KXBT
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| KXBT | |
 |
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| City of license | Dripping Springs, Texas |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Austin-Round Rock metropolitan area |
| Branding | "Beat 104.9" |
| Slogan | The BEAT of the ATX |
| Frequency | 104.9 (MHz) |
| Format | Rhythmic Contemporary Hit Radio |
| ERP | 2,350 watts |
| Callsign meaning | K TeXas BeaT |
| Owner | BMP Radio (BMP Austin License Company, LP) |
| Sister stations | KHHL, KFON, KKLB, KXXS |
| Website | http://www.beatatx.com/ |
KXBT (Beat 104.9) is a Rhythmic Contemporary Hit Radio radio station serving the Austin area. The BMP Radio outlet broadcasts at 104.9 MHz with an ERP of 2,350 watts and is licensed to Dripping Springs, Texas. Its transmitter is located in Dripping Springs, Texas.
[edit] History
KXBT was launched as "KQBT" on 104.3 FM (licensed to Taylor, Texas) in 1998 after the frequency would be moved southward to the Austin area after previously serving Temple-Killeen market as KKIK. Soon enough, KQBT began targeting Austin in 1998 as a Rhythmic Contemporary Hits station, playing Hip Hop, R&B, some Pop, and some Dance. At the time, the station served as a rhythmic version of a younger Urban formatted radio station alternative to then co-owned Urban AC station KJCE "K-Juice 1370" (now a talk radio station). This would eventually propel KQBT as one of Austin's Top 5 radio stations according to Arbitron ratings. By 2001, the station dropped Dance music and eventually Pop music from the playlist and has gone straight Hip Hop and R&B.
But in 2004, Howard Stern was expected back on the radio due in several markets due to Clear Channel firing him for indecency. And KQBT, along with five other replacement radio stations owned by what was then called Infinity Broadcasting (which owned Stern's show through syndication), was selected to carry the morning drive. As a result, there would be uncertainty that the Hip Hop/R&B format would even survive with Howard Stern on the air, so the frequency flipped to talk radio, changed calls to KOYT and called itself 104.3 The Coyote. The FM Talk format did not do well at all; because of this, the ratings tanked. So the frequency returned to Rhythmic Contemporary Hits format five months later under the former branding Beat 104.3 but with new call letters KXBT because KQBT was already assigned to a radio station in Llano, Texas, and later, a radio station in Albuquerque, New Mexico now. Even though it is a Rhythmic, this time KXBT skewed slightly towards an unofficial Mainstream Urban format, unusual for the market's demographics given the fact less than 10% of the Austin radio market's population is African American. To accommodate the return, the station held a campaign in early 2005 to "Make The Big Switch Back to the Beat," with the slogan at the time being "The People's Station" before finally settling on the current one, "The Beat of the ATX." It became home for a short time to the controversial Star and Buc Wild Morning Show from December 2005 to May 2006 (when Star was fired for controversial topics). The reigns were handed to then-weekend jock, Snoop Daniel, who was voted Austin360.com's top morning radio personality (September 2007). The morning show once again returned to syndication on February 4, 2008, broadcasting the Big Boy's Neighborhood morning show (ABC Radio).
The station is currently in a battle with Rhythmic rival KDHT, Mainstream rival KHFI and Rhythmic Adult Contemporary rival KFMK-FM in Austin's Top 40 battle. Soon after the return to the format, KXBT has reintroduced Freestyle Dance music and added more Reggaeton music to the charts.
In 2006, CBS Radio divested its assets and sold the Austin radio cluster (also includes KAMX, KKMJ and KJCE) to Entercom. On February 21, 2007, Entercom announced that the 104.3 frequency would be sold to Univision and change to a Spanish format on February 26. The staff was already told of this stunning news before it was made public in the trades and was expecting to leave prior to the flip. Albeit that Univision owns Hip Hop music stations in San Antonio, Houston, Rio Grande Valley and Albuquerque, the Austin cluster of Univision did not want the format this time. So after the announcement was made, The Beat moved to 104.9 as Beat 104.9, thus leaving the staff and lineup intact -- except Entercom indeed let them go and was picked up by Border Media Partners (BMP). Previously Digital 104.9 on this frequency, it moved to the 92.5 position.
[edit] External links
- KXBT official website
- Query the FCC's FM station database for KXBT
- Radio Locator information on KXBT
- Query Arbitron's FM station database for KXBT
