KAHM (102.1

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

broadcasting a beautiful music and

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

radio format A radio format or programming format (not to be confused with broadcast programming) describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. The radio format emerged mainly in the United States in the 1950s, at a time when Radio broadcasting, ...

. It is

licensed A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

to Spring Valley, Arizona, and it serves the

Prescott Prescott may refer to: People Given name * Prescott E. Bloom, American lawyer and politician * Prescott Bush, American banker and politician * Samuel Prescott Bush, American industrialist * Prescott F. Hall, American lawyer, author and eugenicist ...

/ Flagstaff / Phoenix area. The station airs quarter hour sweeps of soft music, half instrumental and half vocal. Announcers give brief weather and news updates but never talk over the music. The studios are on Henry Street in Prescott. KAHM has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ha ...

(ERP) of 58,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

s, broadcasting from a

tower A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...

at in

height above average terrain Height above average terrain (HAAT), or (less popularly) effective height above average terrain (EHAAT), is the vertical position of an antenna site above the surrounding landscape. HAAT is used extensively in FM radio and television, as it is ...

(HAAT). The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter (often abbreviated as XMTR or TX in technical documents) is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna (radio), antenna with the purpose of sig ...

is on

Mingus Mountain Mingus Mountain () is a mountain located in the U.S. state of Arizona in the Black Hills mountain range. It is located within the Prescott National Forest traversed by State Route 89A approximately midway between Cottonwood and Prescott. The ...

near Cottonwood.

History

KAHM

signed on A sign-on (or start-up in Commonwealth countries except Canada) is the beginning of operations for a radio broadcasting, radio or television station, generally at the start of each day. It is the opposite of a sign-off (or closedown in Commonw ...

the air on . It provides the Prescott, Flagstaff and Phoenix areas with a format of Beautiful Music, which remains virtually unchanged. The station originally aired quarter hour sweeps of easy listening music, mostly instrumental

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of popular adult songs, with some

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

and

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

show tune A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context. Th ...

s. In the 2000s, it moved to a 50% vocal

playlist A playlist is a list of video or audio files that can be played back on a media player, either sequentially or in a shuffled order. In its most general form, an audio playlist is simply a list of songs that can be played once or in a loop. ...

. First broadcasting under 1,000 watts, KAHM's signal expanded in the early 1990s to 58,000 watts, serving the people of northern and central Arizona, along with the metropolitan Phoenix market. With the improved signal, KAHM could be heard in southern Arizona as far south as Peoria, Scottsdale and

Anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to sho ...

. In 2005, the station began broadcasting 24 hours a day, using

broadcast automation Broadcast automation incorporates the use of broadcast programming technology to automate broadcasting operations. Used either at a broadcast network, radio station or a television station, it can run a facility in the absence of a human oper ...

overnight. From the early 2000s until September 14, 2015, KAHM also had an

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

stream on its website. The stream was ended due to high demand on the server and due to licensing fees. As of 2023, the internet stream has returned. Effective January 12, 2018, Southwest Broadcasting sold KAHM (as well as translator K269EE and sister talk KYCA and its translator K278CN) to Phoenix Radio Broadcasting, a holding company for the

Cesar Chavez Cesario Estrada Chavez (; ; March 31, 1927 – April 23, 1993) was an American labor leader and civil rights activist. Along with Dolores Huerta and lesser known Gilbert Padilla, he co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA), ...

Foundation's Farmworker Educational Radio Network. Southwest Broadcasting management, reorganized as Prescott Broadcasting, LLC, still operates the station under a

local marketing agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one corporation, company agrees to operate a radio station, radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it ...

and has continued its easy listening format, which is one of only a handful of broadcast stations still airing the format in the United States since its decline in the 1980s (the station claims "We've always been Calm, and we always will be"). The KYCA license was sold back to Prescott Broadcasting in 2021. KAHM has a construction permit to move to a new tower location in

Crown King Crown King is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Yavapai County, Arizona, Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. Crown King has a ZIP Code of 86343; in 2000, the population of the 86343 ZIP Code Tabulation Area, ZCTA was 133. ...

. With the taller tower, the power will drop from 54,000 watts to 26,000 watts. In preparation for this move, the station has changed its city of license from Prescott to Spring Valley.

Translators

K269EE.jpg, 2007 Photo of translator K269EE 101.7FM KAHM 102.1 FM - Transmitter 61510.jpg, 2008 Photo of Transmitter site 102.1FM

References

External links

KAHM official website

Listen Live
{{Phoenix Radio Radio stations established in 1982 Prescott, Arizona AHM Easy listening radio stations 1982 establishments in Arizona