City Glendale, Arizona Branding La Tricolor | Broadcast area Phoenix, Arizona First air date 1994 (as KTWC) | |
Frequency 103.5 MHz (also on HD Radio) Format Regional Mexican
HD2: KVVA-FM simulcast | ||
KLNZ (103.5 FM at 62 kW ERP) is a regional Mexican-formatted radio station serving the Phoenix, Arizona area. The station is owned by Entravision Communications. KLNZ is licensed to the nearby suburb of Glendale and broadcasts programming from Entravision's California-based "Radio Tricolor" network. The station also broadcasts with digital HD Radio technology. Its studios are located in Phoenix near Sky Harbor Airport, and the transmitter is located west of Surprise.
History
103.5 signed on the air on May 18, 1994, as KTWC ("Twice 103.5") with an eclectic oldies-based format with music ranging from the 1950s through the 1980s. In 1996, KTWC was purchased by MAC America Communications, owners of KESZ and KTVK, and was changed to Smooth Jazz-formatted KOAZ ("The Oasis") (and competed with KYOT-FM), on May 17 of that year.
In 1997, MAC America decided to sell half its interest in the station to Owens Broadcasting, owners of heritage Country KNIX-FM. The format was switched once again to country, targeting a younger audience and going by the name of KWCY ("Wild Country"), on September 2, 1997. A huge marketing campaign coincided with the change, publicizing the return of popular morning hosts Tim & Willy, who were at KMLE for a few years before a brief stint in Chicago. Tim & Willy eventually became morning hosts at KNIX. Giving up on the frequency, KWCY was put up for sale in June 1998.
Z-Spanish Radio Networks bought the station in 1999, and placed its Sacramento-based "La Zeta" Regional Mexican format on 103.5. At the time, the station became KLNZ. Contravention merged with Z-Spanish a year later, and its Zeta-formatted stations became Radio Tricolor.