KQRC-FM (98.9
MHz, "98-9 The Rock") is a
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 ...
licensed to
Leavenworth, Kansas
Leavenworth () is the county seat and largest city of Leavenworth County, Kansas, United States and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 37,351. It is located on the west bank of t ...
and serving the
Kansas City metropolitan area
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...
. Its studios are located in
Mission, Kansas
Mission is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States, and part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 9,954.
History
An Indian mission was established in 1829 at the town's site, hence ...
, and the transmitter site is in South Kansas City. The station is owned by
Audacy, Inc.
History
1962-1979: KCLO-FM
The 98.9
MHz frequency shuffled between
formats when it first went on the air in 1962. Licensed to
Leavenworth, the station began as KCLO-FM, a religious/
MOR outlet simulcasting with its AM sister station on 1410.
1979-1982: KTRO
In 1979, it became a
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...
station as KTRO.
1982-1986: KZZC
In December 1982, KTRO became "ZZ 99", KZZC. They competed heavily against the city's already existing Top 40 outlet
KBEQ-FM
KBEQ-FM (104.3 MHz "Q-104") is a commercial radio station in Kansas City, Missouri, serving the Kansas City radio market. It is owned by Steel City Media and airs a country radio format. The station's studios and offices are located on Mill Str ...
by emphasizing on newer music in comparison to KBEQ's oldies lean. The station also was home to Kansas City legendary DJ Randy Miller in morning drive. On August 25, 1986, due to financial trouble, the station flipped to a syndicated
oldies
Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as w ...
outlet as "98.9 Gold" with the KZZC call letters still in place.
1987-1989: KCWV
On September 24, 1987, at Noon, "98.9 The Wave" debuted with a
new age
New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars consi ...
(a precursor to the
smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of commercially-oriented crossover jazz and easy listening music that became dominant in the mid 1970s to the early 1990s.
History
Smooth jazz is a commercially oriented, crossover jazz which came to prominence in the ...
format) and
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, ...
format, competing with a multitude of AC stations. The call letters were also changed to KCWV. In May 1989, Wodlinger Broadcasting sold the station to
Journal Broadcast Group for $6 million.
1982-1992: KRVK
On October 27, 1989, at 5:37 p.m., the station flipped to
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 ...
as KRVK, "98.9 The River". The station was largely automated with very low-key on-air personalities.
1992-present: KQRC
On April 3, 1992, at 5 p.m., after playing "The River" by
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...
, KRVK flipped to "98.9 The Rock", which debuted with Kansas City band
Shooting Star
Shooting star refers to a meteor.
Shooting star may also refer to:
Film, television, and theater
* ''Shooting Star'' (2015 film), a 2015 Bulgarian short film
* ''Shooting Star'' (2020 film), a 2020 Canadian short film
* ''Shooting Stars'' ...
's "Hang On For Your Life". The Rock has lived up to its name in the stability of its format, surviving a rock format shuffle in 1997 that claimed Kansas City's (then) longest-surviving (23 years) FM rock station,
KYYS
KYYS (1250 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format. The station is licensed to Kansas City, Kansas, United States. It is currently owned by Audacy, Inc. and operations are under an LMA with Reyes Media Group.
History
...
.
Journal sold KQRC to
Sinclair Broadcast Group
Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. (SBG) is a publicly traded American telecommunications conglomerate that is controlled by the descendants of company founder Julian Sinclair Smith. Headquartered in the Baltimore suburb of Cockeysville, Maryland, ...
in 1997, with
Entercom
Audacy, Inc. is an American broadcasting company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1968 as Entercom Communications Corporation, it is the second largest radio company in the United States, owning 235 radio stations across 48 media ...
buying the station in 2000.
Programming
98.9 The Rock broadcasts a
Mainstream Rock
Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.
Format background
Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active ro ...
format consisting of
Hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...
and
Heavy metal acts. They tend to play heavier rock than
modern rock
Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music.
Radio format
Mod ...
/
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 mainstream or commercial ...
sister station
KRBZ
KRBZ (96.5 FM, “Alt 96-5”) is an alternative rock station, licensed to Kansas City, Missouri and serving the Kansas City metropolitan area. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc., with studios located in Mission, Kansas and a transmitter site ...
with such artists as
Disturbed,
Godsmack,
Staind and
Shinedown
Shinedown is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed by singer Brent Smith in 2001 after the dissolution of Dreve, his previous band. Smith, still under contract with record label Atlantic Records, recruited the band's original ...
mixed with older rock acts like
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped def ...
,
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff ...
,
AC/DC,
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), ...
and
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...
.
Metallica is frequently played, including a featured "Mandatory Metallica" with three consecutive songs by the band aired nightly. The station's morning show, hosted by
shock jock
A shock jock is a radio broadcaster or DJ who entertains listeners and attracts attention using humor and/or melodramatic exaggeration that may offend some portion of the listening audience. The term is used pejoratively to describe provocative o ...
Johnny Dare, is regularly ranked atop the local
Arbitron ratings. The Rock airs two nationally syndicated shows on Sundays—
The House of Hair with Dee Snider
''The House of Hair with Dee Snider'' is a nationally syndicated radio program, airing weekly in the United States, Mexico, Canada and Germany (Nürnberg). Dee Snider, Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band original ...
, and the rock news show
HardDrive with Lou Brutus.
On September 26, 2010, KQRC was the first FM radio station in the country to release an app for the iOS operating system (Apple mobile devices) that offered an events list with Google Mapping, and push messaging.
Rockfest
For many years, KQRC hosted
Rockfest
Rockfest was an outdoor, hard rock and Metal music, metal music festival held annually by Kansas City metropolitan area, Kansas City radio station KQRC-FM 98.9 The Rock since 1992. Over the years, the festival was held at various venues around t ...
, the largest single-day music festival in North America.
Past headliners include
Disturbed,
Godsmack,
Staind,
Seether,
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots (also known by the initialism STP) is an American rock band from San Diego, California, that originally consisted of Scott Weiland (lead vocals), brothers Dean (guitar) and Robert DeLeo (bass, backing vocals), and Eric Kr ...
, and
Korn.
References
External links
*
*
FREE JOHHNNY DARE (The Johnny Dare Morning Show Website)Rockfest Website
{{Entercom
QRC-FM
QRC
Leavenworth County, Kansas
Active rock radio stations in the United States
Audacy, Inc. radio stations