KCAQ (95.9 FM, "Q95.9") is a commercial

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

that is licensed to

Camarillo, California Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...

and serves the Ventura County area. The station is owned by Gold Coast Broadcasting and airs a

rhythmic contemporary Rhythmic contemporary, also known as Rhythmic Top 40, Rhythmic CHR or rhythmic crossover, is a primarily American music-radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip hop and upbeat R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary never uses ...

music format. KCAQ was

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...

on AM sister station KKZZ (1520 AM) in Port Hueneme until August 2019.

History

Early years

The station at 95.9 FM began broadcasting on August 15, 1972 as KEWE with an automated

soft rock Soft rock is a form of rock music that originated in the late 1960s in Southern California and the United Kingdom which smoothed over the edges of singer-songwriter and pop rock, relying on simple, melodic songs with big, lush productions. S ...

format. Five years later, the station changed its call sign to KGAB and flipped to an

album-oriented rock Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock. Album-oriente ...

format known as "B96". In 1982, KGAB adopted the call letters KZTR and an

adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

format known as "K-Star". The station flipped to

classic rock Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...

in 1987 with the branding "96ZTR". In September 1988, Gold Coast Communications Corp. sold KZTR and AM sister station KCZN to Golden Bear Broadcasting Inc. for $1,967,500. This amount is comparable to the sum of the two stations' previous individual purchase prices in 1985 and 1986, respectively. Three years later, on July 10, 1991, the station changed its call letters to KELF to reflect its new

regional Mexican Regional Mexican is a Latin music radio format encompassing the musical genres from the different parts of rural Mexico and the Southwestern United States. Genres include banda, country en español, Duranguense, grupero, mariachi, New Mexico ...

music format branded "El Elefante".

KOCP (1995–2016)

On October 21, 1994, Gold Coast Broadcasting (not to be confused with the aforementioned Gold Coast Communications) purchased KELF and KKZZ from Golden Bear Broadcasting for $1.2 million. The following February, the station adopted the KOCP call letters and launched a classic rock format known as "95.9 The Octopus". On August 25, 2010, KOCP flipped to

classic hits Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes songs from the top 40 music charts from the late 1960s to the early 2000s, with music from the 1980s serving as the core of the format. Music that was popularized by MTV in the early 1980s ...

, identifying as "Rewind 95.9". The first song on Rewind was "

Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson recorded for his sixth studio album '' Thriller'' (1982). It is the opening track of the album and was released as its fourth single on May 8, 1983, by Epic Records. It was ...

" by

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

. On August 29, 2014, KOCP adopted a

rhythmic oldies Rhythmic oldies is a radio format that concentrates on the rhythmic, R&B, disco, or dance genres of music. Playlists can span from the 1960s through the 2000s and, depending on market conditions, may be designed for African-American or Hispanic a ...

format with the branding "Old School 95.9".

KCAQ (2016–present)

On July 1, 2016, KOCP swapped frequencies with sister station KCAQ, moving from 95.9 FM to

104.7 FM The following radio broadcasting, radio stations broadcast on FM broadcasting, FM frequency 104.7 MHz: Argentina * Activa in Caleta Olivia, Santa Cruz * Cadena Alcazar in Oberá, Misiones * Dakota in Federal, Entre Ríos * Dale in Tafí Viej ...

. This move brought the KCAQ call letters and

format to the 95.9 FM frequency, now rebranded "Q95.9". On September 11, 2017, KCAQ began airing the nationally syndicated ''Tino Cochino Radio'' program originating from KKFR in Phoenix. From November 2018 to August 2019, KCAQ was simulcast on KKZZ (1520 AM), which dropped its adult standards format.

Transmission issues

KCAQ operates on the same frequency as KFSH-FM, a Class A station in La Mirada, California. The two stations are short spaced to each other as the cities they are licensed to serve are apart. Under

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

(FCC) rules, the minimum distance between Class A and Class B1 stations operating on the same channel is . As such, the station competes for signal strength along the outer edge of its broadcast area, particularly in the

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

. This interference makes both signals generally unable to be received clearly in much of northwestern Los Angeles County.

References

External links

FCC History Cards for KCAQ
* * {{coord, 34.3486, N, 119.3379, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title CAQ Radio stations established in 1972 Rhythmic contemporary radio stations in the United States 1972 establishments in California