what happened to KTLR 890?

[j1203]

I wonder what happened to the "mighty 890"- the soul of okc. I haven't heard programming from them in a few days.

 

[OKCRadioGuy]

I wonder what happened to the "mighty 890"- the soul of okc. I haven't heard programming from them in a few days.

My guess is they ran out of money. The last time they had the advantage of broadcasting at night when their only competitor went off the air. Basically, they used to have a built-in audience for most all the time they were broadcasting each day. The current arrangement would be very difficult to sell. I bet they just couldn't generate enough revenue off the project to make it continue.

 

[j1203]

It's really a shame because it was something "different" to listen to. For the most part, I liked their format. I just wished that they could have added some more r&b tracks and balanced the playlist. Like I stated before, I wish someone could come in and bring a nice, blended urban ac format to OKC!

 

[radiofirst21]

Hey, wasn't Langston University supposed to be starting a station back a couple of years ago?

 

[j1203]

I never heard anything like that, but it wouldn't be a bad idea. I also wonder why a company like radio one hasn't looked at any of the markets in OK.

 

[OKCRadioGuy]

3 letters for ya...R. M. P.No Langston translator.No other real competition.Simple.

 

[j1203]

Can someone post the past and present urban radio stations for the entire state of Oklahoma from 1979 to present?

 

[OKCRadioGuy]

I can't.. but I can fill you in on some stations here in the OKC area that have been in that format. Irronically 890 was at one time a black-oriented station back in the 70s. At one time KAFM 98.9 was a black format. Of course EZ 107 KAEZ (107.7) in the late 70s and early 80s was the soul station for OKC before folding up and haveing to sell out. The frequency went dark briefly and then became MY 107.7. I'm sure I've missed tons of other stations around the state, but I figured I'd at least relate the ones I knew about to you.You do of course know that the same guys that did the most recent 890 thing rented 1340 at night for several years and played black-oriented tunes over there when 1140 was off for the night, right? Edwards and the gang go back many years in this market actually. I'm pretty sure I remember listening to him on EZ. It's a damn shame that station couldn't keep it going. At least black folk have an FM again that's owned by a black guy. That's certainly a positive.

 

[b344077]

I worked at the then KBYE on 890 for about a year in the mid-60's. It broadcast mostly brokered religious programming in the mornings and the switched to Afro-American programming around 1:30PM till sign off, Monday through Saturday. Most of it was also brokered. I think the major Afro player was a guy named Abram Ross back then. I learned more about how to make money at a station that had little going for it than anywhere else. The big guys at the time were WKY, KMOA and KTOK and they were all duking it out. KBYE had found a niche that was unchallenged and was doing very well.Bruce

 

[X-Man]

I can't.. but I can fill you in on some stations here in the OKC area that have been in that format. Irronically 890 was at one time a black-oriented station back in the 70s. At one time KAFM 98.9 was a black format. Of course EZ 107 KAEZ (107.7) in the late 70s and early 80s was the soul station for OKC before folding up and haveing to sell out. The frequency went dark briefly and then became MY 107.7. I'm sure I've missed tons of other stations around the state, but I figured I'd at least relate the ones I knew about to you.You do of course know that the same guys that did the most recent 890 thing rented 1340 at night for several years and played black-oriented tunes over there when 1140 was off for the night, right? Edwards and the gang go back many years in this market actually. I'm pretty sure I remember listening to him on EZ. It's a damn shame that station couldn't keep it going. At least black folk have an FM again that's owned by a black guy. That's certainly a positive.

To add some other info about Urban radio in Oklahoma:On 98.9 carried Urban format with the call letters KFJL and I believe later changed to KTLS.When KAEZ was on the air on 107.7 the format was all over the board with it's format playing R&B, Jazz, Blues, sometimes music from the 40's and 50's and played very little Hip Hop. They were pretty much know as the Black Jack-FM back then because you never knew what they were going to play next. I spoke to someone who worked at the station back then and they said that jocks didn't have a playlist so they pretty much played what the wanted, of course you can tell from listening to the at the time. He said the owner James E. Miller (Who passed away in the late 90's) wanted it to be more a Jazz station than an Urban which probably explains why the played some much Jazz on the station.A year later in 1986 after KAEZ went off the air and changed to AC KIMY, KATT AM 1140 dropped simulcasting with KATT-FM 100.5 and flipped to an Urban format as KPRW-Power 1140, this was way before Russell Perry bought that frequency, someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I believe KPRW and KATT were owned by Surrey or Sun Broadcasting or something like that. A couple of years later in the early 90's The Top-40 stations KJ-103 and KZBS-Z99 (Now Hot AC KYIS) started leaning more Dance and Rhythmic which hurt KPRW at the time as you can tell from the ratings back then. Around a year later KJ-103 started to go back to a Mainstream Top-40 and KYIS went more Hot AC with it's format around that same time KPRW dropped it's Urban format and went Business News Talk for a couple of years. and later back to simulcasting with KATT-FM. With KJ-103 and KZBS changing directions in it's format that would've been a good chance for KPRW to gain it's audience back with it's format. In 93 or 94 Perry snatched up 1140 and flipped it back to Urban as KVSP.Now going up the road to Northeastern Oklahoma:Muskogge had an Urban station back in the 70's and early 80's. It was KMMM (The MMM stood for Muskogge's Music Machine) and was known surprisingly as K-107. The station only covered Muskogge but never reached into Tulsa, if they did at the time I think their listener base would have grown. KMMM mixed in a little Top-40 with it's format but for the most part it was Urban. Then the station went dark and came back on the air as Top-40 KAYI along with an upgrade into Tulsa and calling themselves KAY-107.In Tulsa, there was the old KKUL-103.3 which was on the air in the mid 70's with an Urban format, the station was sold and the format changed to Rock or Top-40 as KTFX and later onto Country. In the early 80's there was a station called Radiovision which was an Urban station that broadcast on the Wanted Ads channel on Tulsa Cable at the time and bought time on the old KXOJ-1550. They broadcast on 1550 until sunset, that went on until the early 90's when the owners of KXOJ decided not to renew their contract with Radiovision and that's when KTOW-FM Mix 102.3 was born, dropping it's Alternative format for Urban giving Tulsa it's first Urban FM since the mid 70's. A few years later in the mid 90's Russell Perry decides to expand his broadcasting properties into Tulsa by signing on Urban KJMM-Fresh Jamz 105 to go up against Mix 102.3. Of course a few years later 102.3 is sold and changes to Classic Country as KTFX. When Bill Payne sold KTFX-103.3 to Cox he basically took the call letters and format and moved it to 102.3.Also, I read somewhere AM 1340 in Sand Springs carried an Urban format in the evenings back in the 60's or 70's. Does anyone know about this?

 

[stan]

Also, I read somewhere AM 1340 in Sand Springs carried an Urban format in the evenings back in the 60's or 70's. Does anyone know about this?

In the 1970s, AM 1300 in Tulsa (then KXXO) had a brief fling with an Urban format, if I recall correctly. By the way, KKUL's old "studios" (and I use that term very loosely) were in an old house in northeast Tulsa. I visited a friend of mine there once and it certainly was an eye opening experience.

 

[radiofirst21]

There's also KALU 89.3 in Langston.

 

[OKCRadioGuy]

Expect to hear soul tunes on 890 again.. very soon.

 

[radiofirst21]

Is it going full time or part time?

 

[billyg]

KTOW 1340 In Sand Springs ran a Black format sometime in the early 70's. I have an e-bay scan of a 1971 "Soulful 40" survey.http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/...g80.imageshack.us/img80/6362/ktow4cbl1fw.jpgI have no idea when KKUL started broadcasting. When I first moved to Bartlesville in Aug 1974 it was an urban station until somewhere in 1975 KKUL flipped to a "Free-Form" AOR format. It was a "interesting" station to listen to (jocks could play anything) and it "opened my mind" to many bands during my Jr. High years. I remember hearing Stacy Richardson and Charlie Derrick on KKUL.In early 1977 KKUL returned to a black format. And when William H. Payne bought it, they became Top 40 KTFX "Superfox 103" in September 1977. In the spring of 1979 KTFX became "The Country Fox". BTW Superfox 103 had a night DJ by the name of "Crazy Steve" I wonder whatever happened to him? Fun guy to listen to.And getting back to KTLR, is it still owned by the Tylers?

 

[X-Man]

As far as I know it's still owned by The Tylers. An interesting playlist from KTOW back in the day

 

[radiofirst21]

I got the chance to listen to KTLR and "soul" is back, only broadcasting from 5pm to dusk.