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| Broadcast area | Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex |
| Frequency | 107.5MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | La Grande 107.5 |
| Programming | |
| Language | Spanish |
| Format | Regional Mexican |
| Subchannels | HD2:Tejano music ("Fierro") |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
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| History | |
First air date | February 18, 1965 (1965-02-18) |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | previous "Movin'" format |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 23440 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 17,000 watts |
| HAAT | 574.2 meters (1,884 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 32°35′02″N96°57′48″W / 32.58389°N 96.96333°W /32.58389; -96.96333 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast |
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| Website | |
KMVK (107.5 FM, "La Grande 107.5") is a commercial radio stationlicensed toFort Worth, Texas and serving theDallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The station is owned and operated byAudacy, Inc. KMVK broadcasts inSpanish and airs aradio format featuringregional Mexican music. The station's studios are located alongNorth Central Expressway inUptown Dallas and thetransmitter site is inCedar Hill.[2]
KMVK has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 17,000 watts. Its signal is limited in that most Dallas-Fort Worth area FM stations run at 100,000 watts, but KMVK broadcasts from a tall tower at 574.2 meters (1,884 feet) in height above average terrain (HAAT), which helps improve coverage in the surrounding suburbs of Dallas and Fort Worth. The station broadcasts inHD; its HD2 signal carries aTejano music format known as "Fierro", whileLatin pop music was heard on its HD3 signal, known as "Dale!". The HD3 signal has since been turned off.
On February 18, 1965, the stationsigned on the air as KNOK-FM, anR&B andsoul music station.[3] It simulcasted its AMsister station KNOK (nowKHVN), with both stations owned by the Chatham Corporation. The station was later sold toBlack Enterprise magazine founderEarl G. Graves Sr. under the company name EGG Dallas Broadcasting Inc. (EGG are Graves' initials). KNOK-FM originally broadcast with 100,000 watts but from a tower only 450 feet inheight above average terrain. In 1985, the station became KDLZ while retaining its R&B format. The coverage area was increased and the studios were moved to Cedar Hill after the original studios in Fort Worth were destroyed by fire.[4]
In December 1988, Gilmore Broadcasting purchased KDLZ. On December 23 of that year, Gilmore picked up theeasy listening format and KMEZcall letters from 100.3 FM (nowKJKK) and moved them to 107.5.[5] The station was then sold to Granum Communications in 1991; on July 4 of that year, Granum flipped the station and format to KCDU ("CD 107.5") with a short-livedclassic rock format.[6] ASmooth Jazz format began on November 2, 1992, moving over from 106.1 FM (nowKHKS). The smooth jazz station took the call letters KOAI as "The Oasis". (TheKMEZ call letters are now assigned to aNew Orleans station, which airs anurban adult contemporary format).[7] In 1996, KOAI was one of three radio stations that fell victim to the radio tower collapse inCedar Hill on October 12 of that year. KOAI, as well as sister stations KRBV (now KJKK) and KYNG (nowKRLD-FM), scrambled to get their stations back on the air through an auxiliary tower. "The Oasis"' ratings seemed to escape unscathed in the Fall ratings book that year, but the fate was not as good at the other two stations.[8]
"107.5 The Oasis" remained on air until October 2, 2006, at 5 pm, when KOAI flipped torhythmic adult contemporary as "MOViN' 107.5."[9] "The Oasis" then moved to 107.5 HD-2 (and today, is on an HD sub-channel ofKVIL). The station's logo and branding was identical toMOViN' radio station KVMX (nowKXJM) inPortland (then owned by CBS Radio, but is now owned byiHeartMedia). The initial format change to "MOViN'" caused a lot of criticism by listeners of "The Oasis", many of them demanded that the smooth jazz format be reinstated on the traditional signal. On October 9, KOAI changed call letters to KMVK to match the "MOViN'" branding.[10]
On February 17, 2009, at noon, after playing "Vogue" byMadonna, KMVK flipped to a Spanishhot adult contemporary format as "Mega 107.5".[11] In 2010, KMVK shifted to a Spanishrhythmic contemporary format (similar to its MOViN' predecessor) with a few English-language hits.[12] It competed head-on withKESS-FM (La Kalle 107.9) for over two years, until that station's owner,Univision Radio, switched it to a simulcast ofKDXX, leaving KMVK the onlyLatin pop-formatted station in the Metroplex for a short time. In late June 2012, it gained another competitor from Univision Radio withKDXX.
By mid-summer 2012, the Metroplex had three Spanish-language CHR stations and three English-language CHR outlets, with one of those English-language stations targeted towards Latino listeners. The former "La Kalle 107.9" fromUnivision Radio changed KESS (nowKFZO) to "Radio H2O" in late June 2012.KTCY (previously owned byLiberman, now owned byEMF) was one of its short-term competitors until February 8, 2013, when that station's format was changed.
On March 8, the station's website displayed a message stating "Todo va a cambiar!" (Translation: Everything will change!), hinting at a possible format flip in the near future. However, the next morning, it was nothing more than aDaylight saving time announcement.[13]
On May 21, CBS hinted at a possible format flip on either KMVK orKRLD-FM to "AMP Radio", much like itsLos AngelesCHR/Top 40 sister stationKAMP-FM, having registered three web domains.[14] This format change instead happened four years later in 2016, when sisterKVIL evolved to Top 40, though they would flip to alternative the following year.
On July 26, KMVK did flip formats, though to aregional Mexican format as "La Grande 107.5",[15] making it the third format flip since 2006. The Latin pop format is now heard on the KMVK's third HD Radio sub-channel.
On February 2, 2017, CBS Radio announced it would merge with Entercom (now known as Audacy).[16] The merger was approved on November 9, and was consummated on November 17.[17][18]
Months after, Entercom struck a new content deal withNBCUniversal–owned-and-operated stationsKXAS-TV (NBC) andKXTX-TV (Telemundo). The latter will partner with KMVK to bring enhanced Spanish-language news, weather and entertainment information to its listeners, in addition to the current regional Mexican music format.[19]
In early 2006, 107.5 HD2 began as atraditional jazz format to complement "The Oasis" before the station's smooth jazz format was relocated to the sub-channel.
On November 11, 2015, KMVK-HD2 began airing aTejano music format under the name "Fierro" while "The Oasis" relocated to sister station KVIL on 103.7 HD2.[20] "Fierro" also airs hourly news headlines in English via theTexas State Network.
In early February 2016, KMVK launched an HD-3 subchannel, originally named "Mega 107.5 HD3" using the slogan "Numero Uno En Exitos" (English translation: "Number One in Hits"), broadcasting a Latin pop format that previously aired on KMVK's main frequency from 2010 to 2013. On 2018, the channel was renamed "Dale!" (Spanish for "Go ahead") while keeping the current Latin pop format. As of November 2023, the HD3 channel has been discontinued with no programming replacement.