| |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Kansas City Metropolitan Area |
| Frequency | 94.9MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 94.9 KCMO |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Classic hits |
| Subchannels | HD2: "102.5 Jack FM" (adult hits) |
| Affiliations | United Stations Radio Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KCFX,KCHZ,KCJK,KCMO (AM),KMJK | |
| History | |
First air date | February1948 (as KCFM) |
Former call signs |
|
Call sign meaning | Kansas City, Missouri |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 6385 |
| Class | C0 |
| ERP | 100,000 watts |
| HAAT | 341.1 meters (1,119 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 39°05′26″N94°28′18″W / 39.09056°N 94.47167°W /39.09056; -94.47167 |
| Translator(s) | HD2: 102.5 K273BZ (Bonner Springs) |
| Links | |
| Webcast | |
| Website | |
KCMO-FM (94.9MHz, "94-9 KCMO") is acommercial radio stationlicensed toShawnee, Kansas, and serving theKansas City metropolitan area. The station is owned byCumulus Broadcasting and airs aclassic hitsradio format, switching to all-Christmas music from mid-November to December 25. KCMO-FM's studios and offices are located in the Corporate Woods area inOverland Park, Kansas. Thetransmitter is off Menown Avenue inIndependence, Missouri.[1]
KCMO-FM broadcasts in theHD Radio format, with its HD2 signal airing anadult hits format, known as "102.5Jack FM", which issimulcast on 250 watttranslatorK273BZ at 102.5 MHz.[2]
One of the first FM stations in Kansas City, KCMO-FMsigned on as KCFM in February 1948.[3] Itsimulcast KCMO (AM), then at 810 AM. During the "Golden Age of Radio", the stations airedABC Radio Network dramas, comedies, news, sports, game shows, soap operas andbig band broadcasts. The KCMO-FMcall sign was granted in 1950, the first of several times the station would go by that call sign.
TheMeredith Corporation bought KCMO-AM-FM in 1953. On July 23, 1959, as the days of network programming ended, KCMO-AM-FM adopted afull service,middle of the road (MOR) personality format.
On March 16, 1968, KCMO-FM separated its programming from 810 AM, and began airing a mostly instrumentalbeautiful music format as KCMU. In 1974, the station began adding a few vocals to the format and switched its call letters to KCEZ, "EZ 95".
In 1983, the Meredith Corporation sold KCMO-AM-FM to Richard Fairbanks, a one-time owner of what is nowWXIA-TV inAtlanta, Georgia, and the head of Fairbanks Broadcasting.[4]
On October 10, 1983, the station adopted acountry music format as "KC 95".[5] The KCMO-FM call sign returned in 1984. The station gained attention when one of itsbillboards appeared in aPsychedelic Furs music video. Fairbanks sold both stations in 1985 to the Summit Communications Group. Summit changed KCMO-FM to adance-leaningTop 40 format as KBKC, "B95", on July 26, 1985. The first song as "B95" was "Start Me Up" byThe Rolling Stones.[6][7]
TheGannett Company bought the station in 1986, and shifted the station to a more adult-friendlymainstream Top 40 format as "Power 95” KCPW, on August 25 of that year.[8][9][10] During this period, Dick Wilson began as the morning host. Wilson would continue to host mornings on the frequency until 2017.[11]
On July 28, 1989, at 5 p.m., after playing "Don't Wanna Lose You" byGloria Estefan, KCPW flipped to anoldies format as "Oldies 95", with the third use of the KCMO-FM call sign acquired days before the switch. The first song on "Oldies 95" was "Kansas City" byWilbert Harrison.[12][13]
Another oldies station serving Kansas City,WHB (then at 710 AM), saw most of its listeners switch over to KCMO-FM in a matter of months, prompting that station's conversion to farm radio.
In 1993, Gannett sold KCMO-AM-FM toBonneville International, which also ownedKMBZ and KLTH (nowKZPT). Four years later, Bonneville sold all four of its Kansas City stations together with three radio stations inSeattle toEntercom Communications.[14]
Susquehanna Radio bought KCMO-AM-FM from Entercom in 2000, as Entercom was forced to sell the KCMO stations after its purchase ofSinclair Broadcast Group's radio stationsKQRC,KXTR andKCIY, which left Entercom with two stations over theFederal Communications Commission's single-market ownership limit.[15] Susquehanna subsequently merged withCumulus Media in mid-2006.
KCMO-FM enjoyed strong ratings throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. In 2005, management became concerned that the name "oldies" appealed to older listeners, less attractive to advertisers. Ratings were not an issue, as the station was often in the top 10. The station dropped its "oldies" moniker in April 2005 and shifted to its current classic hits format, playing only music from the mid-1960s to the early-1980s.
In the mid-2010s, KCMO began playing hits from the early 1990s, and scaled back on music recorded before the 1970s. Today, the station's playlist focuses mainly on music from the 1980s.
On February 14, 2011, the station turned on its HD2 sub-channel and launched an all-comedy format branded as "Funny 102.5". It is also heard ontranslator station K273BZ (102.5 FM), hence the 102.5 in the moniker.[16] On January 2, 2013, 102.5 FM flipped tosports talk, branded as "102.5 The Fan".[17]
On August 15, 2014, at 3 p.m., the station abruptly dropped the sports format in the middle of a sports update, and began a 7-minute countdown. After the countdown, 102.5/94.9-HD2 became one of the firstnetwork affiliates of the new Cumulus-owned "Nash Icon" format as102.5 Nash Icon, playing country hits from the 1980s, 90s and early 2000s. "Nash Icon" began with "Wagon Wheel" byDarius Rucker.[18]
On November 2, 2015, at midnight, after playing "You Ain't Much Fun" byToby Keith, 102.5/94.9-HD2 changed its format toalternative rock, branded as "102.5 The Underground", beginning with "Kansas City" byThe New Basement Tapes. With the change, 102.5/94.9-HD2 became the first Nash/Nash Icon station to drop the format.[19]
On June 15, 2016, at 7:30 a.m., after playing "Up&Up" byColdplay, 102.5/94.9-HD2 swapped formats with co-ownedKCJK, adopting that station'sadult hits format, and rebranded as "102.5Jack FM", while the alternative format moved to KCJK. The first song after the move was "Start Me Up" byThe Rolling Stones.[20]
39°05′28″N94°28′19″W / 39.091°N 94.472°W /39.091; -94.472