| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | San Francisco Bay Area |
| Frequency | 97.3MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | Alice 97.3 |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Hot adult contemporary |
| Subchannels | HD2:Channel Q |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KCBS,KFRC-FM,KGMZ-FM,KITS,KRBQ | |
| History | |
First air date | September 14, 1947; 78 years ago (1947-09-14) |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | "Alice" |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 9624 |
| Class | B |
| ERP | 82,000 watts |
| HAAT | 309 meters (1,014 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 37°51′3″N122°29′51″W / 37.85083°N 122.49750°W /37.85083; -122.49750 |
| Repeater | See § FM Booster |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen live (via Audacy) |
| Website | www |
KLLC (97.3FM,Alice 97.3) is acommercial radio station located inSan Francisco, California, and broadcasting to theSan Francisco Bay Area, owned byAudacy, Inc. The station's studios and offices are co-located with formerly co-ownedKPIX-TV on Battery Street in downtown San Francisco, and itstransmitter is off Wolfback Ridge Road on Mount Beacon in theMarin Headlands nearSausalito, California.
The 97.3 MHz frequencysigned on the air as KWBR-FM, dedicated September 14, 1947. The station was owned by the Warner Brothers ofOakland (of no relation to the film studio), with studios and transmitter on the side of Twin Peaks. It was asister station of KWBR AM (earlier known as KLS and the current dayKMKY1310 AM.[2] After changing its call letters to KGSF in 1949, the station was sold in 1952 to the Electronic Service Corporation and managed by Stephen Cisler, who also ownedKEAR (1550 AM) inSan Mateo, and renamed KXKX. The two stations broadcast the same classical music format. In 1956, struggling financially, Cisler sold KEAR but retained KXKX and the KEAR call letters, moving the KEAR call letters to the FM frequency.
Family Radio acquired KEAR in 1959 and aired its Christian religious programming on the frequency for nearly 20 years. On September 13, 1978, Family Radio purchased a much stronger frequency, which saw KEAR and the religious format move to106.9, as part of a three-way deal that also saw KCBS-FM move from98.9 MHz to 97.3 MHz. KCBS-FM, known as "97K", programmed ahot adult contemporary format. Over the years, the station evolved in more of aclassic hits direction. For a time, 97K aired thesyndicatedAmerican Top 40, a countdown show starringCasey Kasem.
On January 25, 1982, at midnight, KCBS-FM became KRQR "The Bay Area Rocker", with a hard-edgedalbum-oriented rock (AOR) format, to compete against leading rock stationKMEL. The first song played under the KRQR call sign was "I'm a Rocker" byBruce Springsteen. KRQR's harder approach helped start a long run as a dominant rock station.
1982 was a busy year for Bay Area rock stations. In May of that year,KSFX dropped rock and went to a talk format asKGO-FM. A month later, on August 23,KQAK switched to rock as "The Quake". The following month,KFOG droppedbeautiful music for a more eclectic mix of rock. Even with four AOR stations in San Francisco, in addition to two more in San Jose, KRQR still dominated amidst the stiff competition. KQAK was the first to give up, dropping AOR formodern rock in April 1983.[3] KRQR and KFOG then competed with the tightly-formatted KMEL, which flipped toCHR in 1984.
KRQR's rock format continued throughout the 1980s and up to 1993, when it moved to more of aclassic rock direction. By 1995, the hard rock format was in decline across the country, asmodern rock was on the rise. To combat this, the station evolved back to a more current direction in February 1996.[4] However, this failed to turn around ratings; at 3 p.m. on June 5, 1996, KRQR flipped toKLLC, "Alice 97.3," with aModern AC format. The flip to "Alice" made the station one of the first in the U.S. to air the format. KLLC gradually evolved intoHot AC by 2010.[5]
On February 2, 2017, CBS Radio announced it would merge withEntercom.[6] The merger was approved on November 9, 2017, and was consummated on November 17.[7][8]
The station's most popular show has been in weekday morning drive. Originally known as "The Sarah and Vinnie Show", it was hosted by Sarah Clark (also known as Sarah Emily Lyman) and Vinnie Hasson (then known as Vinnie Crackhorn), until he was fired in 2002 due to problems with alcohol. After a several month search for a replacement for Vinnie, the station selected Mike Nelson (also known as "The DJ with No Name," to become the co-host of the renamed "Sarah and No-Name Show."[9] After 6 years, Nelson was let go by station management on July 17, 2008, who announced that Vinnie would re-team with Sarah starting on August 4, 2008, returning the show's name to "The Sarah and Vinnie Show."[10] Nelson later returned to his previous station,Live 105, as the host of the morning show before becoming a part ofKFOG's morning show in 2015.[9]
KLLC is rebroadcast on the following FM Booster:
| Call sign | Frequency | City of license | FID | ERP (W) | HAAT | Class | FCC info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KLLC-FM2 | 97.3FM | Pleasanton, California | 178408 | 4,800 (Vert.) | −55 m (−180 ft) | D | LMS |
KLLC broadcasts in theHD Radio format. Its HD2 subchannel originally carried anautomatedchill music format, known as "Chill with Alice." According to the radio industry website RadioStats.Net, KLLC has the most-visited site of its kind in the United States.
On October 11, 2018, KLLC-HD2 switched toRadio.com'sLGBTQtalk andEDMdance music format, branded as "Out Now."[11] On November 1, 2018, the station rebranded as "Channel Q".
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The station sponsors three seasonal concerts each year: the free "Summerthing" show in June and the "Now and Zen Fest" in September, both inGolden Gate Park, and "Alice in Winterland" in December. Featured acts have includedAlanis Morissette,Duran Duran,Five for Fighting,Smash Mouth, andTrain. Up until 2009 recordings from the concerts and other live appearances on the station were collected into the annual "This is Alice Music" CD, which was sold to raise funds donated to Breast cancer research and treatment charities.