WRKS (98.7 MHz), better known as
98.7 Kiss FM, is an
Urban Adult ContemporaryUrban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
radio station in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
, owned by
Emmis CommunicationsEmmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Belgium, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
. One of the highest-rated stations in the city, WRKS shares studio facilities with sister stations WQHT (97.1 MHz) and WRXP (101.9 MHz) in New York's
West VillageThe West Village is the western portion of the Greenwich Village neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan. Though there are no defined boundaries, the area is usually defined as bounded by the Hudson River and either Sixth Avenue or Seventh Avenue, extending from 14th Street down to...
neighborhood, and its broadcast transmitter is atop the
Empire State BuildingThe Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark Art Deco skyscraper in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. Its name is derived from the nickname for the state of New York. It stood as the world's tallest building for more than forty years, from its completion...
. An Urban-formatted station since 1981, WRKS is one of the top-rated Urban stations in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
As WOR-FM
The 98.7 FM facility in New York City began as
WOR-FM in 1948 and was owned by the Bamberger Broadcasting Service, which was a division of
R.H. Macy and CompanyMacy's is a chain of mid-to-high range American department stores. Its selection of merchandise can vary significantly from location to location, resulting in the exclusive availability of certain brands in only higher-end stores...
. Like most early FM stations, WOR-FM initially
simulcastSimulcast is a portmanteau of "simultaneous broadcast", and refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are...
ed AM
sister stationIn broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio and/or television stations operated by the same ownership....
WORWOR is a class A , AM radio station located in New York, New York, U.S., operating on 710 kHz. The station has a talk format and has been owned by Buckley Broadcasting since 1987, after the station was sold by RKO. The station has conservative, or right of center hosts.Its call letters have no...
(710 kHz.). Macy's/Bamberger sold the WOR stations (who launched a
television stationWWOR-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the flagship station of the MyNetworkTV network licensed to Secaucus, New Jersey and serving the New York City metropolitan area. WWOR is owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is a sister station to Fox network flagship WNYW...
in October 1949) to the General Tire and Rubber Company in 1952. General Tire reorganized its broadcasting division into
RKO GeneralRKO General was the main holding company through 1991 for the noncore businesses of the General Tire and Rubber Company and, after General Tire's reorganization in the 1980s, GenCorp. The business was based around the consolidation of its parent company's broadcasting interests, dating to 1943, and...
in 1957.
In 1965 the
Federal Communications CommissionThe Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, directed, and empowered by Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President...
ordered AM stations in large markets to end continuous simulcasting on co-owned FM frequencies, a move made to spark development of FM stations as individuals. On July 30, 1966 WOR-FM began running a
freeformFreeform, or freeform radio, is a radio station programming format in which the disc jockey is given total control over what music to play, regardless of music genre or commercial interests. Freeform radio stands in contrast to most commercial radio stations, in which DJs have little or no...
-based
progressive rockProgressive rock is a radio station programming format that prospered in the late 1960s and 1970s, in which the disc jockeys are given wide latitude in what they may play, similar to the freeform format but with the proviso that some kind of rock music is almost always what is played...
format for most of its broadcast day, though the station continued to simulcast WOR radio's
Rambling with GamblingRambling with Gambling was a news and talk radio program aired on WOR 710 from 1925 until 2000. It was hosted by three generations of people named John Gambling throughout its entire 75-year run.-History:...
morning show for sometime afterwards. Under the leadership of legendary
disc jockeyA disc jockey is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, dis
k referred to phonograph records, while dis
c referred to the Compact Disc, and has become the more common spelling...
Murray "the K" KaufmanMurray Kaufman professionally known as Murray the K, was a famous and influential rock and roll impresario and disc jockey of the 1950s, '60s and '70s...
, and featuring other notable disc jockeys such as
Scott MuniScott Muni was an American disc jockey, who worked at the heyday of the AM Top 40 format and then was a pioneer of FM progressive rock radio.-Biography:...
and
RoskoWilliam Roscoe Mercer , better known to millions of radio listeners simply as Rosko, was an American news announcer and disc jockey. He is best known for his stints on New York's WOR-FM and WNEW-FM in the 1960s...
, the freeform format was the first of its kind in New York City radio.
However, this programming quickly evolved into an Adult Top 40 format by the end of 1967, and Muni and Rosko departed for WNEW-FM where the progressive format would become a huge success.
Initially, the Top 40-formatted WOR-FM played new songs but in less of a rotation than
WABCWABC , known as "NewsTalkRadio 77," is a radio station in New York City. Owned by the Citadel Broadcasting Corporation, the station broadcasts on a clear channel and is the flagship station of Citadel Media...
, which was then New York's big Top 40 station. WOR-FM played more oldies from the 1950s and early '60s than its competitors. Some of their early personalities included Bill Brown (who left for
WCBS-FMWCBS-FM is a radio station in New York City, owned by CBS Radio. The station's studios are located in the combined CBS Radio facility in the TriBeCa neighborhood of Manhattan, and its transmitter is located on the Empire State Building....
in 1969),Bob Elliott (who briefly joined WCBS-FM, as K.O. Bayley on Oct 1969), Joe McCoy (who would eventually run WCBS-FM for 23 years),
Johnny DonovanJohnny Donovan is an American radio announcer and producer, based at New York's WABC . He has served as a disc jockey, announcer, and producer at WABC since the 1960s...
(who would go to WABC in 1972), Tommy Edwards, Al Brady (who would program WABC in 1979) among others. As time progressed, WOR-FM played too many oldies to justify being called a Top 40 station. By 1972 the station eliminated 1950s and early 60s music almost completely, and by 1973 they focused on a playlist spanning 1964 to the then-present.
As WXLO
On October 23, 1972, they changed call letters to
WXLO and starting in early 1974 became known as "
99X." Still they were considered Adult Top 40 sort of similar to what WNBC evolved to. They held on to this Adult Top 40 format and "99X" name until 1980. At that point, they became "FM 99". This iteration had decent ratings for a while, but by 1980, they had fairly low ratings. They phased out the Top 40 format, and brought in new Program Director Don Kelly from successful sister soft adult contemporary WFYR in Chicago in an attempt to duplicate that format's success on WXLO. The station at first attempted a call letter change back to WOR-FM, but an FCC challenge from competing crosstown WRFM (now
WWPR-FMWWPR-FM, also known as "Power 105.1", is a Mainstream Urban radio station that features hip-hop and R&B licensed to New York City that serves the Greater New York area....
) prevented the call letter change from happening. Still, Kelly attempted to make the station the same soft adult contemporary format he had in Chicago. These changes did not gain any new listeners for WXLO, and ratings sank lower. Later, Kelly adjusted the music and very slowly and gradually began mixing more disco and soul into the format. In the Fall of 1980.Kelly, in counseltation with RKO General, who owned the station, decided to target WBLS-FM's urban audience by bringing in new
music director-Orchestra:The title of music director or musical director is used by many symphony orchestras to designate the primary conductor and artistic leader of the orchestra. The term "music director" is most common for orchestras in the United States...
Barry MayoBarry Mayo is a United States radio executive. In 1981 he helped launch WRKS-FM in New York as the first station to play rap music on a regular basis. The station's success led him to be promoted as the first black general manager of RKO General....
. Mayo shortly before arrving suggested a new format for the station to Kelly and then-
general managerGeneral manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
Lee S. SimonsonLee S. Simonson was the General Manager of Rock/Pop radio station 98.7 WXLO in New York in 1980. He oversaw the station's transformation to WRKS-FM in August of 1981 as an urban contemporary station. Simonson founded Broadcaster' Partners with Barry Mayo in 1988. He is an adjunct Marketing...
after he had a surprising lambasting from his idol
Frankie CrockerFrankie "Hollywood" Crocker was a famous New York radio DJ. According to popeducation.org, Frankie began his career in Buffalo, then moved to Soul station WWRL New York before being hired by top-40 WMCA in 1969...
(who would later become his rival). Mayo would later become Program Director when Kelly left to start his own consultancy.
By May 1981, WXLO was nearly all rhythmic, playing almost all disco, soul, and rhythmic-friendly pop. almost all the rock and AC crossovers were gone. By today's standards, this station would be called "Rhythmic
CHRContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the top 40 music charts...
", but that term did not exist back in 1981. Therefore, the station was classified as "
Urban ContemporaryUrban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, urban pop, and on occasion, Caribbean music such as reggae, reggaeton,...
" (which today would be considered as a strictly
R&BRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
-type format whether
RapHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
or
SoulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
).
WXLO once held an all-
Elton JohnSir Elton Hercules John, CBE is an English singer-songwriter, composer and pianist.In his four-decade career, John has sold more than 200 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single, Candle in the Wind 1997, has sold over 37 million copies, becoming the...
weekend. Listeners had to count how many Elton songs were played and win his
Greatest Hits Vol. 1Elton John's Greatest Hits is the ninth album by British singer/songwriter Elton John, released on MCA Records, catalogue MCA 2128, in November 1974. Spanning the years 1970 to 1974, it compiles ten of John's singles, with one track variation for releases in North America and for Europe and Australia...
album. Another weekend they held a "No Bee Gees" weekend, where they asked their listeners to request Bee Gee songs that they didn't want played. "I'll be sure to not get that on the air for you" a DJ said on that weekend.
The
WXLOWXLO is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station that serves the Worcester, Massachusetts market, broadcasting on the FM band at a frequency of 104.5 MHz. The station is licensed in Fitchburg, Massachusetts to Citadel Broadcasting...
call sign now belongs to a station in
Worcester, MassachusettsWorcester is a city in the state of Massachusetts in the United States of America. Having a population of 172,648 in the 2000 census, Worcester is ranked the second or third largest city in New England. It is the county seat of Worcester County....
, chosen in tribute by station management.
As WRKS-FM
In June 1981, the station was known on-air as "FM 99 WXLO making its move to 98.7". By the end of the month, the station's call letters changed to
WRKS-FM (the meaning of which originally referred to its being an
RKO
Station) and the station was called
"98.7 Kiss FM", as the station's transition to this new
urban contemporaryUrban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, urban pop, and on occasion, Caribbean music such as reggae, reggaeton,...
format was completed by that August. Early on, Kiss-FM played a great deal of R&B and
dance musicThis article is about dance music in general. You may also be looking for electronic dance music or dance-pop.Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
, and was rated top-five in the early 1980s, at one point moving from 22nd place to third. Notable
Kiss FM Mixmasters at the time were
Shep PettiboneRobert E. Pettibone, Jr. is a record producer, remixer, songwriter and club DJ, one of the most prolific of the 1980s. His earliest work known to the public was for one of New York City's top disco/dance radio stations, WRKS 98.7 "Kiss" FM, and later as remixer/producer for the disco label Salsoul...
and the Latin Rascals, who relied heavily on
freestyle musicFreestyle or Latin Freestyle, also called Latin Hip Hop in its early years, is a form of electronic music. Performers such as Stevie B, TKA, George Lamond, Sa-Fire, Information Society, Noel, The Cover Girls, Nocera, Laissez Faire,, Shana, Tolga, Dino, Joee Desimone, Fascination, Seduction, Coro,...
. Longtime
urban contemporaryUrban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, urban pop, and on occasion, Caribbean music such as reggae, reggaeton,...
leader
WBLSWBLS is an Urban Adult Contemporary FM radio station that is licensed to New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz.WBLS first broadcast in the summer of 1972, with Frankie Crocker as the Program Director. Crocker redefined R&B radio with the term "Urban Contemporary," targeting listeners 18-34 years of...
expressed concern over the new station, which represented its first competition in that format.
Around mid-1983, Kiss-FM approached
Afrika BambaataaAfrika Bambaataa is an American DJ from the South Bronx, who was instrumental in the early development of hip hop throughout the 1980s. Afrika Bambaataa is one of the three originators of break-beat deejaying, and is respectfully known as the "Grandfather" and "Godfather" and The Amen Ra of...
about an underground
rapHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
music show. He liked the idea and appointed DJ
Jazzy JayJazzy Jay , also known as The Original Jazzy Jay or DJ Jazzy Jay, is a pioneering American hip hop DJ and producer. He has collected roughly 400,000 records....
, a fellow member of Zulu Nation. He then passed the gig on to his cousin,
DJ Red AlertDJ Red Alert is a disc jockey on 98.7 Kiss-FM, N.Y.C., and has been recognized as a hip hop pioneer. Red Alert has been noted for breaking in such acts and artists as A Tribe Called Quest, Queen Latifah, and Black Sheep....
. In Fall 1983, Kiss FM became the first station in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to play rap regularly. Also in 1983, non-R&B dance music and disco were phased out, as the station played strictly music catering only to an African-American audience. WBLS responded by hiring
Mr. MagicMr. Magic, real name John Rivas, was an important figure in the world of hip hop radio.-Biography:...
to conduct a weekend rap show, which helped WBLS reach number-three in the ratings that year, beating out Kiss FM.
By 1984, the station had promoted
Barry MayoBarry Mayo is a United States radio executive. In 1981 he helped launch WRKS-FM in New York as the first station to play rap music on a regular basis. The station's success led him to be promoted as the first black general manager of RKO General....
as the first black
general managerGeneral manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
in the RKO radio chain. Kiss would incorporate rap artists such as
Kurtis BlowCurtis Walker , is better known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is one of the first commercially successful rappers and the first to sign with a major label...
, Run DMC, the Fat Boys,
NewcleusNewcleus is an American electro and old school hip hop group that gained popularity in the early 1980s. They are primarily known for their 12-inch singles "Jam-On's Revenge", re-released as "Jam On Revenge " , and "Jam-On It" .-Formation:A precursor to the group, known as Jam-On Productions,...
, and
LL Cool JJames Todd Smith , better known as LL Cool J, is an American rapper and actor. LL Cool J stands for "Ladies Love Cool James." He is known for romantic ballads such as "I Need Love", "Around the Way Girl" and "Hey Lover" as well as pioneering hip-hop such as "I Can't Live Without My Radio", "I'm...
into the same rotation as such established acts as
Ashford & SimpsonNickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson are a successful husband and wife songwriting/production team and recording artists. They met at Harlem's White Rock Baptist Church in 1964...
, Kool and the Gang, and
Gladys KnightGladys Maria Knight , known as the Empress of Soul, is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
. In 1986, Emmis Broadcasting launched
WQHT-FMWQHT is a high-profile rhythmic radio station in New York City under the corporate ownership of Emmis Communications. The station broadcasts on 97.1 MHz FM and first signed on the air in the summer of 1986 as "Hot 103" . Throughout the years the radio station has seen controversy involving...
, which had a huge emphasis on dance music. Kiss FM and rival WBLS then each added more dance music to their playlists again. In 1988, Mayo left to organize a new broadcasting company with
Lee S. SimonsonLee S. Simonson was the General Manager of Rock/Pop radio station 98.7 WXLO in New York in 1980. He oversaw the station's transformation to WRKS-FM in August of 1981 as an urban contemporary station. Simonson founded Broadcaster' Partners with Barry Mayo in 1988. He is an adjunct Marketing...
and Bill Pearson, and RKO appointed Charles Warfield (former general manager of WBLS) as the new general manager of Kiss FM. During his tenure, the station reached first place for six years.
RKO General owned three stations in New York that would be sold to different companies. In 1987, WOR-TV would be sold to
MCAMCA, Inc. was an American corporation in the music and television businesses. MCA published music, booked acts, ran a record company, and distributed television productions and home videos.-The Early Years:...
(and renamed
WWOR-TVWWOR-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the flagship station of the MyNetworkTV network licensed to Secaucus, New Jersey and serving the New York City metropolitan area. WWOR is owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is a sister station to Fox network flagship WNYW...
). On June 26, 1989, RKO sold Kiss FM to the
Summit Communications GroupThe Summit Communications Group is an Atlanta-based communications company which once owned 16 radio stations around the United States. The company now concentrates on technology and internet services....
of Atlanta. Around the same time as Kiss FM's sale, WOR was sold to
Buckley BroadcastingBuckley Radio owns and operates twenty radio stations in seven markets. In addition, the WOR Radio Network is operated as an independent syndicated programming provider with affiliates in over 400 markets.-Stations:* WOR - New York, NY...
. Several radio stations began to use the moniker "
Kiss FMKISS-FM is the brand name of a Top 40 music format heard on FM radio stations in many cities in the United States . Clear Channel Communications claims ownership of the KISS-FM brand and operates most KISS-FM formatted stations, though not KISS-FM in San Antonio itself .-Origin and History:In the...
" name as well as the format. For years Kiss FM was number one on the
ArbitronArbitron is a radio audience research company in the United States which collects listener data on radio audiences similar to that collected by Nielsen Media Research on television audiences. It was founded as American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became bi-coastal by merging with L.A....
ratings due to its
hip hopHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
-influenced format. That same year,
WBLSWBLS is an Urban Adult Contemporary FM radio station that is licensed to New York City, operating on 107.5 MHz.WBLS first broadcast in the summer of 1972, with Frankie Crocker as the Program Director. Crocker redefined R&B radio with the term "Urban Contemporary," targeting listeners 18-34 years of...
lured on-air personality Mike Love (formerly of the original
Kiss Wake-Up Club) to their morning drive time. Kiss immediately formulated a new morning show featuring Ken Webb and Jeff Foxx along with then-unknown
Wendy WilliamsWendy Joan Williams is an American talk radio host, television personality, and New York Times bestselling author. Williams is known for being a former DJ in New York City, where she gossiped about mostly African-American entertainers and conducts celebrity interviews...
. The show became a hit.
In 1994,
WQHT-FMWQHT is a high-profile rhythmic radio station in New York City under the corporate ownership of Emmis Communications. The station broadcasts on 97.1 MHz FM and first signed on the air in the summer of 1986 as "Hot 103" . Throughout the years the radio station has seen controversy involving...
("Hot 97") changed formats from
dance musicThis article is about dance music in general. You may also be looking for electronic dance music or dance-pop.Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
to strictly rap, thus competing directly with Kiss FM. The station responded by adding
Mixmaster shows, producing remixes unheard on other urban stations and formulating a new morning show featuring Wendy Williams. Emmis Broadcasting, which owned Hot 97 agreed to purchase Kiss FM from Summit in December 1994, forming the market's first FM
duopolyIn United States broadcast television and radio, duopoly is a term used to describe a single company which owns two or more stations in the same city or community....
. Notable DJ's such as Wendy Williams (now on WBLS) and Red Alert (previously returned to Kiss and now heard on
WWPR-FMWWPR-FM, also known as "Power 105.1", is a Mainstream Urban radio station that features hip-hop and R&B licensed to New York City that serves the Greater New York area....
) moved from Kiss FM to Hot 97, which continued with its new format; Kiss stopped playing rap and focused on an
Urban Adult ContemporaryUrban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
(Urban AC) format using the slogan "Smooth R&B and Classic
SoulSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
".
In 1999, Kiss FM switched from a classic soul-music format to current R&B. That same year
Frankie CrockerFrankie "Hollywood" Crocker was a famous New York radio DJ. According to popeducation.org, Frankie began his career in Buffalo, then moved to Soul station WWRL New York before being hired by top-40 WMCA in 1969...
(formerly of rival station WBLS) was hired as an announcer and a weekend DJ. The station slowly began to reintroduce rap back on its playlists in 2000. When
WWPR-FMWWPR-FM, also known as "Power 105.1", is a Mainstream Urban radio station that features hip-hop and R&B licensed to New York City that serves the Greater New York area....
was launched in March 2002 the station slightly switched back to classic soul. In 2003
Barry MayoBarry Mayo is a United States radio executive. In 1981 he helped launch WRKS-FM in New York as the first station to play rap music on a regular basis. The station's success led him to be promoted as the first black general manager of RKO General....
briefly returned as general manager for Kiss FM, Hot 97 and WQCD-FM.
As of 2007, Kiss focused on being an Adult Urban Contemporary radio station with a primary focus on AFRICAN-AMERICANS between the ages of 25 & 54, thus competing directly with WBLS. DJ RED ALERT and CHUCK CHILLOUT are now back on 98.7 KISS fm doing weekend mixshows.
Notable station radio personalities
- Mike Wade (1981-1984)
- Mary Thomas (1981-1984)
- Lynda Moore (1981-1985)
- Charile Burger (1981-1986)
- Michael Lysak (1982-1987)
- Jim Mulvey (1980-1982)
- Yvonne Mobley (1981-1990)
- Bob Slade (1972-present)
- Jeff Troy (1981)
- Barry Mayo
Barry Mayo is a United States radio executive. In 1981 he helped launch WRKS-FM in New York as the first station to play rap music on a regular basis. The station's success led him to be promoted as the first black general manager of RKO General....
(1981)
- Jose Guzman (1981-1984)
- Shep Pettibone
Robert E. Pettibone, Jr. is a record producer, remixer, songwriter and club DJ, one of the most prolific of the 1980s. His earliest work known to the public was for one of New York City's top disco/dance radio stations, WRKS 98.7 "Kiss" FM, and later as remixer/producer for the disco label Salsoul...
(Mastermixer) (1981-1984)
- Charlie Steiner (1981-1986)
- Tony Humphries
Tony Humphries is a former Administrator of the British Indian Ocean Territory , a British overseas territory in the Indian Ocean. Humphries was Administrator from February 2005 to December 2007.-References:...
(Mastermixer) (1981-1991)
- Fred "Bugsy" Buggs (1982-1983; 1986-1988; 2000 - present)
- Wanda Ramos (1982-1984)
- Sonny Taylor (1982-1984)
- DJ Red Alert (1982-1994, 2000-2002)
- Ken Webb (1983-1986, 1989-1994)
- Milta McLean-Dennis (1986-1994)
- Freddie Rodriguez (1984-1987)
- Maxine Rosenberg (1985-1989)
- Wayne Simms (1986-1990)
- G. Keith Alexander (1985-1989)
- Johnnie Allen (1985-2000)
- Carol Ford (1985-1996)
- Jonathan Taylor
Jonathan F Taylor CBE is the former Chair of the School of Oriental and African Studies Board of Governors, Chairman of the Booker Prize Foundation, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission and Chair of the Trustees of the International Prize for Arabic Fiction....
aka "J.T. Wellington III" (1985-1988)
- Rob Crocker (1986)
- John Madden (1986)
- Roshaan Vance aka the Ugly DJ (1986-1987)
- Warren Dean (1986-1988)
- John Robinson (Mastermixer) (1986-1988)
- B.J. Steele (1987)
- Mike Love (1987-1988)
- DJ Sting International (Mastermixer) (1987-1991)
- Joe Bragg (1987-1995)
- Jeff Foxx (1987-1996, 1998; 2002 - 2009)
- Chuck Chillout (Mastermixer) (1987-2002) 2007 - present)
- Ann Tripp (1987-2001)
- Bobby Gailes (1987-present)
- Jonny Meadow (1988-present)
- Jerhi Young (1988-1991)
- Andre Wilkins (1986-1987
- Vinnie Brown (1988-1997)
- Jay "Mixin" Dixon (MasterMixers) (1988-2000)
- Rollye James (1989-1996)
- Lauren Nicole (1989-1990)
- Prince Kalunda (Reggae Show) (1989-1994)
- Dahved Levy (Reggae Show) (1989-1994)
- Prince Messiah (Mastermixer) (1989-1994)
- Darryl James (MasterMixer) (1990-1994; 1998-present)
- "Miss Thang" Diana King (1990-present)
- Wendy Williams
Wendy Joan Williams is an American talk radio host, television personality, and New York Times bestselling author. Williams is known for being a former DJ in New York City, where she gossiped about mostly African-American entertainers and conducts celebrity interviews...
(1989-1994)
- Sean Cort (1989-1998)
- Michael Cottman (1991-1997)
- BJ Stone (1993-2000)
- Shaila (1994- present)
- Deborah Rath (1994-1998)
- Mike Shannon (1994 - present)
- Lenny Green (1995 - present)
- James Mtume
James Mtume is a jazz and R&B musician and a radio personality. Mtume's group is perhaps best known for their 1983 R&B hit song "Juicy Fruit". The song was sampled by The Notorious B.I.G. in his song "Juicy"...
(1994-present)
- Fatiyn Muhammad (1994-present)
- Bobby Childs (1994 - present)
- Vy Higgenson (1995-1998)
- Nicole Brown (2001-2005)
- Roberta Flack
Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B and folk music. Flack is best known for singles such as "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly with His Song", and "Feel Like Makin' Love", as well as "Where Is the Love" and "The...
(1995-1999)
- Ashford & Simpson
Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson are a successful husband and wife songwriting/production team and recording artists. They met at Harlem's White Rock Baptist Church in 1964...
(1995-1999)
- Bob Pickett (1995-present)
- Isaac Hayes
Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. was an American singer-songwriter, actor and musician. Hayes was one of the main creative forces behind southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served as both an in-house songwriter and producer with partner David Porter during the mid-1960s...
(1996-2001)
- Charles "Cutman" Etheridge (1996-present)
- Tanya Simpson (1998-present)
- Ruben Toro (1999-present)
- Brotha Percy (1993 - 2001)
- Frankie Crocker
Frankie "Hollywood" Crocker was a famous New York radio DJ. According to popeducation.org, Frankie began his career in Buffalo, then moved to Soul station WWRL New York before being hired by top-40 WMCA in 1969...
(1998-2000)
- Mark Jordan (1998-2001)
- Dean Memminger (1992-present)
- Grand Master Flash (Mastermixer) (2001-2003)
- Tom Joyner
Thomas "Tom" Joyner is an American radio host. He is founder of REACH Media Inc., the Tom Joyner Foundation, BlackAmericaWeb.com, and host of the nationally syndicated morning radio show, The Tom Joyner Morning Show.-Early life:...
(2001-2003)
- Paul Porter (2002 - 2004)
- Peter Noel (2001-present)
- Walter Fields (2002-present)
- Talent (2002-present)
- Kesha Monk (2003-2008)
- Michael Baisden
Michael Baisden is an American author, motivational speaker, host of the TV One talk show Baisden After Dark, and host of his own nationally-syndicated radio show.-Personal:...
(2003-present)
- DJ Chris Love (MasterMixer) (2003-present)
- Reggie Wells (MasterMixer) (2003-present)
- Tommy Allen (MasterMixer)
- Timmy Regisford (MasterMixer)
- Kevin Wilson aka The Captain
- Latin Rascals (Mastermixers)
Kiss FM also carried the Tom Joyner Show briefly from 2001-2003, however it did not garner success and thus was replaced by Jeff Foxx.
Management
- General Manager - Alexandra Cameron
- Program Director - Jill Strada
- Music Director - Jill Strada
- General Sales Manager - Leon Clark