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| Broadcast area | Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex |
| Frequency | 104.5MHz |
| Branding | K104 |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Urban contemporary |
| Affiliations | Compass Media Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Service Broadcasting Corporation |
| KRNB | |
| History | |
First air date | 1947 (1947) |
Former call signs |
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Call sign meaning | Dallas |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 59702 |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 99,000 watts |
| HAAT | 508 meters (1,667 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 32°35′19″N96°58′05″W / 32.58861°N 96.96806°W /32.58861; -96.96806 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | myk104.com |
KKDA-FM (104.5MHz), known on air asK104, is aradio station in theDallas–Fort Worth metroplex broadcasting anurban contemporary format. It is owned by Service Broadcasting Corporation alongsideKRNB. Its studios are located inArlington, Texas,[2] and the transmitter site is inCedar Hill.
104.5 FM began operation on June 8, 1947, asKIXL. KIXL (pronounced "Kicksil") aired a successfulbeautiful music format, simulcast on both 104.5 FM and 1040 AM ("104 on both dials"). A pioneer in the "mood music" format, the station showed up in the top five in Dallas market ratings consistently through 1968, but by the beginning of the 1970s KIXL was facing tough competition fromKOAX, which had come to dominate as the top-rated easy listening station. In 1973, the year Dallas and Fort Worth were combined into one radio market, KIXL dropped its heritage calls in favor ofKEZT, continuing to play easy-listening musical fare. The change did not improve the station's fortunes, as KEZT never appeared in the top 10 of the Dallas/Fort Worth ratings, while KOAX's success continued andKTLC provided additional competition in the beautiful music format.
On December the 22nd of 1976, KEZT flipped to an Urban format and officially changed their call letters asKKDA-FM and adopted the moniker as the now legendary and iconicK104 under the leadership of new owner Hyman Childs. KKDA-FM Was initially the FM counterpart to KKDA-AM which airedR&B andsoul during the day andgospel at night. KKDA-FM First primarily began as a disco station with the two slogans;"K104 Is Disco Soul!" and"K104 Is Disco!" But through the early to mid 1980s, KKDA-FM shifted to aTop 40/CHR/UC hybrid type format (also known as "Crossover" and "CHUrban", which is the predecessor to the currentRhythmic CHR format) while retaining theK104 moniker first in 1983 with"K104, This Is It!" then later in 1985 with"K104, Jammin' With The Music!" and after that in 1987 with"K104, People Power!" In the late 1980's the station was briefly known as"Hot 104, The All New KKDA-FM!" But that moniker would soon be officially get dropped and returned to theK104 name under new slogan"K104, We've Got It Goin' On!" (During the station's disco era K104 had a mascot that billed itself as The K104 Disco Chicken).
In the mid 1990s, under the leadership of new owner Ken Dowe and new PD Michael Spears, KKDA-FM skewed its former urban contemporary format with slower R&B and soul songs at night and gospel on Sunday mornings, towards theMainstream Urban genre consisting of ahip-hop and current R&B heavy playlist. That format helped project K104 to being one of the highest-rated radio stations in the Dallas–Fort WorthDMA, where it has remained to this day.
Competitively, KKDA-FM also has a current crosstown rivalry with another Urban stationKBFB ("97.9 The Beat"), who has taken advantage of KKDA-FM's 'traditional' Urban direction and used that to their advantage resulting in the two fighting it out for Urban dominance in the Metroplex. Their first competition until 1985 was the late great Urban radio station KNOK-FM (which used the slogan"Disco And More On KNOK 107 FM!"); their next competition was from 1988 to 1995 was station KJMZ (known as"100.3 Jamz!"). In addition they also once had a competitor inRhythmic CHR rivalKZZA also known better as ("Casa 106.7") which had shifted from aHispanic Rhythmic direction since KKDA-FM also has a sizable share[clarification needed] of Hispanic listeners. But however KZZA is a rimshot signal.[clarification needed]KNOR was considered[by whom?] a competitor from 2004 to 2006 as it was the only station in the Metroplex having a similar format to KKDA-FM'sUC format.
As the FCC loosened radio station ownership rules with the passing of theTelecommunications Act of 1996, virtually all major market radio stations became part of large broadcast groups such asiHeartMedia,Cumulus, and others. Today, KKDA-FM is one of the few remaining major market commercial stations in the nation that is still owned by a local, non-corporate broadcaster.
Its longtime morning drive show,Skip Murphy and the Home Team, was ranked number 1 during the morning drive time slot for nearly a decade, according toArbitron ratings. Over the last few years, several popular personalities on the show, such as comedian Nannette Lee and Wig, have moved on. The most recent personality to leave was Thomas "Skip" Murphy. He announced in July 2008 that he was moving to sister radio station KRNB to work weekdays from 3 pm to 7 pm. Nationally syndicated personalityTom Joyner became recognized as the "Fly Jock" because he hosted the morning drive slot on K104 and traveled regularly to host an afternoon drive slot onWGCI-FM in Chicago. His show was heard later on KRNB, and most recently aired onKZMJ.