KDLD is a
commercial FM 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 ...
in
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, broadcasting to the
Greater Los Angeles
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...
area on 103.1
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
. KDLE is a commercial FM radio station in
Newport Beach, California
Newport Beach is a coastal city in South Orange County, California. Newport Beach is known for swimming and sandy beaches. Newport Harbor once supported maritime industries however today, it is used mostly for recreation. Balboa Island, Newport ...
, broadcasting to the
Orange County
Orange County most commonly refers to:
*Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Orange County may also refer to:
U.S. counties
*Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando
*Orange County, Indiana
*Orange County, New ...
area on 103.1 MHz.
KDLD and KDLE
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 ...
a
Mexican cumbia music
format
Format may refer to:
Printing and visual media
* Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements
* Paper formats, or paper size standards
* Newspaper format, the size of the paper page
Computing
* File format, particular way that informatio ...
branded as "Viva 103.1" on their
analog and main
HD Radio
HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...
signals. The two stations' studios are located in Los Angeles on the
Miracle Mile Miracle Mile may refer to:
Places in the United States
* Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California, a district of Los Angeles
* Miracle Mile (Coral Gables), a shopping area in Coral Gables, Florida
* Miracle Mile (Manhasset), New York, a premium sho ...
. The KDLD
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which i ...
is located in
Baldwin Hills Baldwin Hills may refer to:
Places
* Baldwin Hills (mountain range), Los Angeles County, California, U.S.
* Baldwin Hills, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in South Los Angeles, California, U.S.
* Baldwin Village, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in South Lo ...
, while KDLE's transmitter is based in
Irvine Irvine may refer to:
Places On Earth Antarctica
*Irvine Glacier
*Mount Irvine (Antarctica)
Australia
*Irvine Island
*Mount Irvine, New South Wales
Canada
*Irvine, Alberta
* Irvine Inlet, Nunavut
United Kingdom
*Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotla ...
.
History
Prior to 1991, the 103.1 frequencies in Los Angeles and Orange County operated as two separate stations, KSRF in Santa Monica and KOCM in Newport Beach.
KSRF in Santa Monica
KSRF began broadcasting on December 22, 1960, and was the area's first
easy listening
Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to 1970s. It is related to middle-of-the-road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit songs, n ...
formatted FM station.
The station was branded "K-Surf".
[McDougal, Dennis.]
Radio in the Afternoon
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. April 6, 1986. Retrieved May 18, 2019. It was located in the lobby of King Neptune's Kingdom at
Pacific Ocean Park, and featured brightly hued plastic panels, illuminated by changing lights.
[POP Opens FM Radio Station]
, ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. December 26, 1960. p. 41. Retrieved May 18, 2019.[History Cards for KDLD](_blank)
fcc.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2019. It was almost entirely automated, utilizing advanced technology for the era.
In addition to easy listening music, the station broadcast stock market and weather reports.
Originally owned by the Santa Monica Broadcasting Company, owned by J.D. and C.D. Funk, the station was sold in 1962 to Pacific Ocean Broadcasting, which was a subsidiary of Pacific Ocean Park, for $49,183.
In 1965, the station was sold to the Santa Monica Broadcasting Company for $135,000, with controlling interest owned by George Baron, who had been general manager of KSRF since its founding.
The station's studio was moved out of Pacific Ocean Park in 1969, and in 1971 its transmitter was moved to the Lawrence Welk Plaza building in Santa Monica.
In 1985, KSRF dropped its beautiful music format, and adopted a
soft adult contemporary format.
[Bornstein, Rollye. ]
Mediatrix Monthly Memo
'. Volume 1, Number 2. March 1986. p. 37. Retrieved May 18, 2019. Radio Broadcasters, Inc., acquired KSRF in 1986 for $5,250,000.
KOCM in Newport Beach
103.1 MHz in Newport Beach was issued its construction permit in 1958, as KAJS, named for its owner, Arnold J. Stone.
[History Cards for KDLE](_blank)
fcc.gov. Retrieved May 22, 2019. Stone sold the station to Western Enterprises Limited for $2,500 the following year.
In 1960, KAJS was sold to Newport-Costa Mesa Broadcasting for $3,000, and its call sign was changed to KNBB the following year.
The station began broadcasting on January 8, 1962.
Success Broadcasting acquired KNBB for $34,750 in 1964 and changed its call letters to KOCM (later said to stand for "Orange County Music") on January 28 of that year.
KOCM aired an easy listening format.
In 1979, Hutton Broadcasting purchased the station for $2 million.
In 1981, the station was sold to Donrey Media Group for $2 million. In 1986, the station began to play more vocals and fewer instrumentals, and shifted to a soft AC format.
When Donrey opted to focus on its newspapers and sell its six radio stations in 1986, the station was sold to Financial Capital Broadcasting Co. of Miami for $2.95 million.
Mars-FM
In 1991,
Ken Roberts, former owner of
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock").
The stat ...
, bought KSRF and KOCM for $17.8 million and immediately expressed his desire to convert the two stations, which interfered with each other, into a simulcast. Former KROQ engineer Frank Martin installed new transmitters and the TFT "Reciter" synchronization system to accomplish the simulcast. Stan Salek a
Hammett and Edisonof San Francisco published a paper at the 1992 National Association of Broadcasters convention on the case study for synchronization of KSRF and KOCM.
On May 24, 1991, the two stations began simulcasting a
techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
-
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
format as "Mars-FM".
[Hochman, Steve.]
MARS-FM Fires On-Air Staff, Drops Techno-Rock Format
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. August 21, 1992. Retrieved May 19, 2019.[Ross, Sean; Rosen, Craig; Stark, Phyllis.]
Vox Jox
, ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. May 25, 1991. p. 10. Retrieved May 19, 2019. Club DJ
Swedish Egil
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
left
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock").
The stat ...
to join the new Mars-FM as music director, along with fellow KROQ alum Freddy Snakeskin, who became Mars-FM's program director.
On-air personalities at "Mars-FM" included
"Big" Ron O'Brien,
Raechel Donahue
Raechel Donahue is a rock radio pioneer generally associated with her husband Tom Donahue, who died in 1975. She was the original entertainment reporter for CNN, briefly served as VJ for Cable Music Channel and a longtime radio personality in San ...
, Don Bolles, Rob Francis, Holly Adams, Tony Largo, Christian B, Mike Fright (Mike Ivankay) and Dave Alexander.
On August 19, 1992, Mars-FM's entire air-staff was fired.
Jazz FM
On September 7, 1992, the 103.1 simulcast became a
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
station as "Jazz FM 103.1" using the call letters KAJZ/KBJZ.
[Stark, Phyllis; Boehlert, Eric; Borzillo, Carrie.]
Vox Jox
, ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. September 19, 1992. p. 81. Retrieved May 19, 2019. Air-staff included
Dave Fennoy
Dave Fennoy is an American voice actor. His video game roles have included Lee Everett in '' The Walking Dead'', Bluebeard in ''The Wolf Among Us'', Finch in ''Tales from the Borderlands'', Gabriel the Warrior in '' Minecraft: Story Mode'', and ...
, Brooke Jones, and China Smith.
In June 1994, the stations' call signs were changed to KACD/KBCD as a promotional tie-in to a service the station offered, where one could purchase a CD of music played on the station by dialing an 800 number. In October 1994, the station began airing Egil Aalvik Music Co.'s syndicated programs "Groove Radio International", "The House Groove", and "Planet Reggae", Friday and Saturday nights.
CD 103.1
On April 24, 1995, the station adopted a
hot AC format, branded as "CD 103.1".
[ Atwood, Brett.]
For Two L.A. AC Stations, Decade Is 15 Minutes Long
, ''Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''. May 27, 1995. p. 106. Retrieved May 19, 2019. Music from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s was played in 15-minute blocks.
Groove Radio
On June 21, 1996, at 6 p.m., the station adopted a
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. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...
format, branded "Groove Radio".
[L.A.-Area Simulcast KACD & KBCD Flip To Dance]
, ''Radio & Records
''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...
''. June 28, 1996. p. 12. Retrieved May 19, 2019. Swedish Egil returned as program director.
Groove Radio had a morning
drive time show hosted by
Jim "The Poorman" Trenton, an L.A. radio veteran and one of the two original co-hosts of the radio show "
Loveline
''Loveline'' is a syndicated radio call-in program in North America, offering medical and relationship advice to listeners, often with the assistance of guests, typically actors and musicians. Its host through most of its run was Dr. Drew Pins ...
" on KROQ.
[Snow, Shauna.]
Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation's press
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. July 25, 1996. Retrieved May 20, 2019. Other on-air personalities included Joe "The Boomer" Servantez, China Smith, and Swedish Egil.
In August 1997, Egil was forced out of the station after the owners once again decided that they wanted the station to go in a mainstream direction, and the station was rebranded "Groove 103.1", since Egil owned rights to the "Groove Radio" name.
On September 18, 1997, the owners switched it to 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 ...
format, but after the flooding of negative feedback crashed their voicemail system, they brought the Dance format back a week later, continuing with an
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...
-intensive dance hits format for a year.
In 1998, KACD and KBCD were sold to
Jacor Communications
Jacor Communications was a media corporation, existing between 1987 and 1999, which owned many radio stations in the United States. In 1998, Jacor was purchased by Clear Channel Communications, now iHeartMedia, for $2.8 billion.
Jacor Communicat ...
for $35 million, and on October 12, 1998, at Noon, after playing "
Children
A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...
" by
Robert Miles, the stations began simulcasting Jacor's
KIIS-FM.
Channel 103.1
At 5 p.m. on October 19, 1998, the simulcast ended and the station adopted an
adult album alternative (AAA) format, programmed by Nicole Sandler.
[Garcia, Irene.]
Adult Alternative Album Format Back on Dial
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. October 24, 1998. Retrieved May 21, 2019. The format was launched with a speech by Sandler.
The first song played was "
People Get Ready" by
Ziggy Marley.
The station was branded "Channel 103.1" with the slogan "World Class Rock".
Program director Nicole Sandler was also afternoon DJ and
Andy Chanley
Andy Chanley (born July 29, 1968) is an American voice-over artist, actor, and radio personality. He is a native of Greenwood, Indiana and resides in Los Angeles, California.
Career
Andy Chanley attended Purdue University in West Lafayette, In ...
, previously with
KLYY
KLYY (97.5 MHz, "José 97.5") is a commercial FM radio station located in Riverside, California, broadcasting to the Inland Empire, Greater Los Angeles areas. KLYY airs a Spanish adult hits music format. It operates from studios in Los Angeles w ...
(Y107), handled the morning shift.
[Ahrens, Frank.]
Off the Air And Into Your PC
, ''The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
''. July 16, 2000. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
In 2000, after
Clear Channel merged with AMFM, the company would own too many stations in the Los Angeles area, according to
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 ...
rules.
[Carney, Steve.]
Kicked Off Airwaves, Station Finds New Home on Internet
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. September 1, 2000. Retrieved May 21, 2019. It was decided that KACD and KBCD would be sold, due to their small listenership, the fact that they counted as two stations, and the fact that they did not cover the entire Los Angeles market.
Channel 103.1 would continue to be heard on the internet, on a full-time web stream at channel1031.com and worldclassrock.com,
which lasted until August 2001. "Channel 103.1" also began to air on AM 850
KACD in
Thousand Oaks, California
Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown. It is named af ...
, primarily for the purposes of music-licensing, and to keep the station listed in Arbitron.
[Format Changes & Updates]
, ''The M Street Journal''. Vol. 17, No. 35. August 30, 2000. p. 2. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
Super Estrella
KACD and KBCD were sold to
Entravision Communications, a company known for its
Spanish language
Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...
outlets, for $85 million.
At 9 a.m. on August 28, 2000, the stations adopted a Spanish hits format as "Super Estrella" (Super Star), as part of a simulcast with 97.5
KSSE
KSSE, KSSD, and KSSC are commercial FM radio stations serving Southern California at the 107.1 MHz frequency. KSSE is licensed to Arcadia, California and broadcasts to the Los Angeles metropolitan area, KSSD is licensed to Fallbrook, California ...
in
Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...
.
In 2001, the stations' call signs were changed to KSSC and KSSD.
[Call Sign History (KDLD)]
fcc.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2019.[Call Sign History (KDLE)](_blank)
fcc.gov. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
KDL 103.1
In January 2003, Entravision moved the "Super Estrella" format to the newly acquired 107.1 signals from Big City Radio, which today use the call letters
KSSE
KSSE, KSSD, and KSSC are commercial FM radio stations serving Southern California at the 107.1 MHz frequency. KSSE is licensed to Arcadia, California and broadcasts to the Los Angeles metropolitan area, KSSD is licensed to Fallbrook, California ...
/
KSSC/
KSSD
KSSE, KSSD, and KSSC are commercial FM radio stations serving Southern California at the 107.1 MHz frequency. KSSE is licensed to Arcadia, California and broadcasts to the Los Angeles metropolitan area, KSSD is licensed to Fallbrook, Californi ...
.
[Entravision Flips KSSC & KSSD /L.A. To Dance]
, ''Radio & Records
''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...
''. January 24, 2003. pp. 3, 15. Retrieved May 21, 2019. The 103.1 FM simulcast was flipped back to dance once again, this time as "KDL 103.1" using the call letters KDLD and KDLE.
The format was modeled after
KKDL in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
.
In December 2003, Entravision entered into an agreement with Clear Channel, wherein Clear Channel would sell the advertising on KDLD and KDLE, and on December 22, the station began airing
Christmas music
Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...
, with plans on switching to an
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
format after December 25, eliminating the competition with Clear Channel's KIIS and directing it toward
CBS Radio
CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...
's KROQ.
Indie 103.1
On December 25, 2003, at 11 PM, KDL suddenly rang out with the song "
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...
is dead!" and "Indie 103.1" was launched, with
The Ramones
The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...
' "We Want The Airwaves" and
The Clash
The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...
's "
This Is Radio Clash" being the first two songs played, which were followed by a series of new songs that had never seen commercial airplay before, setting the tone for what would become a musically adventurous and rebellious radio station. The station was launched by program director Michael Steele, music director Mark Sovel, and disc jockey TK.
For a month, the station ran with no commercials or
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...
s and featured only the voices of listeners from phones messages left on the request line voice mail. Many of the phone messages were angry listeners yelling "You guys suck!" and "What happened to 'KDL the party station'".
The logo for "Indie 103.1" was designed by
"André the Giant Has a Posse/OBEY Giant" street artist
Shepard Fairey, who would later achieve fame as the designer of
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
's
"Hope" poster for his
2008 presidential campaign.
On February 10, 2004, at Noon, the first live DJ appeared on "Indie 103.1":
Steve Jones Steve or Steven Jones may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Steve Jones (English presenter) (born 1945), English musician, disk jockey, television presenter, and voice-over artist
*Steve Jones (musician) (born 1955), English rock and roll guita ...
— guitarist, songwriter, and founding member of the
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
. His program, ''Jonesy's Jukebox'', became famous for its
freeform music and Jones' unorthodox delivery style which included long pauses, belches, and the frequent whistling of songs. Jonesys' producer (Indie 103.1 music director Mark Sovel) was dubbed "Mr. Shovel" by Jones and became his on-air foil. The second DJ to appear was TK. Steele actively recruited L.A. based music notables for the airstaff. Within its first year, "Indie" (as it came to be known) was airing live original programs hosted by
Rob Zombie
Rob Zombie (born Robert Bartleh Cummings; January 12, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and voice actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live shows have be ...
,
Henry Rollins
Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1980, Rolli ...
,
The Crystal Method, and
Dave Navarro
David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is an American guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. Between 1993 and 1998, Navarro was the guitarist of the Red Hot Ch ...
.
Indie 103.1 quickly grew in popularity among listeners around the
Los Angeles area
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...
and around the world, although due to limited signal range it was never a ratings winner. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine declared Indie 103.1 "America's Coolest Commercial Station", and in April 2008, the same publication voted Indie the "Best Radio Station" in the country.
In March 2006,
Dicky Barrett
Richard Michael Barrett (born June 22, 1964), better known as Dicky Barrett, is an American singer who was the frontman of ska punk band The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. He was the announcer for ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' until 2022. Barrett is known fo ...
of ''The Mighty Morning Show'' was dismissed by the station. He was replaced by
Joe Escalante
Joseph Patrick Escalante (born January 30, 1963) is an American television writer, film and television director, musician, radio host, and former television executive. He is known professionally as the bassist and songwriter for the punk rock ...
, who called his show "The Last Of The Famous International Morning Shows". Escalante's morning show included daily appearances by film director
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...
, who served as weatherman, and actor
Timothy Olyphant
Timothy David Olyphant ( ; born May 20, 1968) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in an off-Broadway theater in 1995, in ''The Monogamist'', and won the Theatre World Award for his performance, and then originated David Sedaris' ''Th ...
, who served as a sports commentator. The show also featured a weekly wine tasting and education hour called "Wino Wednesday", and hosted a number of celebrity guests including
Crispin Glover
Crispin Hellion Glover (born April 20, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for portraying eccentric characters on screen, such as George McFly in ''Back to the Future'' (1985), Layne in ''River's Edge'' (1986), Andy Warhol in ''The Doors'' ...
,
Christina Ricci
Christina Ricci ( ; born February 12, 1980) is an American actress. Known for playing unusual characters with a dark edge, Ricci predominantly works in independent productions, but has also appeared in numerous box office hits. She has receiv ...
,
Pat Buchanan
Patrick Joseph Buchanan (; born November 2, 1938) is an American paleoconservative political commentator, columnist, politician, and broadcaster. Buchanan was an assistant and special consultant to U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, an ...
,
Will Ferrell,
Maynard James Keenan
Maynard James Keenan (born James Herbert Keenan; April 17, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and winemaker. He is best known as the singer and primary lyricist of the rock bands Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Pusci ...
,
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog (; born 5 September 1942) is a German film director, screenwriter, author, actor, and opera director, regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema. His films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with un ...
,
Phil Donahue
Phillip John Donahue (born December 21, 1935) is an American media personality, writer, film producer and the creator and host of ''The Phil Donahue Show''. The television program, later known simply as ''Donahue'', was the first talk show forma ...
,
Kristen Stewart,
Harry Shearer,
Dennis Hopper
Dennis Lee Hopper (May 17, 1936 – May 29, 2010) was an American actor, filmmaker and photographer. He attended the Actors Studio, made his first television appearance in 1954, and soon after appeared in ''Giant'' (1956). In the next ten years ...
, and
Andy Dick.
In February 2007, program director Michael Steele left and was replaced by Max "Mad Max" Tolkoff of
XETRA-FM
XETRA-FM (91.1 MHz), branded as 91X, and sometimes identified as XTRA-FM, is an English-language radio station licensed to Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. It airs an alternative rock radio format. The studios and offices are on Cornerstone Cour ...
(Tijuana/San Diego, "91X") fame. On August 19, 2008, station manager Dawn Girocco announced her departure from the station. Starting in October 2008, longtime specialty shows were either dropped ("Feel My Heat", "Community Service", "Big Sonic Heaven", "Camp Freddy Radio") or moved to weekends ("Harmony in My Head"). Upon the cancellation of his
roots music show "Watusi Rodeo,"
Chris Morris accused the station of "now being styled as KROQ Jr." in an effort to increase the station's ratings.
In November 2008, Escalante stated he was giving up the morning show but would continue to host an expanded two-hour version of his legal-advice show, "Barely Legal Radio."
On January 15, 2009, Entravision made the decision to drop the "Indie" format. At 10 a.m. that day, after departing station personalities bade farewell to listeners, "Indie" signed off with versions of "
My Way" by both
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...
and
Sid Vicious.
[Carney, Steve.]
Update: Indie 103.1 is going off the air
, ''Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''. January 15, 2009. A 5-song loop and a pre-recorded message urging listeners to listen to the station online was then repeated on the air until midnight on January 17, 2009.
[Indie 103.1 to Become 'El Gato']
, ''Radio Insight''. January 17, 2009. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
References to "Indie 103.1" were seen in the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
TV show ''
The O.C.'', the movie ''
Grandma's Boy'', and the
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
show ''
Punk'd
''Punk'd'' is an American hidden camera–practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003. It was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, with Kutcher serving as producer and host. It bears a resemblance to both the ...
''.
[Ohanesian, Liz.]
We Want the Airwaves: An Oral History of Indie 103.1, Commercial Radio's Greatest Failed Experiment
, ''Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...
''. September 19, 2015. Retrieved May 23, 2019.
Spanish language formats
![KLYY Jose97](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/KLYY_Jose97.5-103.1_logo.png)
After the demise of "Indie", the simulcast flipped to
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 ...
as "103.1 El Gato".
The format would later shift to Spanish
adult hits as "José". On January 8, 2018, KDLD and KDLE dropped Spanish adult hits and reverted to the regional Mexican format as "La Tricolor".
On July 26, 2018, at 10:04 a.m., "Super Estrella" returned on 103.1 featuring a
Rock en español format.
On December 16, 2019, KDLD/KDLE changed their format to Mexican cumbia, branded as "Viva 103.1".
Signal coverage
When the signals were synchronized, they consisted of a 3,000-
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
directional signal in Santa Monica and 2,570-watt non-directional signal in Newport Beach.
Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1993
'. Broadcasting & Cable
''Broadcasting & Cable'' (or ''Broadcasting+Cable'') is a weekly telecommunications industry trade magazine published by Future US. Previous names included ''Broadcasting-Telecasting'', ''Broadcasting and Broadcast Advertising'', and ''Broadcast ...
. 1993. pp. B-42, B-51. Retrieved May 22, 2019. However, in late 2005, an attempt was made to improve signal coverage by adding an extra 700 watts to the Santa Monica transmitter and removing the gain antenna to provide a non-directional signal.
Application Search Details – BLH-20041227ABE
fcc.gov. Retrieved May 22, 2019. The transmitter in Newport Beach was moved a few miles south to a mountain south of Newport Beach, downgrading power to 300 watts but tripling the height.[Comprehensive KDLE Engineering Exhibit](_blank)
fcc.gov. June 2003. Retrieved May 22, 2019. The Newport Beach transmitter was made directional, sending the signal northeast and southwest. This fixed the problem of poor signal along the coastal cities and in Orange County, California
Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,186,989, making it the third-most-populous county in California, the sixth-most-populous in the United States, a ...
. Nevertheless, the combined signals still have poor coverage in some areas of Los Angeles County, notably so in the San Fernando
San Fernando may refer to:
People
*Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia
Places Argentina
*San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...
and San Gabriel valleys.
References
External links
*
*
{{Entravision Communications
DLD
Radio stations established in 1960
1960 establishments in California
Entravision Communications stations
DLD