KSQN is a radio station in Salt Lake City, Utah, which airs an 80s hits radio format. It broadcasts at 103.1 MHz. Its studios are located at the 257 Tower in Downtown Salt Lake City, and the transmitter site is atop Humpy Peak.
Previously known as Classic Alternative KJQ, the station flipped to Jack FM in January 2005.
KSQN is licensed to Coalville, Utah, and KNJQ to Manti, Utah. KNJQ ceased to simulcast the station in late 2005 and went off-air shortly after a brief stint of running Simmons' KZNS 1280 sports-talk format. The station is now on-air as KUDD and simulcasting MillCreek-owned "U92" through a mutual agreement between the companies.
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History
KJQN began as a modern rock station from Ogden, Utah in 1983. At that time, the station broadcast on 95.5 FM and was also heard with a 1,000-watt simulcast from 1490 AM, which would later become KOGN.
In the late 1980s, KJQN was purchased by Abacus Communications, which fired much of the high-ranking staff in 1991. Fired program director Mike Summers, engineered a deal to take over another station, then-top 40 KZOL of Provo, Utah. Re-dubbed "X96" in February 1992, KXRK raided much of KJQ's talent. For a time the stations competed, but as KJQ's ratings eroded and modern rock promoters split their business, management decided to switch formats. In early October 1992 KJQN-FM switched formats to top 40, adopting the letters KKBE.
In 2001, Simmons purchased stations in Brigham City and Oakley, and acquired the historic call letters. The "classic modern rock" format adopted by Simmons was meant to evoke music played on the original KJQ. The morning show featured veterans of the original KJQ, "Chet and Brad," and the station adopted some of the original KJQ's promotions including the old "Bessie" milk truck. Management went through several program directors including Ian McCain (from KCPX), Dom Casual (from KENZ and veteran of the original KJQ), Lara Jones (a veteran of the original KJQ), interim PD Todd Noker (also PD at sister station KXRK), Music Director Jon Smith (also from KENZ).
On January 21, 2005, the station flipped to the adult hits Jack FM format at noon, and the staff was laid off mid-shift without advanced notice. Management stated the audience "wasn't growing as fast as we wanted."
Frank Bell and Randy Rose programmed KJQN after the station flipped to Jack FM.
On June 29, 2012, it was announced that KJQN would drop the "Jack FM" format on July 16, 2012, and would begin to simulcast the talk radio format of KLO, and picked up the calls KLO-FM. The change took place at Midnight on that date; the last songs on Jack FM were "Wild Wild Life" by The Talking Heads and the first few seconds of "Janie's Got a Gun" by Aerosmith, which was abruptly cut off by the start of the simulcast.
On March 26, 2014, 103.1 changed callsigns to KSQN, sparking rumors of a format change in the following months. On June 5, 2014 KSQN dropped its simulcast with KLO and changed their format to adult contemporary, branded as "Sunny 103."
On September 30, 2016, Capitol Broadcasting announced that KSQN would flip to 80s hits as "103.1 The Wave" the following Monday, October 3; promoting itself as "The Next Wave of New Wave", the format will lean towards alternative rock and new wave from the decade. The change took place at midnight on that date; the last song on Sunny was "Roar" by Katy Perry, and the first song on The Wave was "Wake Up (It's 1984)" by Oingo Boingo. The new format features many former Salt Lake City personalities including Cuzzin Brad in mornings, Chet 'The Pinhead' Tapp in middays, Andrea in afternoons, and Stacee at night. The station will mimic the format of Tapp's now-defunct KCQNUtah.com. Tapp spent 15 years at Alternative "X96" KXRK and later teamed with Brad in mornings at KJQN.
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