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KIIS-FM (102.7 MHz) 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 ...
licensed to
Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
, United States, and broadcasts 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 Co ...
area. The station airs 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 ...
format. 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 ...
, KIIS-FM is the origin of the conglomerate's KISS-FM brand (with the call sign pronounced as "kiss"), and serves as the
flagship station In broadcasting, a flagship (also known as a flagship station or key station) is the broadcast station which originates a television network, or a particular radio or television program that plays a key role in the branding of and consumer loyalt ...
for the radio program '' On Air with Ryan Seacrest''. KIIS-FM's studios are located in Burbank, while the station transmitter resides on Mount Wilson, north of Los Angeles. In addition to a standard
analog transmission Analog transmission is a transmission method of conveying information using a continuous signal which varies in amplitude, phase, or some other property in proportion to that information. It could be the transfer of an analog signal, using an an ...
, KIIS-FM broadcasts over two
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 ...
channels including "
Evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
" on its HD2 subchannel, featuring an all-
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 da ...
format; streaming online via
iHeartRadio iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbrella brand for iHe ...
; and extends its on-air signal by using a single full-power
repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Som ...
, KVVS (105.5 FM) in
Rosamond, California Rosamond is a unincorporated community in Kern County, California, US, near the Los Angeles county line. Rosamond is part of Greater Los Angeles and is located in the Mojave Desert just north of Lancaster and Palmdale, two of the largest c ...
. The station also
simulcasted 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 ...
over channel 11, and later channel 14 on
Sirius XM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius Sat ...
satellite radio until June 2022. KIIS-FM has consistently been rated the number-one radio station in the Los Angeles/ Orange County and
Ventura County Ventura County () is a County (United States), county in Southern California, the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, California ...
markets, averaging nearly one million listeners. Currently its secondary
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 ...
subchannel merely serves to delay KIIS-FM's primary audio by ten seconds. As of December 2021, KIIS-FM is the only top 40 station in the Los Angeles area, after Audacy's KNOU flipped to a simulcast of KNX and changed its callsign to
KNX-FM KNX-FM (97.1 MHz, "KNX News 97.1 FM") is a commercial radio station in Los Angeles, California, United States. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs an all-news radio format in a full-time simulcast with KNX (1070 AM). The station has ...
.


History


KLAC/KRHM

The station at the 102.7 FM frequency first signed on in 1961 as KLAC-FM, a sister station to
KLAC KLAC (570 AM) is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, serving Greater Los Angeles and much of surrounding Southern California. Owned by a joint venture between iHeartMedia, Inc. and the Los Angeles Dodgers b ...
(570 AM). It swapped frequencies with KRHM (which had gone on the air at 94.7 FM in 1948 as KFMV) in 1965.


KKDJ/K-Double-I-S

KRHM changed its call sign to KKDJ and flipped to
contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...
(CHR, also known as top 40) on April 15, 1971. The format lasted until 1975, when Combined Communications purchased KKDJ. The station's format was changed to
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 ...
on October 22, 1975 at 6:00 a.m., during
Charlie Tuna Arthur W. Ferguson (April 18, 1944 – February 19, 2016), known professionally as Charlie Tuna, was a radio personality and television host based in Los Angeles, California. Career Radio At age 16, Tuna began working at his hometown's radio s ...
's morning show when KKDJ began
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, simul ...
ing with KIIS (1150 AM) with an on-air mock wedding, with KKDJ "marrying" KIIS. Meanwhile, KKDJ's call letters were changed to KIIS-FM. The spelling of "K-I-I-S" instead of KISS was because it resembled the AM frequency: "1150" = "IIS". The new merged station was referred to as, "AM and FM, K-double-I-S." Making the transition from KKDJ to KIIS-FM were popular
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 DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobil ...
s including Humble Harve, Jay Stevens, John Peters, Danny Martinez, and Charlie Tuna. Tuna, an iconic voice of Los Angeles radio, served as both program director and morning show host for KKDJ and KIIS-FM at the transition; he died in February 2016. In 1977, KIIS-FM hired Gary McKenzie as its news director; later, he went on to anchor at RKO Radio Networks and CBS. The AM and FM stations did simulcasts during the day while returning to two separate stations in the evening hours.


102.7 KIIS-FM

Unable to draw high ratings with adult contemporary, KIIS-FM began to evolve, first to top 40 in 1976, then dance and
disco music Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric piano ...
in 1978, and back to top 40 in 1980. KIIS (AM) would keep its soft rock/AC format until late 1979. Just prior to this,
Gannett Company Gannett Co., Inc. () is an American mass media holding company headquartered in McLean, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.religious talk and new call letters KPRZ were adopted. Rick Dees joined the station for mornings in July 1981 after KHJ switched formats to
country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
. Fill-in personality Dave Sebastian (Williams), working both the AM and FM stations at the time, hosted the vacated FM morning show until the arrival of Dees due to a
non-compete clause In contract law, a non-compete clause (often NCC), restrictive covenant, or covenant not to compete (CNC), is a clause under which one party (usually an employee) agrees not to enter into or start a similar profession or trade in competition again ...
in his contract. With Dees in mornings, KIIS became a CHR powerhouse in Los Angeles. In 1985, KIIS (AM) returned to a top 40 format and simulcast KIIS-FM's morning and afternoon shows, while all other dayparts had different disc jockeys. This would last until around 1988, when it transitioned to a full-time simulcast when the
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 jurisdicti ...
(FCC) relaxed the rules on major-market stations simulcasting each other. The simulcast continued until 1997, when the AM station flipped to sports talk as KXTA, simulcasting with XETRA-AM in Tijuana/San Diego until 2005. In a 1996 deal in which Gannett acquired
WTSP WTSP (channel 10) is a television station licensed to St. Petersburg, Florida, United States, serving the Tampa Bay area as an affiliate of CBS. The station is owned by Tegna Inc., and maintains studios on Gandy Boulevard on St. Petersburg' ...
television in the
Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough ...
market from
Jacor 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 Communica ...
, KIIS-AM-FM were acquired by Jacor/Citicasters, which in 1998, merged into Clear Channel Communications (now
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 ...
). After Clear Channel's acquisition of KAVS and KYHT, the two High Desert stations abandoned their previous
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 ...
format and together began serving as repeaters for KIIS-FM. Another simulcast, KIIS (1220 AM) in Santa Clarita, was added in 1999, as well as KFMS (101.9 FM) in
Las Vegas 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 Veg ...
. The grouping of KIIS-FM in Los Angeles, KIIS in Santa Clarita, KAVS (97.7 FM) in the
Antelope Valley The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and ...
, KYHT (105.3 FM) in Barstow
Victor Valley The Victor Valley is a valley in the Mojave Desert and subregion of the Inland Empire, in San Bernardino County in Southern California. It is located east of the Mojave's Antelope Valley, north of the Cajon Pass and the San Bernardino Valle ...
, and KFMS in Las Vegas created nearly continuous coverage of KIIS-FM between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. (KFMS was branded as "KISS" instead of "KIIS".) However, this regional network was short-lived as KYHT broke its simulcast off in 2001 to become a
repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Som ...
for KZXY-FM. Resulting from KYHT's flip from the KIIS-FM moniker, KFMS switched to all-local programming. KAVS was relocated from 97.7 to 105.5 FM in December 2007 and adopted the call sign KVVS. KIIS (AM) became KHTS in 2003. KIIS-FM was also simulcast on
850 AM The following radio stations broadcast on AM frequency 850 kHz: 850 AM is a United States clear-channel frequency. KOA and KICY share Class A status of 850 kHz. In Argentina * La Gauchita in Morón, Buenos Aires In Mexico * ...
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. It is named after the many oak tr ...
in the last year before that station's towers were demolished. In February 2004, the decade-long general manager of KIIS-FM, Roy Laughlin, elected not to renew Rick Dees' contract, replacing him with
Ryan Seacrest Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American media personality and producer. He is the co-host of '' Live with Kelly and Ryan'', as well as the host of multiple media shows including ''American Idol'', ''American Top 40'', and ' ...
from sister station KYSR and retaining co-host
Ellen K Ellen K. (born September 19, 1962) is an American radio personality in the Los Angeles, California market and a television host. She is the host of the Ellen K Radio Show on KOST 103.5 FM, and the nationally-syndicated weekend program ''Ellen K Wee ...
to team with Seacrest. Together, they created the nationally syndicated '' On-Air With Ryan Seacrest'', which airs on many of
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 ...
's top 40/CHR stations. Trade publication ''
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 ...
'' named KIIS-FM its 2007 "Station of the Year" in the contemporary hit radio/top 40 category for market size 1–25 at its national convention. In December 2007, KIIS-FM's Antelope Valley simulcast on
KOSS KOSS (1380 AM, "NewsTalk 1380") is a commercial radio station that is licensed to Lancaster, California and serves the Antelope Valley area. The station is owned by High Desert Broadcasting and broadcasts a news/talk format, featuring programm ...
(97.7 FM) was moved to 105.5 FM, replacing the previous format as "105.5 The Oasis". The
country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
format at 103.1 FM in
Tehachapi, California Tehachapi (; Kawaiisu: ''Tihachipia'', meaning "hard climb") is a city in Kern County, California, United States, in the Tehachapi Mountains, at an elevation of , between the San Joaquin Valley and the Mojave Desert. Tehachapi is east-southeas ...
was moved to 97.7 FM (now operating under 103.1's former call letters KTPI-FM) and is now branded as 97.7 KTPI. KSRY (103.1 FM) in Tehachapi became a simulcast of KYSR (98.7 FM, "Alt 98-7"). The station was, according to ''Radio & Records'' in 2008, the second-highest revenue billing radio station in the United States (behind
WTOP-FM WTOP-FM (103.5 FM) – branded ''WTOP Radio'' and ''WTOP News'' – is a commercial all-news radio station licensed to serve Washington, D.C. Owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, the station serves the Washington metropolitan area, extending its ...
in Washington, D.C.), with $66.3 million. In 2010, the station was honored by the
National Association of Broadcasters The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a trade association and lobby group representing the interests of commercial and non-commercial over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States. The NAB represents more than ...
with the Marconi Award for CHR Station of the Year. On June 8, 2011, KIIS-FM began rebroadcasting on
Sirius XM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. It was formed by the 2008 merger of Sirius Sat ...
channel 11. At the end of 2003, Clear Channel replaced the KIIS simulcast with an exclusive KISS XM channel. In 2004, all XM music channels went commercial-free, and KIIS-FM was replaced with a unique-to-XM "KISS-XM" channel, retaining the same format. Since then, Clear Channel/iHeartMedia has regained the right to air commercials on their XM music channels. On June 1, 2022, the KIIS-FM simulcast left SiriusXM, with the launch and establishment of the
iHeartRadio iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbrella brand for iHe ...
platform making the arrangement less important. In May 2017, Seacrest became co-host of the New York City-based syndicated talk show ''
Live with Kelly ''Live with Kelly and Ryan'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts since ...
''. To accommodate the new role, it was announced that Seacrest would begin to host ''On Air'' from a studio constructed at the facilities of
WABC-TV WABC-TV (channel 7) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios in the Lincoln Square neig ...
(where the TV show is produced). The show continues to air live, although the first hour will either be pre-recorded or handled mostly by co-host Sisanie. On January 3, 2020, it was announced that midday host Alex Gervasi had exited the station after 6 years. Her successor was not formally nominated. This was later followed by DJ Drew on January 16, 2020, as a result of a series of nationwide layoffs by iHeartMedia.


References


External links

* *
SiriusXM.com: KIIS
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