KKLZ (96.3
FM) 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 radi ...
located in
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...
. The station is owned by
Beasley Broadcast Group
Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc., based in Naples, Florida, is an owner/operator of radio stations in the United States. , the company owned 63 stations under the Beasley Media Group name.
History
The company was founded in 1961 by George G. Bea ...
and airs a
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 1980 ...
music format branded as "96-3 KKLZ". The KKLZ studios are located in
Spring Valley, an unincorporated area of
Clark County, while its transmitter is on
Black Mountain in
Henderson Henderson may refer to:
People
*Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname
*Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan
Places Argentina
*Henderson, Buenos Aires
Australia
*Henderson, Western Australia
Canada
* H ...
.
History
Top 40
The station first signed on January 26, 1984 as KITT with a
top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...
music format.
Classic rock
On January 1, 1986, KITT flipped from CHR to an
adult contemporary music
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, quiet ...
format branded "Z96", with new
call letters
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigne ...
KKLZ to accompany the change. By mid-1986, the station was airing a
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, prima ...
format and began identifying on-air as "The All New 96.3 KKLZ".
Morning drive
Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this cla ...
personalities from this era included original morning show hosts The O Brothers, followed by Butz and Tucker, then Johnson and Tofte in early 1990. Other disc jockeys included Danny Lea, Jeffrey "Professor Jeff" Anderson, Dennis Mitchell, The Warrior, Kimberly Kelly, with Backseat Beth, and Bruno and The Big Kahuna. KKLZ produced much of its programming locally, such as ''The Poorman's Concert'', ''The Night Of The Living Dead'', and ''Cruisin' for a Bluesin. Also on KKLZ was one of the original ''
Breakfast with the Beatles
''Breakfast with the Beatles'' is a popular programming segment format on FM radio in cities in the United States. The segment format typically features one or more hours of programing consisting exclusively of music by or related to The Beatles ...
'' programs, which today is still hosted by Dennis as a nationally syndicated program originating from
KTYD
KTYD (99.9 FM, pronounced "K-Tide") is a commercial radio station that is licensed to Santa Barbara, California and serves Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. The station is owned by Rincon Broadcasting and airs a classic rock format. KTYD is t ...
in
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Co ...
.
From 1993 to 2002, KKLZ presented an annual concert festival known as "June Fest". It was held the first Saturday of every June on soccer fields just outside
Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a football stadium in the western United States, located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hot ...
and featured a long roster of rock artists.
Throughout the year, listeners presented suggestions for concert lineups and requests for information about the show as it approached. Attendance ranged between 20,000 and 40,000.
KKLZ reached its creative zenith, as a classic rock station, in the mid-to-late 1990s when its studios were located on Industrial Road in Las Vegas. The trailblazing and innovative morning show during this time, ''Johnson & Tofte'', enjoyed unprecedented local popularity in Las Vegas until they were fired due to the dissatisfaction of station management with program content. Since the passage of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 is a United States federal law enacted by the 104th United States Congress on January 3, 1996, and signed into law on February 8, 1996, by President Bill Clinton. It primarily amended Chapter 5 of Title 47 of ...
, KKLZ has changed ownership multiple times. Starting in 2003, however, the station's
Arbitron ratings improved and KKLZ became the top rock music station in Las Vegas among males ages 25–54 during the Spring 2005 ratings period.
Classic hits
Despite the station's success with the classic rock format, owner Beasley Broadcast Group decided to take the station in a different musical direction. On May 24, 2007, KKLZ changed its format 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 1980 ...
.
In March 2010, KKLZ held the #1 position in the Las Vegas market among
adults 25–54. In April, KKLZ became the #1 rated station overall among persons ages 6+ and persons 12+.
As of April 2019, KKLZ on-air personalities include morning show hosts Mike O'Brian and Carla Rea (''Mike & Carla in the Morning''),
Wendy Rush middays,
Larry Martino in afternoon drive, and Morty evenings. The station's general manager is Tom Humm.
Awards and nominations
Since 2010, KKLZ has earned three
Marconi Radio Award nominations, but has not won any such awards.
References
External links
*
*
{{coord, 36.008, N, 115.006, W, type:landmark_region:US_source:FCC, display=title
KLZ
Classic hits radio stations in the United States
Radio stations established in 1984
KLZ