KISQ

**KISQ**

City	San Francisco, California
Broadcast area	San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, California
Branding	98.1 The Breeze
Slogan	Relaxing Favorites at Work
Frequency	98.1 MHz (also on HD Radio)
First air date	July 17, 1958 (as KAFE)
Format	Soft AC
ERP	75,000 watts
HAAT	309.6 meters
Class	B
Facility ID	59964
Callsign meaning	KISS Q (former slogan)
Former callsigns	KAFE (1958-1965) KABL-FM (1965-1994) KBGG (1994-1997)
Owner	iHeartMedia (AMFM Broadcasting Licenses, LLC)
Sister stations	KIOI, KKSF, KMEL, KNEW, KOSF, KYLD
Webcast	Listen Live
Website	981thebreeze.com

KISQ (98.1 MHz, "The Breeze"), is a commercial FM radio station licensed to San Francisco, California that features a Soft AC format. It is owned by iHeartMedia. The station transmits its signal from Mount Beacon atop the Marin Headlands above Sausalito, California, while its studios are located in the SoMa district of San Francisco.

History

As KAFE

98.1 FM first signed on the air on July 17, 1958 as KAFE.

As KABL-FM

The frequency was the long-time home of KABL-FM ("Cable," denoting cable cars, a symbol of San Francisco). The station once programmed a beautiful music/easy listening format, also heard on 960 KABL-AM. In the early 1990s, the station changed its format to soft AC, and competed directly with KOIT, which had successfully made the same transition from Easy Listening to Soft AC. In spring of 1993, KABL-FM tweaked its format by dropping all 60s and 70s songs from the playlist and focusing on soft AC hits from the 80s and 90s, now calling itself "B98". The new format was short-lived as KABL-FM would change its format again in early 1994.

As KBGG

In 1994, KABL-FM switched to a classic hits format, playing songs mostly from the 70s. The call letters were changed to KBGG-FM, and the station rebranded as "Big 98.1." In 1995, Shamrock Broadcasting of Burbank, California reached a deal to sell KBGG, as well as KNEW and KSAN, to Chancellor Media.

As KISQ

Logo, 1997-2009

Logo, 2010

Logo, 2010-2012

Logo, 2015-2016

On July 23, 1997, at 1 p.m., after a day of stunting, Chancellor Media (later to become AMFM, Inc., and then Clear Channel Communications (now iHeartMedia)) flipped KBGG to Urban AC as KISQ, "98.1 Kiss FM". The first song on "Kiss FM" was "Let's Groove" by Earth, Wind & Fire.^[1]^[2] Despite the format, KISQ leaned heavily on a format similar to a Classic Soul/Urban Oldies format, with a playlist of more old school R&B music with occasionally few new R&B songs (mostly mainstream with no neo-soul). This may have helped garner a diverse audience of blacks, Latinos, and whites who listen to R&B and this station in particular. The station's owners may have also formatted the playlist this way not only to protect longtime Urban Contemporary-sister station KMEL, which plays some old school in addition to current Hip Hop/R&B, but to differentiate itself from competitor KBLX, which plays new and old R&B. Since September 2006, KISQ has also been in competition with KMVQ, a Rhythmic Adult station, but when Clear Channel decided to gravitate most California urban AC stations to rhythmic AC stations (including KHHT in Los Angeles), KISQ retained the Mainstream Urban AC format. Mediabase began reporting the station's playlist, with newer music of those sourced from rhythmic AC stations. By 2008, KMVQ took on the Top 40 format at the time the "MOViN'" format declined in popularity, allowing KISQ to evolve its format more in a rhythmic AC direction.

By 2011, the station was described as having a Gold-based Rhythmic Oldies format, with no currents. It also began playing a few new wave hits from the 1980s from artists such as The Police and Human League. At the same time as the format adjustment, the station changed its logo to one bearing resemblance to a logo most urban oldies/rhythmic oldies used during the peak time of the format in the late 1990s/early 2000s.

In June 2015, the station added "Throwback" to its slogan while adding some classic hip hop in its playlist, removing the new wave and Disco tracks from the station (most of which moved over to sister KOSF), in order to better compete with KRBQ. The next month, the station reduced most of the classic hip hop tracks in favor of more familiar upbeat R&B and dance tracks, as well as ballads.

As 98.1 The Breeze

On April 13, 2016, at 2 p.m., after playing "Kiss and Say Goodbye" by The Manhattans and "End of the Road" by Boyz II Men, KISQ flipped back to Soft AC as "98.1 The Breeze." The first song on "The Breeze" was "Easy" by The Commodores.^[3]^[4] Core artists of the format include Michael Bolton, Mariah Carey, Lionel Richie, Elton John and Celine Dion.

The new format positions KISQ up against KOIT’s older demographics (KISQ registered a 2.3 share in Kiss's last book, the March 2016 Nielsen Audio PPM ratings, while KOIT had a 4.6 share).

References

External links

Official Website

Query the FCC's FM station database for KISQ

Radio-Locator information on KISQ

Radio stations in the San Francisco, California market

By AM frequency	560 610 680¹ 740 810¹ 860 910 960 1010 1050 1100 1170 1190 1220 1260 1310 1370 1400 1430 1450 1500 1510 1550 1590 1610 1640

By FM frequency	87.7² 87.9 88.1 88.1 88.5 89.1 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.3 89.5 89.7 89.9 90.1 90.3 90.5 90.5 90.7 91.1 91.5 91.7 92.3 92.7 93.3 93.7 94.1 94.5 94.9 95.3 95.7 96.1 96.5 97.3 97.7 98.1 98.5 98.9 99.7 100.3 100.7 101.3 102.1 102.9 103.3 103.7 104.5 104.9 105.3 105.7 106.1 106.5 106.9 107.3 107.7

NOAA Weather Radio frequency	162.400 162.450 162.500 162.550

By callsign	KALW KALX KBAY KBLX-FM KBRG KCBS KCEA KCRH KCSM KDIA KDOW KDX54 KDYA KEAR KEC49 KECG KEST KEZR KFAX KFFG KFJC KFOG KFRC-FM KGMZ KGO KHB49 KIOI KIQI KISQ KITS KKSF KKUP KLIV KLLC KLOK KLVS KMEL KMKY KMTG KMVQ-FM (HD3) KNBR KNEW KOIT KOSC KOSF KPDO KPFA KPFB KPOO KQED-FM KRBQ KREV KRSA KRTY KRZZ KSAN KSCU KSFB KSFH KSFN KSFO KSJO KSJS KSJX KSOL KSQQ KSRH KTCT KTRB KUFX KVTO KVVF KVVN KVVZ KWMR KXSC KXZM KYLD KZDG KZSF KZSU WWF64

Defunct	KABL KABL-FM KFRC KYA KJAZ KKHI KMPX KOME KSAN (defunct) KUSF (defunct)

Satellite radio local traffic/weather XM Channel 221 Sirius Channel 156

¹ = Clear-channel stations with extended nighttime coverage. ² Audio for TV channel 6 (KBKF-LP/Ind/K-LOVE)

California radio markets Bakersfield Chico Fresno Los Angeles Merced Modesto Oxnard–Ventura Palm Springs Redding Riverside/San Bernardino Sacramento San Diego San Francisco/Oakland San Jose San Luis Obispo Santa Barbara Santa Cruz/Salinas/Monterey Santa Maria-Lompoc Santa Rosa Stockton Victor Valley Visalia-Tulare-Hanford Other California radio regions Barstow Bishop Crescent City Diablo Valley High Desert/Eastern Sierra Eureka Fort Bragg–Ukiah Gilroy/Hollister Imperial Valley Marysville/Yuba City Needles Red Bluff Susanville/Sierra Nevada Tri-Valley Yreka Mass media in the San Francisco Bay Area: Radio stations

Adult Contemporary radio stations in the state of California

Stations	KABX – Merced KATY – Idyllwild KBAY – Gilroy KBBY – Ventura KBPK – Buena Park KCRE – Crescent City KEZN – Palm Desert KGFM – Bakersfield KISQ - San Francisco KJJZ – Indian Wells KJSN – Modesto KJWL – Fresno KKDV – Walnut Creek KMDR – McKinleyville KMXI – Chico KOIT – San Francisco KOST – Los Angeles KRKC-FM – King City KSHA – Redding KSOF – Dinuba/Fresno KSRW – Independence KSTT-FM – Los Osos-Baywood Par KSYV – Solvang KUIC – Vacaville KVMI - Tulare KVYN – Saint Helena KWAV – Monterey KXBX-FM – Lakeport KXO-FM – El Centro KXSN – San Diego KYLA – Fountain Valley KYMX – Sacramento KYNS – San Luis Obispo KYXY – San Diego KYZA – Adelanto KZSQ – Sonora KZST – Santa Rosa

See also adult contemporary classic hits college country news/talk NPR oldies religious rock sports top 40 urban other radio stations in California

iHeartMedia

Corporate officers	Bob Pittman (Chairman/CEO)

Board of directors	Lowry Mays Irving Azoff B. J. "Red" McCombs J. C. Watts John H. Williams

Radio stations	List of radio stations owned by iHeartMedia

Radio networks	Fox Sports Radio Premiere Networks Premium Choice Total Traffic and Weather Network

Miscellaneous	Clear Channel Outdoor Clear Channel UK iHeartRadio List of programming syndicated by iHeartMedia Mediabase Radio Computing Services

Coordinates: 37°51′04″N 122°29′53″W / 37.851°N 122.498°W / 37.851; -122.498

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