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|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Little Rock, Arkansas |
| Frequency | 102.1MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | KOKY 102.1 FM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Urban adult contemporary |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | The Last Bastion Station Trust, LLC |
| Operator | Cumulus Media (de facto) |
| Last Bastion:KPZK-FM Cumulus:KARN,KAAY,KFOG,KURB,KARN-FM,KLAL | |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 15161 |
| Class | A |
| ERP | 4,100watts |
| HAAT | 118 meters |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 1021koky.com |
KOKY (102.1FM) is a commercialradio station broadcasting fromLittle Rock, Arkansas (licensed tosuburbanSherwood). It airs anurban adult contemporary format, and is owned and operated by The Last Bastion Station Trust, LLC, though most of its operations are sub-contracted to its former owner,Cumulus Media. The station's studios are located with other Cumulus stations in West Little Rock, and the transmitter tower is located west of the downtown area.
The original KOKY, at 1440 AM, existed as a longtime heritage urban station in Little Rock from its launch in 1956. It was the first station aimed at theAfrican American community inArkansas. Then located nearCentral High, one of its alumni,Al Bell, was influenced by the station during the heyday of theCivil Rights Movement.[1]Archived January 4, 2007, at theWayback Machine He later became head ofStax Records. That KOKY changed itscall letters to KITA and switched to gospel music in 1979; it is nowKTUV, a Latino station. The call letters were also reused in the 1980s on the 1250 AM frequency, nowKFOG (AM).
KOUN signed on at 102.1 FM in 1994, playingclassic rock. The call letters were changed to LPQ in 1994.[2]
The present KOKY was launched byCitadel Broadcasting on January 1, 1998, per itsFCC filings.[3] From the beginning, it has claimed the original KOKY as its inspiration and heritage; its website's history refers only to the original KOKY, and does not mention that its only connections to the 1440 AM station are the call letters and general format. Its logo was derived from the 1250 AM KOKY, which was owned by a Little Rock predecessor of Citadel; KPZK (AM) is still owned by Citadel.
In 2007, upon merger of nearly a couple dozenABC Radio stations, Citadel relinquished 11 of its radio stations, including former sister stationsKARN-FM &KVLO and current sister stationKPZK-FM (which KVLO simulcast till it was sold in 2012), to The Last Bastion Station Trust, LLC. However, the trust decided it would not simulcastKARN, which had remained with Citadel, on KARN-FM; Citadel then transferred KOKY to the trust in exchange for KARN-FM.
The choice of KOKY was probably made to increase the likelihood that both KOKY and KPZK-FM, which also targets an African American audience, would be sold together to an African American owner; the FCC order that required the divestitures to Last Bastion strongly suggested that the trust seek out minority owners, a process that has not been completed as of 2025 (eighteen years since the ABC Radio sale closed), since many of the station's operations continue under the management of Cumulus Media, including its website, on-air operations, engineering, and advertising sales. KOKY and KPZK are the last two stations still owned by Last Bastion, which last sold a station in 2014.
The station is ran complementary to its former rival,KIPR. KOKY was the market's home to the nationally syndicatedThe Tom Joyner Morning Show. As of January 1, 2020 it is now broadcasts theThe Rickey Smiley Morning Show.
34°45′58″N92°20′20″W / 34.766°N 92.339°W /34.766; -92.339