KWNW (101.9 FM) - branded as "101.9

Kiss FM Kiss FM, Kiss Radio or variants may refer to: Asia-Oceania * Various Kiss FM-branded stations in the Philippines ** 95.1 Kiss FM, Lucena, Quezon ** 102.3 Kiss FM, Tagbilaran, Bohol * Kiss92 FM, Singapore * KISS 969, Sri Lanka * Kiss Radio Taiwan ...

- 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 ...

broadcasting a Top 40 (CHR) format serving the

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, area. The station is currently owned by

iHeartMedia iHeartMedia, Inc., formerly CC Media Holdings, Inc., is an American mass media corporation headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It is the holding company of iHeartCommunications, Inc. (formerly Clear Channel Communications, Inc.), a company fou ...

and is licensed to

Crawfordsville, Arkansas Crawfordsville, historically Crawfordville, is a town in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 479 at the 2010 census. Geography Crawfordsville is located near the center of Crittenden County at (35.225741, -90.326318) ...

. The station's studios are located in Southeast Memphis, and the transmitter site is in

West Memphis, Arkansas West Memphis is the largest city in Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 26,245 at the 2010 census, ranking it as the state's 18th largest city, behind Bella Vista. It is part of the Memphis metropolitan area, and is ...

History

The station was previously licensed in

Jonesboro, Arkansas Jonesboro is a city located on Crowley's Ridge in the northeastern corner of the U.S. State of Arkansas. Jonesboro is one of two county seats of Craighead County. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 78,576 and is the f ...

, and was a longtime

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 ...

station since KBTM. On April 28, 1988, after playing "

'65 Love Affair "65 Love Affair" is a song performed by Paul Davis on his album ''Cool Night''. Background This song marked Davis's second single release upon his departure from Bang Records to Arista, the first being "Cool Night". The style of "65 Love Affa ...

" by Paul Davis, the station flipped from

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 " con ...

as "Superhits 102". A year later in 1989, the branding was changed to "Power 102". The frequency was previously located in the Jonesboro market (where it had the call letters KIYS). The station relocated to Crawfordsville where it began to target the

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

area on September 10, 2010. While located in Jonesboro, the station was Top 40 (CHR) as "Kiss FM", owned by Clear Channel Communications (now iHeartMedia) but operated by East Arkansas Broadcasters under a local marketing agreement (LMA). After the 101.9 frequency moved to Crawfordsville, East Arkansas Broadcasting acquired KRLW-FM, which had been at 106.3, moved the frequency over to 101.7 and relaunched the station as "101.7 Kiss FM". The new station signed on September 12, 2010 (after the 101.9 frequency signed off with a 2-day loop redirecting listeners to 101.7) and began serving the Jonesboro market. Clear Channel Communications then affixed the "Radio Now" moniker to 101.9. The station's competition as CHR is primarily WHBQ-FM HD-2 B96.3 and

Hot AC 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 s ...

WMC-FM WMC-FM (99.7 Hertz, MHz, "FM100") is a commercial hot adult contemporary Radio broadcasting, radio station licensed to Memphis, Tennessee, serving the Memphis metropolitan area and much of surrounding West Tennessee, northern Mississippi, and ea ...

, and slightly favors Rhythmic hits to target teens and young adults. On March 7, 2014, at 5pm, KWNW rebranded back to "101.9 Kiss FM", restoring the Kiss FM brand to the frequency for the first time since its days in Jonesboro. Radio Now signed off with "

It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" is an R&B song written by Motown husband-and-wife songwriting team Freddie Perren and Christine Yarian for the 1975 film ''Cooley High''. In the film, the song is performed by Motown artist G.C. Cameron, ...

" by

Boyz II Men Boyz II Men (pronounced ''boys to men''), also known as B2M, is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are currently a trio composed of baritone Nathan M ...

, while the first song as the revived Kiss FM was "

Kiss Kiss Kiss Kiss may refer to: Books * ''Kiss Kiss'' (book), a collection of short stories by Roald Dahl Music * Kiss Kiss (band), an American indie rock band * "Kiss Kiss" (Chris Brown song) * "Kiss Kiss" (Kim Hyun-joong song) * "Kiss Kiss" (Ladies' ...

" by

Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...

. On April 29, 2020 KWNW added ''

Elvis Duran and the Morning Show Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

'' to their lineup.

History of call letters

The call letters KWNW were previously assigned to an AM station in Wenatchee, Washington. A Don Lee Network affiliate, it began broadcasting June 15, 1948 on 1340 kHz with 250 W power. That station was owned by Apple-Land Broadcasters, Incorporated.

References

External links

Official Website
* {{IHeartMedia WNW Contemporary hit radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1979 1979 establishments in Arkansas IHeartMedia radio stations