KHKZ

KHKZ

San Benito, Texas
Broadcast area	McAllen-Brownsville-Harlingen area
Frequency	106.3 MHz
Branding	Kiss FM 105.5 & 106.3
Programming
Format	Hot Adult Contemporary Christmas (During the Holidays)
Affiliations	Premium Choice iHeartRadio
Ownership
Owner	iHeartMedia (Clear Channel Broadcasting Licenses, Inc.)
Sister stations	KTEX, KBFM, KQXX-FM, KVNS
History
First air date	1983
Former call signs	KGAR (1983-1989) KBOR-FM (1989-1992) KTJN (1992-2003) KMAZ (2003-2004)
Call sign meaning	Hot Kiss (former branding)
Technical information
Facility ID	36166
Class	C3
ERP	6,300 watts
HAAT	199 meters
Transmitter coordinates	26°8′28.00″N 97°50′4.00″W
Links
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	kissfmrgv.iheart.com

KHKZ (106.3 FM) is a radio station broadcasting a Hot Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to San Benito, Texas, USA. The station serves the Rio Grande Valley. The station is currently owned by iHeartMedia Licenses, Inc. It shares a studio with its sister stations, KTEX, KBFM, KQXX-FM, and KVNS, located close to the KRGV-TV studios in Weslaco, Texas, while its transmitter is located in La Feria, Texas.

History

KHKZ started off as country KTEX 106 (KTXF). Then in 1983 changed calls to KGAR and format to Hot AC. In 1989 the callsign letters were changed to KBOR-FM. Then again in 1992 the callsign letters were changed to KTJN. In 2003 the callsign letters were changed to KMAZ. In 2004 the callsign letters were changed to KHKZ.

Current programming

On Air with Ryan Seacrest (2009-present)

On April 27, 2009 KHKZ started airing On-air with Ryan Seacrest.

iHeart Radio Countdown with Romeo (2015-present)

In 2015, KHKZ started airing the iHeart Radio Countdown with Romeo from Saturday Night Online. Airs Sunday mornings at 6. Originally aired Sunday mornings at 8

JohnJay and Rich in the Morning (2013-present)

On February 25, 2013 KHKZ replaced Valentine in the Morning with JohnJay and Rich in the Morning.

On with Mario Lopez (2013-present)

In September 2013 KHKZ started airing On with Mario Lopez.

The Rendezvous with Simon and Kim (2015-present)

On August 17, 2015 KHKZ started airing The Rendezvous with Simon and Kim.

American Top 40 (AT40) with Ryan Seacrest (2009-present)

The American Top 40 replaced Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 in May 2009. On early 2015, Ryan's countdown was replaced with the iHeartRadio Countdown with Romeo in 2015. Then the iHeart Radio Countdown moved to Sundays mornings at 6 bringing back Ryan's countdown to its original time

Past programming

Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 (2004-2009)

In 2004 KHKZ started airing Rick Dees' Weekly Top 40 which aired on Sundays. In May 2009, Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 was replaced with American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest.

Backtrax USA (2004-2010)

In 2004 KHKZ started airing the 90's edition of Backtrax USA. Backtrax USA used to air only 90's music until 2006 when their schedule changed. As of 2009, the station airs both 80's and 90's editions back-to-back on Sundays from Noon-4pm. KHKZ's contract with Backtrax ended on April 25, 2010, the same day Backtrax USA was last aired on KHKZ. It was replaced the following week with original music programming.

John Garabedian's Open House Party (2006-2012)

In 2006 KHKZ started airing John Garabedian's Open House Party, in July 2010 The Open House Party was moved to 6pm in favor of an early start, it aired on Saturday Nights from 6pm-4am. After the August 11, 2012 broadcast of Open House Party, KHKZ removed the show from its lineup, in-favor of playing Hot Adult Contemporary music on Saturday nights.

Retro Pop Reunion (2006-2012)

In 2006 KHKZ started airing Retro Pop Reunion In August 2012 KHKZ stop airing this program. It aired Sunday Nights 7-11pm.

Valentine in the Morning (2011-2013)

On November 1, 2011 KHKZ started airing Valentine in the Morning, replacing local DJ's Jay Cantu and Amanda Flores. It currently airs on LA's KBIG. Jay Cantu and Amanda Flores, have been working at KHKZ for over 7 years. It last aired on KHKZ on February 22, 2013.

Slogans

KHKZ's slogan was previously "Today's Best Music". But on July 31, 2009, KHKZ removed the previous slogan and replaced it with "All The Hits". This slogan is more similar to New York's WHTZ's previous slogan.

80s and 90s music

KHKZ used to play 80's and 90's music along with today's music, but recently, they were phased out of their playlist. The station now resembles more of an Adult Top 40 station, playing only hits from the last decade, excluding most rap songs, which can be heard on sister station KBFM. However, KHKZ still plays 80's and 90's music on Sunday nights with the syndicated Retro Pop Reunion. Rival KVLY switched to contemporary hit radio in 2010. After 2 years of resembling an Adult Top 40 format, the station returned to its Hot Adult Contemporary format on November 1, 2011, playing music from the 80's 90's music along with today's music again. As of February 2013, KHKZ has stop playing 80's and 90's music. It went back to the Adult Top 40 format. Since 2013, the station started playing 80's and 90's music once again, but only on special holiday weekends, such as Memorial Day Weekend, Fourth of July Weekend, and Labor Day Weekend.

Christmas music

Since December 2007, on the Friday before Christmas, KHKZ starts playing continuous Christmas music all the way through Christmas Day. Initially using ABC Radio's The Christmas Channel, they currently use Clear Channel's Premium Choice Christmas feed. As of December 13, 2011 KHKZ started playing continuous Christmas music all the way through Christmas Day. In Thanksgiving 2012 KHKZ switched to an all-Christmas music format. On the Day after Thanksgiving (November 29, 2013) KHKZ once again switched to an all-Christmas music format. On December 3, 2014 the station has once again switched to an all-Christmas music format. On November 26, 2015, sister station KQXX-FM dropped it's classic rock format and began stunting an all-Christmas music format. On December 7, 2015 KHKZ has once again switched to an all-Christmas music format.

Branding

Hot Kiss 106.3 (2004-2011)

In 2004 the station used this branding Hot Kiss 106.3.

KISS 106.3 (2011–2015)

On February 19, 2011, KHKZ removed the Hot Kiss branding and replaced it with Kiss 106.3. The station also changed its logo, with the new branding, but retained the Adult Top 40 format since KVLY caters the Contemporary hit radio format. Mediabase and Nielsen BDS will continue to describe the station as Adult Top 40.

Kiss FM 105.5 106.3 (2015–present)

Due to KHKZ's signal, covering most of the Lower Valley, the station announced on Christmas Day 2015 at 6 PM (CST), that KQXX-FM (which covers most of the Upper Valley) would simulcast 106.3 FM's signal on the 105.5 FM frequency, in order to cover the entire Rio Grande Valley. The simulcast was most likely due to 106.3 FM's signal, being too difficult to hear in the Upper Valley. The first song played on Kiss FM was Just Give Me a Reason by Pink featuring Nate Ruess.

Former logos

External links

• Facility details for Facility ID KHKZ ({{{2}}}) in the FCC Licensing and Management System
• {{{2}}} in Nielsen Audio's FM station database