Harman Patil (Editor)

KDKE

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Broadcast area
  
Duluth-Superior

ERP
  
100,000 watts

Class
  
C1

Frequency
  
102.5 FM MHz

Format
  
Contemporary hit radio

Area
  
Twin Ports

First air date
  
1979 (as KZIO)

HAAT
  
183 meters

Facility ID
  
71355

City of license
  
Superior

Owner
  
Midwest Communications

Branding
  
102.5 KDWZ

KDKE dukefmduluthcomstaticbrandskdketouchiconpng

Slogan
  
The Twin Ports Hit Music Station

KDKE (102.5 FM, "Duke FM") is a classic country radio station located in Duluth, Minnesota (licensed to Superior, Wisconsin). KDKE is owned by Midwest Communications, which also owns WDSM, WDUL, KDAL, KDAL-FM and KTCO in Duluth. All the Duluth stations share the same studio location at 715 East Central Entrance, up the hill from downtown. Most of KDKE's personalities are voice-tracked or syndicated.

History

The station was Top 40/CHR as "102.5 KZIO" (call sign now used by 104.3/94.1) until November 1996 when it switched to modern/alternative rock as "102.5 The Bear" with the KRBR-FM call sign. The Bear transitioned to active rock in 1998, and broadened its playlist by 2002. By 2006, "The Bear" moniker was dropped as the station branded as "102.5 KRBR" and added a significant amount of Classic Rock to its playlist to become a mainstream rock station. On March 3, 2008, KRBR-FM changed its call sign to KHQG, and began branding itself as "102.5 The Hog" while remaining with a mainstream rock format. In March 2009, KHQG shifted from mainstream rock to "Classic Rock 102.5." In the classic rock arena, 102.5 more solidly targeted the market's heritage classic rock station, KQDS-FM 94.9. The previous format had fallen between KQ and its active rock sister, 94X.

On August 30, 2010, KHQG flipped to Top 40 (CHR) as "102.5 KDWZ", the branding and callsign a nod to KDWB-FM in Minneapolis. This flip filled a void for a full-fledged Top 40 station (107.7 KBMX "Mix 108" airs a Hot AC/Top 40 hybrid format) that was left open by WWAX in 2008.

On September 21, 2015 at 10 am, KDWZ flipped to Classic Country as "102.5 Duke FM". It currently airs a mix of classic country music. Many KDWZ staff members, including The Jake and Tanner Morning Show, will move to My 95.7.

The KDWZ call sign was previously used with Top 40 stations in Des Moines, Iowa (was known on-air as "Z93", now oldies formatted KIOA) and Grand Forks, North Dakota (now country formatted KYCK) in the 1980s.

The station changed its call sign to the current KDKE on December 1, 2016.

References

KDKE Wikipedia