WKSS
Encyclopedia
WKSS is a Top 40 Mainstream station based in Hartford, Connecticut
.
The city of license is Hartford-Meriden, Connecticut
, a unique two-city legal identifier.
The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
Their motto is All the Hits.
Their studios are at 10 Columbus Boulevard, in Hartford, Connecticut with the other Clear Channel Hartford cluster stations.
of 16,500 watts, using a directional antenna. (The signal is nulled in the direction of WFOX in Norwalk, CT.). The station has a 50 kW equivalent signal @ 268 meters above average terrain. The station broadcasts from West Peak in Meriden, Connecticut, on a tower with former sister station WMRQ.
format, changed its callsign to WKSS and used the slogan "96 KISS". The station was lowly rated and was not making a lot of money, when in October, 1984, programmer Bob Mitchell, who would later go on to become an influential radio consultant, flipped the station to Top 40
as "95.7 Kiss FM" with the motto "Connecticut's Hot Rockin' Hit Radio." In the Fall of 1989, "95.7 Kiss FM" became known as "Kiss 95.7" and began shifting toward a Dance-leaning
CHR format under the slogan "Connecticut's 10 In A Row Power Station".
In its early days, WKSS airstaffers Jeremy Savage, Marc Wainwright, Curt Monday, Jon Howe, Albie Dee, TJ "Rock and Roll Wright, Tom Casey, Sky Michaels, Robin King, and the legendary Cadillac Jack were some of the most prominent announcers of the era, while programmers such as Jefferson Ward, Chris Walsh, Larry Hryb
(Currently the Director of Programming for Microsoft's Xbox LIVE service), John Dowd (Jay Beau Jones), Steve McVie, Tracy Austin, Rick Vaughn and many others have also called WKSS home at one point or another. WKSS is frequently a stepping stone to bigger markets for up and coming jocks.
After several years of a heated CHR war with rival station "96 TIC-FM
", which included longtime WTIC morning-show host Gary Craig briefly moving to WKSS, "95.7 Kiss-FM" eventually won the ratings battle, forcing WTIC to flip formats to Adult Top 40. Throughout the 1990s, they had several leans towards other formats, including dance and rhythmic for a time. Friday and Saturday Night Mix Shows (The Kiss Club) with DJ Chris Walsh were a staple during this era. Chris Walsh also produced "Kiss Classics" on Sunday nights which ran from 1987-2003.
The station was consistently top 5 in the 12+ Hartford Arbitron
ratings until Infinity changed jammin' oldies outlet WZMX
Z-93.7 music format to rhythmic top 40 as "Hot 93.7".
Kiss immediately fell out of the top 10 in the 12+ Hartford Arbitron ratings, where it stayed until 2005, when the station began to rebound under the strong guidance of Program Director Rick Vaughn & Assistant Program Director Jojo "Joey" Brooks, both of which now program Q102 Philadelphia.
Currently the station is programmed by Stan "The Man" Priest.
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
.
The city of license is Hartford-Meriden, Connecticut
Meriden, Connecticut
Meriden is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 59,653.-History:...
, a unique two-city legal identifier.
The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
Their motto is All the Hits.
Their studios are at 10 Columbus Boulevard, in Hartford, Connecticut with the other Clear Channel Hartford cluster stations.
Technical
WKSS broadcasts at 95.7 MHz with an effective radiated powerEffective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
of 16,500 watts, using a directional antenna. (The signal is nulled in the direction of WFOX in Norwalk, CT.). The station has a 50 kW equivalent signal @ 268 meters above average terrain. The station broadcasts from West Peak in Meriden, Connecticut, on a tower with former sister station WMRQ.
History
This station started in 1960 when "WMMW-FM" began broadcasting from West Peak in Meriden, Connecticut, covering much of the central Connecticut area. In 1962 the call letters became WBMI. It's call letters referred to its parent company name, "Business Music, Inc." It was one of the first stations to broadcast in stereo in 1962 after the FCC standardized the multiplex system. In 1977, WBMI-FM adopted a Beautiful MusicBeautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
format, changed its callsign to WKSS and used the slogan "96 KISS". The station was lowly rated and was not making a lot of money, when in October, 1984, programmer Bob Mitchell, who would later go on to become an influential radio consultant, flipped the station to 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...
as "95.7 Kiss FM" with the motto "Connecticut's Hot Rockin' Hit Radio." In the Fall of 1989, "95.7 Kiss FM" became known as "Kiss 95.7" and began shifting toward a Dance-leaning
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
CHR format under the slogan "Connecticut's 10 In A Row Power Station".
In its early days, WKSS airstaffers Jeremy Savage, Marc Wainwright, Curt Monday, Jon Howe, Albie Dee, TJ "Rock and Roll Wright, Tom Casey, Sky Michaels, Robin King, and the legendary Cadillac Jack were some of the most prominent announcers of the era, while programmers such as Jefferson Ward, Chris Walsh, Larry Hryb
Larry Hryb
Lawrence "Larry" Hryb , also known by his Xbox Live gamertag Major Nelson, is the Director of Programming for the Microsoft gaming network Xbox Live. His blog "Xbox Live's Major Nelson" provides an "inside" look at operations at Microsoft's Xbox division. He picked the gamertag Major Nelson after a...
(Currently the Director of Programming for Microsoft's Xbox LIVE service), John Dowd (Jay Beau Jones), Steve McVie, Tracy Austin, Rick Vaughn and many others have also called WKSS home at one point or another. WKSS is frequently a stepping stone to bigger markets for up and coming jocks.
After several years of a heated CHR war with rival station "96 TIC-FM
WTIC-FM
WTIC-FM is a radio station primarily serving the Hartford, Connecticut market, though its signal can be picked up throughout most of Connecticut and into Springfield, Massachusetts. It currently broadcasts a Hot Adult Contemporary format. It is located on the dial at 96.5 MHz...
", which included longtime WTIC morning-show host Gary Craig briefly moving to WKSS, "95.7 Kiss-FM" eventually won the ratings battle, forcing WTIC to flip formats to Adult Top 40. Throughout the 1990s, they had several leans towards other formats, including dance and rhythmic for a time. Friday and Saturday Night Mix Shows (The Kiss Club) with DJ Chris Walsh were a staple during this era. Chris Walsh also produced "Kiss Classics" on Sunday nights which ran from 1987-2003.
The station was consistently top 5 in the 12+ Hartford Arbitron
Arbitron
Arbitron is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio audiences. It was founded as American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by merging with L.A. based Coffin, Cooper and Clay in the early 1950s...
ratings until Infinity changed jammin' oldies outlet WZMX
WZMX
WZMX, better known as "Hot 93.7" is a Rhythmic Contemporary station licensed to Hartford, Connecticut. The CBS Radio owned outlet broadcasts at 93.7 megahertz. The station's current slogan is Hartford's #1 Station For Hip-Hop and R&B...
Z-93.7 music format to rhythmic top 40 as "Hot 93.7".
Kiss immediately fell out of the top 10 in the 12+ Hartford Arbitron ratings, where it stayed until 2005, when the station began to rebound under the strong guidance of Program Director Rick Vaughn & Assistant Program Director Jojo "Joey" Brooks, both of which now program Q102 Philadelphia.
Currently the station is programmed by Stan "The Man" Priest.