KYGO-FM (98.5
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 ...
in
Denver, Colorado
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, United States. The
Bonneville International 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, ...
station has an
effective radiated power
Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would h ...
(ERP) of 100,000
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 ...
s. Its studios are located in
Greenwood Village
The City of Greenwood Village is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 15,691 at the 2020 United States Census. Greenwood Village is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Met ...
, and the
transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the ...
is on Mestaa’ehehe Mountain in
Idaho Springs
The City of Idaho Springs is the Statutory City that is the most populous municipality in Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States. Idaho Springs is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 201 ...
.
KYGO-FM is Colorado's secondary (LP-2)
Emergency Alert System
The Emergency Alert System (EAS) is a national warning system in the United States designed to allow authorized officials to broadcast emergency alerts and warning messages to the public via cable, satellite, or broadcast television, and bot ...
station.
AM 850
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
* i ...
KOA
KOA (short for Kampgrounds of America) is an American franchise of privately owned campgrounds. Having more than 500 locations across the United States and Canada, it is the world's largest system of privately owned campgrounds. It was founded in ...
is the primary (LP-1) station.
The radio station broadcasts in the
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 ...
format. The HD2 subchannel broadcasts
classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country and western music hits from past decades.
Repertoire
The radio format specializes in hits from the 1950s through the early 1980s, and focus primarily on inn ...
music as "KYGO Legendary Country." The HD3 subchannel
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 ...
s the
Contemporary Christian format heard on
KTLF
KTLF (90.5 FM ''The Light'') is a radio station broadcasting a Contemporary Worship format. The station first signed on the air February 27, 1989 at 89.7 FM, originally broadcasting an Inspirational/Soft Christian Music/Praise & Worship format. ...
in
Colorado Springs.
History
KFML-FM and KIMN-FM
The station
signed on
Signing may refer to:
* Using sign language
* Signature, placing one's name on a document
* Signature (disambiguation)
* Manual communication, signing as a form of communication using the hands in place of the voice
* Digital signature
A digi ...
the air on December 1, 1953 as KFML-FM. It was owned by Everett A. Bancker, Jr. and was the FM counterpart to KFML (1390 AM, now
KGNU
KGNU (1390 AM) & KGNU-FM (88.5 FM) are a pair of community radio stations licensed to Denver and Boulder, Colorado respectively. KGNU is owned by Boulder Community Broadcast Association, Inc.
History KFML
1390 AM was first licensed on April 4, ...
). Because the AM station was a
daytimer
A clear-channel station is an AM radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. The system exists to ensure the viability of cross-co ...
, listeners could continue to hear its programming after sunset on KFML-FM.
Following the sale of the station to
Jefferson-Pilot Broadcasting in 1974, the station took the KIMN-FM
call sign
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 ass ...
. (The callsign
KIMN
KIMN (100.3 FM) is a commercial radio station in Denver, Colorado. The station is owned by Stan Kroenke's KSE Radio Ventures and airs a Hot AC radio format. Studios and offices are located on Colorado Boulevard in Glendale, and the transmitte ...
currently resides at 100.3 FM in Denver, though that station is owned by
Kroenke Sports & Entertainment.)
At first, KIMN-FM aired a softer
album rock
Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM radio format created in the United States in the 1970s that focuses on the full repertoire of rock albums and is currently associated with classic rock.
Album-orient ...
format while KIMN (950 AM, now
KKSE) aired 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. KIMN-FM later started playing Top 40 music, similar to its AM
sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement.
Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...
. In the 1970s, there were a couple of country & western AM stations in Denver, though the music was not heard on FM, even though country was making inroads on FM stations in other cities.
Switch to KYGO Country
On July 7, 1980, 98.5 switched its call letters to KYGO; later that year, the station changed formats from contemporary hits to country music. Bob Call, previously with country-formatted
WSOC-FM in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...
, supervised the change. When he started at WSOC-FM, he said he knew little about country music, but learned fast. In 2006, as part of
Lincoln Financial Media's acquisition of Jefferson-Pilot (including the J-P media properties), KYGO became a Lincoln Financial Media station.
On April 26, 1988, the station slightly changed its call letters to KYGO-FM. At the same time, AM 950 switched its call sign to KYGO, and began airing a
classic country
Classic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country and western music hits from past decades.
Repertoire
The radio format specializes in hits from the 1950s through the early 1980s, and focus primarily on inn ...
format, to be a companion to FM 98.5's more contemporary country direction.
In 2007, KYGO-FM was named "Country Music Station of the Year" in a top 25 market by ''
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 ...
'' magazine. Other nominees included
WUSN Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...
,
WYCD
WYCD (99.5 FM, "New Country 99-5 YCD") is a radio station in Detroit, Michigan, owned by Audacy, Inc. WYCD's offices and studios are located at Audacy's Detroit facility on American Drive in Southfield, Michigan. WYCD's transmitter is located in ...
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
,
KEEY-FM Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...
,
WXTU Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
, and
KSON-FM San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
.
Ownership change
On December 8, 2014,
Entercom announced it would purchase
Lincoln Financial Group
Lincoln National Corporation is a ''Fortune'' 200 American holding company, which operates multiple insurance and investment management businesses through subsidiary companies. Lincoln Financial Group is the marketing name for LNC and its sub ...
's entire 15-station lineup (including KYGO) in a $106.5 million deal. It operated the outlets under a
local marketing agreement
In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...
(LMA). On December 22, 2014, Entercom confirmed it would retain KYGO and its country format. The FCC approved the deal on June 26, 2015.
However, on July 14, 2015, the
Department of Justice ruled that Entercom was over ownership and total market revenue limits in the Denver market; as a result, Entercom decided to spin off KYGO,
KOSI
KOSI (101.1 FM) is a commercial radio station in Denver, Colorado. KOSI is owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International and airs an adult contemporary music format. Its studios and offices are located on East Orchard Road in Green ...
,
KKFN and
KEPN
KEPN (1600 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to Lakewood, Colorado, and serving the Denver metropolitan area. It is owned by Salt Lake City–based Bonneville International with studios and located in Greenwood Village, and the tran ...
to
Bonneville International in exchange for Bonneville's
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
station KSWD (now
KKLQ). Both Bonneville and Entercom began operating their new clusters via Time Brokerage Agreements on July 17, 2015. The transaction was consummated on November 24, 2015.
Taylor Swift incident
KYGO hired David Mueller as a
DJ in January 2013.
Mueller co-hosted the ''Ryno and Jackson'' morning show.
On June 2, 2013, Mueller attended a meet-and-greet event before a
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bo ...
concert at the
Pepsi Center. While having her photograph taken with Mueller, Swift alleged that he reached under her skirt and groped her. Though Mueller denied touching Swift inappropriately, KYGO-FM General Manager Robert Call fired him on June 4. Mueller sued Swift in September 2015 for loss of income, alleging that her allegation had led to his wrongful termination. Swift sued Mueller the next month. A civil trial began August 7, 2017.
A jury found Mueller liable for
assault
An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in cr ...
and
battery
Battery most often refers to:
* Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power
* Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact
Battery may also refer to:
Energy source
*Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
and awarded Swift one dollar, the amount she had sought.
References
External links
*
*
*
State of Colorado Emergency Alert System
{{Bonneville International
YGO-FM
Bonneville International