 | |
| Broadcast area | Beaumont/Port Arthur |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 95.1MHz |
| Branding | "Kicker 95.1" |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Format | Country |
| Affiliations | Premiere Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KLVI,KKMY,KCOL-FM,KIOC | |
| History | |
First air date | November 27, 1961 (1961-11-27) (as KHGM) |
Former call signs | KHGM (1961–1966) KTRM-FM (1966–1976) KIEL (1976–1978) KALO-FM (1978–1981) KZZB (1981–1991) |
Call sign meaning | KY(i)cKeR |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 25581 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 100,000watts |
| HAAT | 131 m (430 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 30°03′43.00″N93°58′50.00″W / 30.0619444°N 93.9805556°W /30.0619444; -93.9805556 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | kykr.iheart.com |
KYKR (95.1FM, "Kicker 95.1") is aradio station broadcasting aCountry format. Licensed toBeaumont, Texas, it serves the Beaumont/Port Arthur metropolitan area, owned byiHeartMedia, Inc. The "Kicker" branding and country format were first broadcast on 93.3 FM (nowKQBU-FM) under the currentcall sign in 1980, owned and operated by Steve Hicks. Its studios are located southeast of theI-10/US 69 interchange in Beaumont, and its transmitter is located inVidor, Texas.
The FCC allocated 95.1 facility in Beaumont received an initial License to Cover on November 27, 1961 asKHGM, owned by Gerald Proctor under the entity of Woodland Broadcasting Company. The facility is currently owned byiHeartMedia, Inc.
For many years, KYKR was located at 93.3 FM, which had first begun as KCAW-FM, the FM companion to 1510KCAWPort Arthur and owned by Jimmie Joynt. Jimmie sold the station when he moved to Dallas to start Superior Broadcast Products. The KYKR call was issued to 93.3 in 1980 and was owned by the Hicks family of Beaumont (Steve Hicks most notably of CapStar; his father, John Hicks, had owned 560 KLVI since the 1960s) and was moved to the 2000 ft. tower inDevers in 1991 after Steve Hicks had purchased this facility. 93.3 was then sold to Tichenor Media, nowUnivision, resulting in the KYKR calls and format being permanently moved to this frequency.
This was possible as a result of thenTop 40/CHR station "B95" KZZB going silent at 7 p.m. on November 26, 1991, prompting Gulfstar to purchase the 95.1 signal and ultimately place KYKR's country format on it, and then selling 93.3 to Tichenor Media, which began targetingHouston with the new signal that had just been rebuilt in Devers.[2] 93.3 and 95.1 simulcasts briefly before the latter frequency became KYKR's full-time home in the summer of 1992.
KYKR achieved some of its greatest ratings and revenue success from 1999 to 2009 under the direction of program director Mickey Ashworth. During this decade, the lineup included Big D & Bubba in the mornings, Mickey Ashworth mid-days, Jim King of the Road afternoons, and Lia nights.