001 Mega's format on 92.3 did move in more of an Urban Adult Contemporary
Urban Adult Contemporary
Urban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
direction, as the "Jammin' Oldies" format was starting to fade in popularity. Eventually KCMG became KHHT
KHHT
KHHT is a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, USA with a Rhythmic Oldies musical format. It is owned by Clear Channel Communications.-KFAC:...
"Hot 92.3," a direct competitor to KKBT. Soon afterward, KKBT released their morning team of Dre and Ed Lover plus afternoon drivers Baka Boyz.
During the first four years under Radio One, KKBT enjoyed modest success as it battled KPWR for the R&B/hip-hop crown. KKBT heavily promoted Steve Harvey
Steve Harvey
Broderick Steven "Steve" Harvey is an American actor, comedian, entertainer, television and radio personality and best-selling author. He is best known as the star of the WB sitcom The Steve Harvey Show, and as one of the four comedians featured in the Spike Lee film The Original Kings of Comedy...
as its high-profile morning star and billed itself under the slogan of "Harvey & Hip-Hop". However, ultimately KKBT never overtook KPWR in the ratings. Harvey was also at odds with station management over the station's hip-hop content and refused to play questionable songs during his show until his departure from the station.
But in 2004, the station began showing signs of erosion in ratings, as it faced new competition. KDAY
KDAY
KDAY in Redondo Beach and KDEY in Ontario are a pair of synchrocasting radio stations based in South Los Angeles that airs an Classic hip-hop format aimed at African Americans in the 18-49 range. The station is owned by Magic Broadcasting, LLC and broadcasts at 93.5 MHz on the FM dial...
debuted its own hip-hop format in 2004, siphoning off a good number of KKBT listeners. KXOL-FM
KXOL-FM
KXOL-FM 96.3, Latino 96.3, is a Latin leaning Rhythmic music radio station in the Los Angeles area.-History:For many years 96.3 was a Christian radio station in Los Angeles known as KFSG, owned by the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel...
's flip to reggaeton
Reggaeton
Reggaeton is a form of Puerto Rican and Latin American urban and Caribbean music. After its mainstream exposure in 2004, it spread to North American, European and Asian audiences. Reggaeton originated in Puerto Rico but is also has roots from Reggae en Español from Panama and Puerto Rico and...
in 2005, took many of The Beat's Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
listeners. KKBT went through a great deal of turmoil, with several popular airstaffers leaving or being dismissed from 2002 through 2006.
"Rhythm & Talk"
On May 19, 2006, KKBT officially threw in the towel as a Mainstream Urban outlet and flipped to a hybrid Urban Adult ContemporaryUrban Adult Contemporary
Urban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
/Urban Talk
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format dubbed "Rhythm & Talk". According to the press release that was featured on the station's website: "The new format, which will engage 25-49 year old adults, takes the best music of Urban Adult Contemporary stations and adds compelling content delivered by proven national personalities Tom Joyner
Tom Joyner
Thomas "Tom" Joyner is an American radio host, host of the nationally syndicated The Tom Joyner Morning Show, and also founder of REACH Media Inc., the Tom Joyner Foundation, and BlackAmericaWeb.com.-Early life:...
, Ananda Lewis
Ananda Lewis
Ananda Lewis is an American television personality, social activist, and model. She appeared on Maxim and AskMen.com's Hottest Celebrity Lists in 2001...
, Michael Baisden
Michael Baisden
Michael Baisden is an American author, motivational speaker, host of the TV One talk show Baisden After Dark, and host of his own nationally-syndicated radio show.-Career:...
, Wendy Williams
The Wendy Williams Experience
The Wendy Williams Experience is a gossip show on Vh1. Wendy Williams was mainly shown hosting her radio station . Charlamagne was the co-host. On the show, Wendy spoke about gossip, fashion, the latest Celebrity news, and gave advice to callers. She also interviewed celebrities. and is noted for...
and Free
Free (rapper)
Antoinette Marie Wright, better known by her stage name, "Free" , is an American media personality, television producer and philanthropist. She rose to fame as the first host of BET's 106 & Park...
."
However, the 'Rhythm and Talk' emphasis did not succeed in the ratings, and the station dropped Free and Lewis first from the lineup. Williams, which aired on tape delay after midnight on weekends, was dropped later, and the Tom Joyner Morning Show was dropped when it could not compete with Steve Harvey on KDAY. Other on-air staffers also left the station; Baisden remained until KRBV's format flip in April 2008. Michael Baisden later landed on KDAY, before being dropped by the station in August 2009.
KKBT was the last full market Hip Hop/R&B station to use the Urban format as opposed to Rhythmic, not to mention the only one that covered the metro. However, much of its target audience tuned to other stations: Hispanics preferred KPWR and KXOL-FM
KXOL-FM
KXOL-FM 96.3, Latino 96.3, is a Latin leaning Rhythmic music radio station in the Los Angeles area.-History:For many years 96.3 was a Christian radio station in Los Angeles known as KFSG, owned by the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel...
, African-Americans had KHHT, KJLH
KJLH
KJLH is an Urban Adult Contemporary radio station serving the Los Angeles area and offers More of a variety of Today's R&B & Classic Soul with a taste of Hip-Hop, Gospel and sometimes Smooth Jazz. The station, which is owned by Stevie Wonder's Taxi Productions, operates at 102.3 MHz with an...
, and to a lesser extent KTWV
KTWV
KTWV is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside–San Bernardino and Ventura County areas on 94.7 FM. KTWV airs a hybrid Smooth AC radio format branded as "94.7 The Wave"...
as options; and in the meantime KMVN
KMVN-FM
KXOS is a Spanish AC station serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area. The station is owned by Emmis Communications and operated by Radio Centro, which owns several stations in Mexico....
debuted and targeted older listeners with dance pop from the 1980s to the present day. With that, ratings suffered, and speculation grew about its future. Emmis Broadcasting reportedly was interested in the station, but decided not to buy it.
Eventually, KKBT elected to go head-to-head with the Urban AC formats of KHHT and long-time Compton
Compton, California
Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, southeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city of Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city to incorporate. The city is considered part of the South side by residents of Los...
-based KJLH . The station also hired Cliff Winston away from KJLH for afternoon drive.
KRBV - "V-100"
Radio One began in October 2006 referencing the "Beat" brand less in its promos. Promos would only reference the 100.3 frequency and in December 2006 briefly touted "Majic", giving rise to speculation that Radio One would use the Majic brand, most notably found on sister stations WMMJWMMJ
WMMJ is a top rated station Urban Adult Contemporary radio station owned by Radio One in the Washington, D.C. market. It is licensed to Bethesda, but its transmitter is located in Tenleytown...
in Washington, DC, WWIN-FM
WWIN-FM
WWIN-FM is an urban adult contemporary radio station in Baltimore owned by Radio One. It is known as "Magic 95.9", playing a great variety of urban adult contemporary music from the 1960s to present. Its transmitter is located along I-695 near Curtis Bay....
in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, and KMJQ
KMJQ
KMJQ, "Majic 102.1" is a Houston radio station with an urban adult contemporary musical format. It is owned by Radio One.-History:The station originally went on-the-air in 1961 as KAJC-FM with studios and transmitter in Alvin, Texas, a Houston suburb...
in Houston.
However, on December 29, 2006, Radio One instead unveiled "The New V-100". With that, an Urban heritage based era came to an end: The KKBT callsign was no more after 16 years, and "The Beat" branding forever erased as a piece of radio brand history was gone because KKBT was the very first radio station to carry "The Beat" moniker. The same moment, the calls were changed to KRBV. (Ironically, KRBV and V-100 was used on an Urban AC station in Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex in the mid to late-1990s. That station is now KJKK.) The imaging was similar in fashion to WRKS in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, perhaps a reason being that Barry Mayo, the former general manager for WRKS, is consulting Radio One and thus wanted to use similar imaging for this station.
The re-imaging and airstaff changes did not help the station's ratings, however. At a stockholders' meeting in 2007, some investors called for KRBV to be sold, but company officials said that they had no plans to do so. One possible reason for this is that KRBV was the only Radio One-owned and operated station in the three leading markets in the U.S. (it does not own stations in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
or Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
). Also, a sale of KRBV would come at a loss to Radio One compared to how much it originally paid for it, possibly because of the residual effects of the frequency swap with KHHT.
"100.3 The Sound"
On March 24, 2008, Radio One announced that the station had been sold to Bonneville InternationalBonneville International
Bonneville International Corporation is a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through its for-profit arm, Deseret Management Corporation...
for $137.5 million. The transaction closed in the second quarter of 2008. According to a spokesperson for Bonneville, the station would continue to be a music station, although there were rumors that the station would actually flip to news/talk (similar to sister station
Sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
s KTAR-FM
KTAR-FM
KTAR-FM is a radio station broadcasting a News/Talk format. Licensed to Glendale, Arizona, USA, the station serves the Phoenix area and is currently owned by Bonneville Holding Company...
in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
and WWWT in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
). On April 3, Bonneville confirmed the adult album alternative
Adult album alternative
Adult album alternative is a radio format. A spinoff from the album-oriented rock format, its roots trace to the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier freeform and progressive formats....
format. On their final day, April 7, 2008, KRBV's air staffers bid farewell to their listeners.
On April 8, 2008, Bonneville International took over the operations of KRBV, then dropped the Adult R&B format at midnight Pacific time
Pacific Time
Pacific Time may refer to:* Pacific Time Zone , a time zone on the west coast of the United States, Canada and Mexico* Pacific Time , a radio program produced by KQED and carried on several other NPR stations...
. The station began stunting as "Bruce Radio 100.3", playing all of Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
's hits (in connection to his show that night at Honda Center in Anaheim, California
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
). After ten hours of playing "The Boss," KRBV made the following announcement: "Hello, and welcome to what we hope will be a new beginning for Southern California and music fans everywhere." At 10 a.m., the station became "100.3 The Sound" and the AAA
Adult album alternative
Adult album alternative is a radio format. A spinoff from the album-oriented rock format, its roots trace to the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier freeform and progressive formats....
format officially began.
The new station offered listeners a wide selection of rock music, stretching from the '60s all the way to "last week," according to Bonneville vice president of programming Greg Solk and executive VP Drew Horowitz. In an interview from R&R
R&R (magazine)
R&R was a weekly music trade publication that followed the radio industry and tracked the monitoring of current songs by format, station and audience cumes...
the day of the launch, Bonneville president and chief executive officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
Bruce Reese told the music trade, "It’s great to be back in L.A." He added that "we are truly excited about our new station -- 100.3 the Sound will be a music station that has absolute respect for the music and that features a broad playlist."
On May 14, 2008, the new call letters, KSWD, were officially introduced. The rights to these call letters had to be purchased from an FM station in Seward, Alaska
Seward, Alaska
Seward is a city in Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 3,016....
(currently KKNI
KKNI
KKNI is a commercial adult contemporary music radio station in Seward, Alaska, broadcasting on 105.3 FM. They were originally known as KSWD-FM and were at 105.9, but moved up to the 105.3 frequency and the KSWD-FM calls have relocated to Los Angeles, California.-External links:*...
).
KSWD's new format and "The Sound" logo were loosely patterned after its then-sister station in Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, WSWD. But whereas KSWD's direction took a broader approach, WSWD focused mostly on 1990s and current fare (WSWD switched to a different format in 2009).
KSWD was the fourth station in the Los Angeles radio market to program a Triple-A format. KNX-FM
KCBS-FM
KCBS-FM is a radio station in Los Angeles, California broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on 93.1 FM. KCBS-FM airs an adult hits music format branded as "Jack-FM"....
, KSCA
KSCA
KSCA is a commercial radio station in Glendale, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles, California, area on 101.9 FM. As of 2007 KSCA is the most listened to radio station in the Los Angeles Metro Area....
and KACD/KBCD
KDLD
KDLD is a commercial radio station in Santa Monica, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles area on 103.1 FM. KDLE is a commercial radio station in Newport Beach, California, broadcasting to the Orange County area on 103.1 FM....
have featured the format in past years. The last of those stations also used the positioning statement "World Class Rock for Southern California."
In May 2009, KSWD dropped most of its new music for traditional, classic rock artists, although its playlist includes many more deep album tracks than their nearest competitors, KLOS
KLOS
KLOS is an FM rock music radio station based in Los Angeles, California, that debuted in 1969. The station is owned by Cumulus Media. It is home to the nationally broadcast Mark & Brian radio show, and Off The Record host Uncle Joe Benson.-History:...
and KCBS-FM
KCBS-FM
KCBS-FM is a radio station in Los Angeles, California broadcasting to the Greater Los Angeles area on 93.1 FM. KCBS-FM airs an adult hits music format branded as "Jack-FM"....
. As a result, KSWD was pulled off Mediabase's AAA Reporting stations. The station is now seen as an AOR station playing a majority of recurrents with only a handful of currents. Rival KLOS
KLOS
KLOS is an FM rock music radio station based in Los Angeles, California, that debuted in 1969. The station is owned by Cumulus Media. It is home to the nationally broadcast Mark & Brian radio show, and Off The Record host Uncle Joe Benson.-History:...
has since switched back to mainstream rock
Mainstream rock
Mainstream rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.-Format background:...
.
On Friday, July 10, 2009, The Sound held a "Finally a KMET Friday" to honor past LA rock radio station KMET. The day featured many of the original DJs from the station and much of the original music, promos and sound clips from the station. The day concluded with a three-hour Bruce Springsteen live KMET concert from 1978.
On June 10, 2010, The Sound aired an A to Z countdown. More than 1,000 songs were played in alphabetical order by song title. The Sound's countdown was very similar to A to Z presentations on KLOS, which ended in 2008. A second edition of "The Sound A to Z" began on October 11, lasting just over a week and featuring more than 2,000 tunes. These promotions allowed listeners to enjoy not only the deep album tracks for which the station was becoming well known, but also tracks outside of the regular playlist, music that hadn't been heard on local radio for many years.
HD radio
KSWD over the years has had a variety of formats on its HD channels. The current formats at present are 'Deep Tracks' (Rock) on the HD2 channel, and 'Mormon ChannelMormon Channel
Mormon Channel is an over the air and Internet radio station owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . It is based in Salt Lake City, Utah....
' featuring programming from the LDS Church on the HD3 channel.
On-air staff
On June 3, 2008, The Sound's first on-air host, Andy ChanleyAndy Chanley
Andy Chanley is an American voice-over artist, actor, and radio personality.He is a native of Greenwood, IN, a small suburb SE of Indianapolis in Johnson Co. He attended Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN, where he wrote for and served as managing editor of the university newspaper, the...
, made his debut in the afternoon drive slot. Chanley currently works middays for the station. He previously did middays on former alternative station KLYY
KLYY
KLYY is a radio station located in Riverside, California, broadcasting to the Riverside-San Bernardino, California and Greater Los Angeles area. KLYY airs a Spanish adult hits music format.-History:...
and mornings on KACD/KBCD. Other notable weekday on-air hosts include Larry Morgan (morning drive), Julie Slater (afternoon drive), and Rita Wilde (who replaced Mike Powers in May 2011 to work evenings). Weekend hosts include Mimi Chen (who worked evenings on KSCA
KSCA
KSCA is a commercial radio station in Glendale, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles, California, area on 101.9 FM. As of 2007 KSCA is the most listened to radio station in the Los Angeles Metro Area....
in the 1990s), Cynthia Dee and Sheri Donovan.