WDAF-FM

WDAF-FM (106.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Liberty, Missouri, and serving the Kansas City metropolitan area. Owned by Entercom Communications, the station airs a country music radio format, branded as "106.5 The Wolf." Studios and offices are located on Squibb Road in Mission, Kansas.

WDAF-FM
CityLiberty, Missouri
Broadcast areaKansas City metropolitan area
Frequency106.5 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding106-5 The Wolf
Slogan"#1 for New Country"
"Radio Home of the Chiefs"
Programming
FormatFM/HD1: Country
HD2: KCSP
Ownership
OwnerEntercom
(Entercom License, LLC)
KCSP, KMBZ, KMBZ-FM, KQRC, KRBZ, KWOD, KZPT
History
First air date
May 8, 1978 (as KFIX)
Former call signs
KFIX (1978-1979)
KSAS (1979-1983)
KKCI (1983-1986)
KLYT (1986-1988)
KXXR (1988-1992)
KKCJ (1992-1995)
KCIY (1995-2003)
Technical information
Facility ID8609
ClassC1
ERP100,000 watts
HAAT299 meters (981 ft)
Links
WebcastListen Live
Website1065TheWolf.com

WDAF-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 100,000 watts.[1] The transmitter is located on Wallace Avenue in east Kansas City, Missouri, near Interstate 435.[2] WDAF-FM broadcasts in the HD Radio format; its HD2 subchannel carries co-owned sports radio station KCSP.

History

Early Years

106.5 FM signed on the air on May 8, 1978, as KFIX-FM.[3] It was the FM counterpart to AM 1140 KFIX (now KCXL), and was owned by Investments, Inc. KFIX-FM aired an Adult Top 40 format, with news updates from the NBC Radio Network. Prior to the official sign-on, test transmissions carried the call sign KSAB (standing for "Strauss-Abernathy Broadcasting").

SW Radio Enterprises took over in 1979, flipping the format on November 19, changing call letters to KSAS, branded as "SAS ​106 1⁄2". KSAS was a progressive rock station, in contrast to the more mainstream album oriented rock (AOR) format of top rock station KYYS (now KCKC). Golden East Broadcasting bought the station in March 1982. In March 1983, the station decided to take KYYS head-on, flipping to album rock, and changing the call letters to KKCI. Longtime Kansas City DJ Randy Miller made his first market appearance at KKCI.

Transcolumbia bought the station in 1985. On January 10, 1986, after failing to compete against KYYS, KKCI went off the air. Three weeks later, the station signed back on and flipped to a soft adult contemporary format, branded as "K-Lite," and changing the call letters to KLYT.[4] K-Lite tried to compete in a crowded AC field. In November 1987, Olympia Broadcasting bought the station.[5]

KXXR

On July 29, 1988, at 2 p.m., after stunting for three days with a loop of "Kansas City" by The Beatles, KLYT flipped back to AOR, changing call letters to KXXR. Scout Broadcasting, subsidiary of Olympia, owned the station around the time of the flip. The first song under the new rock format (and also the song that ultimately ended the format nearly two years later) was "Roll With It" by Steve Winwood.[6][7][8] The format, dubbed "Today's Rock and Roll", was a combination of rock-friendly CHR hits, hard rock and modern rock. However, like the first time with the format, the second time as a rock station could not topple KYYS.

At 4 p.m. on June 15, 1990, KXXR flipped to a Rhythmic Contemporary format, branded as "X-106." The first song on "X" was "Me So Horny" by 2 Live Crew.[9][10] Capitol Broadcasting bought the station on March 15, 1991, for $2.6 million.[11] By June 1991, the station moved towards a more mainstream Top 40 direction and rebranded to using their call letters once again.[12]

Due to low ratings, the station was about to change formats, but Capitol decided to change course: Country-formatted KCFM (107.3 FM), owned by Meyer Communications, offered to swap frequencies.[13] On February 16, 1992, at Midnight, after playing "2 Legit 2 Quit" by MC Hammer, the frequency swap between the two stations took place, with KXXR moving to 107.3 FM, and KCFM’s country format moving to 106.5.[14][15]

KKCJ and KCIY

After the frequency swap, 106.5 FM stunted with all-Garth Brooks music for 16 days, then changed its call sign to KKCJ (instituted on March 9) and moniker to "CJ-106". ("CJ" stood for "Country Junction".)[16][17] Capitol continued to own the station, while Sconnix, which owned country music rival KFKF, entered into a local marketing agreement (LMA) to run KKCJ as well. KKCJ was meant to be a younger-audience complement to KFKF, which targeted a more middle-aged audience. However, the station could not compete against WDAF and KBEQ (which flipped from Top 40 in February 1993). In addition, Sconnix’s LMA with KKCJ would end as EZ Communications purchased both KFKF and KBEQ.[18][19]

On March 10, 1995, at Midnight, after Heritage Media bought KKCJ, the station began stunting, this time with all-polka and Hootie & The Blowfish music. During the last two hours of the stunting, the station also aired modern rock music. On March 30, at 10 a.m., the station flipped to a smooth jazz format, branded as "106.5 The City."[20] The first song on "The City" was "Smooth Operator" by Sade.[21] On April 21, the station changed call letters to KCIY, to better fit the "City" moniker.

Sinclair bought the station in 1997, with Entercom taking over in 2000. KCIY became the top soft music station in the market around this time. However, it came at the expense of co-owned KUDL, which aired a mainstream adult contemporary format.

WDAF-FM

In the summer of 2003, Entercom announced it would start a sports talk format on 610 AM, the former WDAF. After a lengthy decision over which radio station to put the AM's country format (which involved sister station KRBZ almost being killed off for it, only to have an executive order issued by Entercom corporate management in response to overwhelming listener turnout halting that), it was announced that KCIY would flip back to country.[22] At Noon on August 10, 2003, after a 6-hour farewell show (and playing "Neither One of Us" by Gladys Knight & the Pips), WDAF began simulcasting on both 610 AM and 106.5 FM, for a one-month period until the sports talk format on 610 AM finally debuted on September 10.[23][24]

The WDAF call letters were officially moved over on August 22. (There had been a previous WDAF-FM in Kansas City from 1961 to 1974, at 102.1 MHz, now KCKC.) On January 10, 2007, WDAF-FM rebranded as "106.5 the Wolf."[25] WDAF-FM continues in Kansas City's three-way country radio station battle, along with KFKF-FM and KBEQ-FM, both owned by Steel City Media.

On December 5, 2019, it was announced that WDAF-FM would become the flagship radio station of the Kansas City Chiefs with the start of the 2020 season, directly off their win in Super Bowl LIV, after the expiration of a thirty-year deal with Cumulus Media's KCFX (101.1). Sister station KCSP will additionally carry wrap-around coaches and players programming.[26]

See also

References
  1. FCC.gov/WDAF-FM
  2. Radio-Locator.com/WDAF-FM
  3. Broadcasting Yearbook 1979 page C-129
  4. https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1986/RR-1986-01-03.pdf
  5. "Sale of KLTY-FM to bring changes", The Kansas City Star, July 26, 1988.
  6. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1988/RR-1988-07-29.pdf
  7. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1980s/1988/RR-1988-08-05.pdf
  8. Barry Garron, "FM station tries for new beat", The Kansas City Star, July 29, 1988.
  9. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1990/RR-1990-06-22.pdf
  10. "Kansas stations could move to KC", The Kansas City Star, June 16, 1990.
  11. "Radio station is sold for $2.6 million", The Kansas City Star, March 27, 1991.
  12. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/90s/1991/BB-1991-06-15.pdf
  13. "KXXR and KFKF to be country cousins", The Kansas City Star, February 6, 1992.
  14. "KXXR will move down, not off, the dial", The Kansas City Star, February 8, 1992.
  15. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1992/RR-1992-02-14.pdf
  16. Barry Garron, "KFKF radio coup won't serve public", The Kansas City Star, February 15, 1992.
  18. Brian McTavish, "KKCJ-FM sale cuts into country", The Kansas City Star, February 25, 1995.
  19. https://groups.google.com/g/rec.radio.broadcasting/c/lVqzem3qCno?pli=1
  20. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1995/RR-1995-04-07.pdf
  21. Brian McTavish, "Station's new sounds tune up to mainstream jazz", The Kansas City Star, March 31, 1995.
  22. "Radio station to drop 'smooth jazz' format", The Kansas City Star, July 19, 2003.
  23. http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/2000s/2003/RR-2003-08-15.pdf
  24. "106.5 The City" Becomes "Country 106.5 WDAF"
  25. WDAF-FM Becomes "The Wolf"
  26. Kerkhoff, Blair (5 December 2019). "Chiefs flagship radio station and broadcast partner moving on the dial in 2020". Kansas City Star. Retrieved 5 February 2020.

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