Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

KPRI finds Jesus

"K-Love" Christian radio format takes over KPRI 102.1 FM

KPRI went off the air at 3:30 p.m. Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young,” then immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.
KPRI went off the air at 3:30 p.m. Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young,” then immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.

“What would Jesus do? Certainly not fire 20 people.”

That’s how one local radio pro joked about the transition of KPRI (102.1 FM) from a locally owned, locally programmed rock station to a contemporary Christian music format owned by Sacramento-based EMF (Educational Media Foundation).

All 20 KPRI employees were told at a 10 a.m. meeting Monday that the station was sold and their jobs were over. KPRI is now known as “K-Love” and will carry EMF’s syndicated music format featuring artists who make adult contemporary songs with Christian-conscious lyrics. KPRI joins 275 EMF stations who carry the exact same K-Love format which features artists like Casting Crowns, MercyMe and NeedToBreathe.

There are no plans for any local programming on the new K-Love/KPRI.

An insider reports that KPRI was sold to EMF for $12 million.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Two other EMF stations already serve parts of San Diego County. Julian-based KLVJ (100.1 FM) and Campo-based KYDO (96.1 FM) are two of 118 stations that carry EMF’s Air-1 format which features Christian music targeted to a younger listener.

With its acquisition of KPRI, EMF will now cover most of the San Diego market.

Some Christian contemporary stations, such as Spirit 105 in Seattle, air 30- and 60-second commercials on a for-profit basis. EMF is a nonprofit company and does not air commercials on any of its 393 not-for-profit stations.

“We are 96- to 98-percent listener-supported,” says Joe Miller, vice president of signal development for EMF. He describes EMF’s spiritual direction as “evangelical with a traditional statement of faith.” KPRI co-owner Bob Hughes (who went by the name Robert when he DJ’d his noon-to-3 p.m. weekday show) tells the Reader that none of his staff “had any idea” that the station had been sold when they were given the news Monday morning. He said there were tears among the staff, which included morning host Chris Cantore (formerly of 91X) and nighttime host Kelly Cole

This is the second time Cole endured a station format shift. She was the music director and one of the better-known on-air personalities at KIFM (98.1 FM) for more than a decade before that station dropped its smooth jazz format and she lost her job.

Morning host “Madison” (Keith Miller) had been with 102.1 FM from 1997 until he left last year to own and operate his own station on the Caribbean island of Roatan.

Hughes and partner Jonathan Schwartz owned and operated 102.1 since 1996 when it was known as KXST “Sets 102” playing two- and three-song sets of classic rock artists. In 1998 the station switched to a so-called "Triple A" format in 1998 and adopted the call letters KPRI. Triple A stands for Adult Album Alternative and signified that its format would play modern rock by artists like Bonnie Raitt, U2, John Mayer and others who appeal to an audience who may not want the more aggressive approach adopted by alternative stations like 91X.

The KPRI call letters formerly identified San Diego’s trailblazing progressive station at 106.5 FM which went “underground” full time in 1968.

While Triple A stations thrive in San Francisco, Austin, Chicago, Denver, and Portland, it is a format that is not available in every city. With the passing of KPRI, Temecula’s KMYT (94.5 FM) is the only Triple A left in Southern California.

KPRI signed off at 3:30 Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young” and immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.

Bob Hughes speaks to his listeners on a video he posted Monday on KPRI’s Facebook page.

Hughes has long said that KPRI was for sale. He and Schwartz turned down an offer last year to buy the station for $8 million. It was increasingly difficult for the two owners to keep KPRI profitable. Most other local stations are corporately owned and have the economic benefit of being part of a multiple-station group, whereas KPRI was a stand-alone owned by the private partnership of Hughes and Schwartz.

Clear Channel/iHeartradio, for instance, owns seven local stations.

It’s harder for all local radio stations as advertising income has dropped significantly in eight years. An insider says all local stations took in $230-million in 2007 but last year only grossed $160-million.

Another struggle, says Hughes, is that radio ratings in many large markets like San Diego are determined by meters that resemble beepers and must be carried on your person. He explains that professionals who like KPRI, “simply aren’t going to wear those meters everywhere they go for an extra couple of dollars a week.” In the latest Nielsen ratings KPRI was in 23rd place among all local listeners while the two alternative stations, 91X and FM-94/9 were tied for 18th.

Hughes proudly boasts that KPRI had a stellar record of presenting listener appreciation concerts, many of which were held aboard a Hornblower boat cruise. He said a handful of listeners were invited to hear Adele play live just as her career was taking off. “We just had Donavon Frankenreiter play a cruise for us last Monday [September 21]. We’ve had Imagine Dragons, Jack Johnson and Ed Sheeran play for us. And don’t forget the time we had Norah Jones and John Mayer play on the same cruise.”

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Flowering pear trees in Kensington not that nice

Empty dirt plots in front of Ken Cinema
KPRI went off the air at 3:30 p.m. Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young,” then immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.
KPRI went off the air at 3:30 p.m. Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young,” then immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.

“What would Jesus do? Certainly not fire 20 people.”

That’s how one local radio pro joked about the transition of KPRI (102.1 FM) from a locally owned, locally programmed rock station to a contemporary Christian music format owned by Sacramento-based EMF (Educational Media Foundation).

All 20 KPRI employees were told at a 10 a.m. meeting Monday that the station was sold and their jobs were over. KPRI is now known as “K-Love” and will carry EMF’s syndicated music format featuring artists who make adult contemporary songs with Christian-conscious lyrics. KPRI joins 275 EMF stations who carry the exact same K-Love format which features artists like Casting Crowns, MercyMe and NeedToBreathe.

There are no plans for any local programming on the new K-Love/KPRI.

An insider reports that KPRI was sold to EMF for $12 million.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Two other EMF stations already serve parts of San Diego County. Julian-based KLVJ (100.1 FM) and Campo-based KYDO (96.1 FM) are two of 118 stations that carry EMF’s Air-1 format which features Christian music targeted to a younger listener.

With its acquisition of KPRI, EMF will now cover most of the San Diego market.

Some Christian contemporary stations, such as Spirit 105 in Seattle, air 30- and 60-second commercials on a for-profit basis. EMF is a nonprofit company and does not air commercials on any of its 393 not-for-profit stations.

“We are 96- to 98-percent listener-supported,” says Joe Miller, vice president of signal development for EMF. He describes EMF’s spiritual direction as “evangelical with a traditional statement of faith.” KPRI co-owner Bob Hughes (who went by the name Robert when he DJ’d his noon-to-3 p.m. weekday show) tells the Reader that none of his staff “had any idea” that the station had been sold when they were given the news Monday morning. He said there were tears among the staff, which included morning host Chris Cantore (formerly of 91X) and nighttime host Kelly Cole

This is the second time Cole endured a station format shift. She was the music director and one of the better-known on-air personalities at KIFM (98.1 FM) for more than a decade before that station dropped its smooth jazz format and she lost her job.

Morning host “Madison” (Keith Miller) had been with 102.1 FM from 1997 until he left last year to own and operate his own station on the Caribbean island of Roatan.

Hughes and partner Jonathan Schwartz owned and operated 102.1 since 1996 when it was known as KXST “Sets 102” playing two- and three-song sets of classic rock artists. In 1998 the station switched to a so-called "Triple A" format in 1998 and adopted the call letters KPRI. Triple A stands for Adult Album Alternative and signified that its format would play modern rock by artists like Bonnie Raitt, U2, John Mayer and others who appeal to an audience who may not want the more aggressive approach adopted by alternative stations like 91X.

The KPRI call letters formerly identified San Diego’s trailblazing progressive station at 106.5 FM which went “underground” full time in 1968.

While Triple A stations thrive in San Francisco, Austin, Chicago, Denver, and Portland, it is a format that is not available in every city. With the passing of KPRI, Temecula’s KMYT (94.5 FM) is the only Triple A left in Southern California.

KPRI signed off at 3:30 Monday with Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young” and immediately flipped to the K-Love feed.

Bob Hughes speaks to his listeners on a video he posted Monday on KPRI’s Facebook page.

Hughes has long said that KPRI was for sale. He and Schwartz turned down an offer last year to buy the station for $8 million. It was increasingly difficult for the two owners to keep KPRI profitable. Most other local stations are corporately owned and have the economic benefit of being part of a multiple-station group, whereas KPRI was a stand-alone owned by the private partnership of Hughes and Schwartz.

Clear Channel/iHeartradio, for instance, owns seven local stations.

It’s harder for all local radio stations as advertising income has dropped significantly in eight years. An insider says all local stations took in $230-million in 2007 but last year only grossed $160-million.

Another struggle, says Hughes, is that radio ratings in many large markets like San Diego are determined by meters that resemble beepers and must be carried on your person. He explains that professionals who like KPRI, “simply aren’t going to wear those meters everywhere they go for an extra couple of dollars a week.” In the latest Nielsen ratings KPRI was in 23rd place among all local listeners while the two alternative stations, 91X and FM-94/9 were tied for 18th.

Hughes proudly boasts that KPRI had a stellar record of presenting listener appreciation concerts, many of which were held aboard a Hornblower boat cruise. He said a handful of listeners were invited to hear Adele play live just as her career was taking off. “We just had Donavon Frankenreiter play a cruise for us last Monday [September 21]. We’ve had Imagine Dragons, Jack Johnson and Ed Sheeran play for us. And don’t forget the time we had Norah Jones and John Mayer play on the same cruise.”

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Melissa Etheridge, The Imaginary Amazon

Events April 1-April 3, 2024
Next Article

SDSU pres gets highest pay raise in state over last 15 years

Union-Tribune still stiffing downtown San Diego landlord?
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.