KRRO

The station began operation at 93.5 MHz{{r|hc}} as KCHF-FM on May 6, 1969.{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37107722/|work=The Daily Republic|date=May 9, 1969|title=KCHF-FM Radio Begins Operating|page=5|access-date=October 12, 2019}} It was owned by Eider C. "Red" Stangland, who had waited for years with his application to build an AM outlet at 1520 kHz{{r|begins}} and previously owned a station in Iowa.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37107704/|work=Argus-Leader|title=Coming Soon to Sioux Falls... KCHF, Sioux Falls "Chief" Station|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=D4|date=April 8, 1969}} It was the last of three radio station sign-ons in Sioux Falls in the first five months of 1969 (preceded by KXRB and KNWC-FM).{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37107887/|work=Argus-Leader|date=April 8, 1969|access-date=October 12, 2019|title=Three New Radio Stations Boost Sioux Falls Total To 8}} (The Sioux Empire Broadcasting Company was approved the next year for the AM outlet,{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108096/|title=New Radio Station Approved|page=2|work=Argus-Leader|date=April 27, 1970|access-date=October 12, 2019}} which went on the air on June 13, 1970 as KCHF.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108156/|work=The Daily Republic|agency=Associated Press|date=June 17, 1970|title=Station KCHF Goes on Air|page=21}}) KCHF-AM-FM largely simulcast the same middle-of-the-road music format.{{r|goes}}

Significant changes came to KCHF-FM when it was sold in 1977 to Sodak Broadcasting, Inc.{{r|hc}} On December 1, 1977, the new owners blew up a format that was considered a perennial also-ran in the ratings and relaunched KCHF-AM-FM as KLYX-AM-FM, a soft rock station.{{cite news|pages=1D, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108408/ 2D]|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108428/|title=Format formulas ruled by radio ratings|work=Argus-Leader|first=Marshall|last=Fine|access-date=October 12, 2019|date=March 24, 1978}} To the station's surprise, however, ratings dropped; the station blamed its "Stereo 93" moniker being close to a more well-known station, "Stereo 92" KELO-FM, resulting in KELO-FM being attributed listenership to KLYX-FM.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108571/|work=Argus-Leader|date=August 13, 1978|title=KLYX management angry over ratings|page=13A|first=Marcus|last=Fine|access-date=October 12, 2019}} The station had adopted the "X93" brand by 1979{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108733/|work=Argus Leader|date=October 5, 1979|title=Tonight at Midnite!|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=7C}} and an album-oriented rock format which caused it to surge to fourth place in the Sioux Falls ratings.{{r|ny}}

In 1981, Sodak sold KLYX AM and FM to separate ownership; for the FM station, the buyer was Red River Communications (Thomas E. Ingstad), which already owned KKRC radio.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37108825/|work=Argus-Leader|date=June 15, 1980|title=KLYX radio to change ownership|page=11D|access-date=October 12, 2019}} The sale for between $325,000 and $375,000{{cite news|url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1980/1980-11-10-BC.pdf|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=92|work=Broadcasting|date=November 10, 1980|title=Ownership changes}} led to KLYX-FM becoming KKRZ on March 4, 1981.{{r|hc}} Not only did Ingstad institute new call letters and a more adult contemporary sound as "Z93", but the new management fired almost all of the station's staff just 36 hours before Christmas.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109104/|first=Marshall|last=Fine|date=January 1, 1981|title=Radio switch tunes out some workers|work=Argus-Leader|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=1D}} The move back to adult contemporary caused KKRZ's ratings to drop again in 1981.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109290/|pages=1C, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109253/ 3C]|date=October 1, 1981|work=Argus-Leader|access-date=October 12, 2019|title=Local radio stations don't listen to ratings|first=Marshall|last=Fine}}

KKRZ became KKRC-FM on New Year's Day 1982 as the AM station flipped to country; it moved even further to Top 40 (CHR) as a result, inheriting the format that had been on the AM.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109365/|title=Radio station changing its tune—to country|date=December 23, 1981|first=Marshall|last=Fine|work=Argus-Leader|access-date=October 12, 2019|pages=1C, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109415/ 4C]}} The move was also designed to help the FM, which ranked eighth in a nine-station market.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109474/|first=Marshall|last=Fine|title=New sound at Z93|date=November 10, 1981|page=1B|access-date=October 12, 2019|work=Argus-Leader}} The Top 40 move made an immediate impact and turned KKRC-FM into the new radio leader in Sioux Falls in the spring 1982 Arbitron book.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109796/|title=KKRC-FM taking over airwaves as leading Sioux Falls radio station|date=July 24, 1982|access-date=October 12, 2019|work=Argus-Leader|first=Jeff|last=Thomas|page=1C}}

Ingstad sold six stations—AM-FM combos in Sioux Falls, Grand Forks, North Dakota, and La Crosse, Wisconsin—to Vaughn's Inc.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37109887/|work=Rapid City Journal|agency=Associated Press|title=Radio stations in Grand Forks sold|page=10|date=June 16, 1985|access-date=October 12, 2019}} for $8 million in 1985.{{cite news|url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1985/BC-1985-07-01.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=July 1, 1985|access-date=October 12, 2019|title=Changing Hands|page=84}} After a time away from number one in 1986, KKRC-FM returned to the top spot in 1987, fueled by increased teenage listenership.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110055/|date=August 14, 1987|work=Argus-Leader|pages=1B, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110114/ 2B]|title=Teens take KKRC to top of ratings|first=Ann|last=Grauvogl|access-date=October 12, 2019}}

In 1989, KKRC-FM tweaked its format to add classic rock, in order to increase older listenership. KKRC-FM and its associated AM, now KKFN, were bought by the XMT Radio Group of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in 1990{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110193/|work=Argus-Leader|first=Ann|last=Grauvogl|access-date=October 12, 2019|date=January 13, 1990|title=Group to buy radio stations|page=1C}} for $1.5 million.{{cite news|url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1990/BC-1990-02-05.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=February 5, 1990|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=81|title=Changing Hands}}

On the night of September 28, 1990, KKRC-FM moved to 103.7 MHz and completed its full format flip to classic rock as KRRO. The frequency change came with a power increase from 3,000 to 50,000 watts.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110391/|title=Changes at KKRC, KKFN stations give owners plenty to crow about|first=Janet|last=Lively|page=6D|access-date=October 12, 2019|date=September 28, 1990|work=Argus-Leader}} Besides the new "crow" moniker, the station also promoted itself as "Klassic Rock 'n' Roll", using the call letters.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110454/|date=November 9, 1990|title=Live Remote Broadcast Saturday, Nov. 10th|access-date=October 12, 2019|work=Argus-Leader|page=12C}}

The station made news in 1991 when it and several other groups in Sioux Falls were duped by Carroll Lee Church, a 33-year-old man who claimed to be Billy Powell of Lynyrd Skynyrd; Church even sang in the KRRO studios.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110607/police_say_sting_nets_bogus_rocker/|pages=1A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110636/ 2A]|title=Police say sting nets bogus rocker|work=Argus-Leader|date=March 20, 1991|first=Lisa|last=Gaumnitz|access-date=October 12, 2019}} Chuck Brennan, an assistant manager of a nearby bar, helped police set up a sting operation to arrest Church, who was charged with felony grand theft by deception.

A 1994 sale attempt to sell the station (and KKFN, which became KWSN) to Radio One of Lincoln, Nebraska, failed.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37110793/radio_station_deal_fails/|title=Radio station deal fails|work=Argus-Leader|date=April 19, 1994|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=1B}} SFR, Inc., acquired the stations in 1994 and sold them to Midcontinent Radio of South Dakota for $3 million in 1996; this sale brought them under common control with KELO-AM-FM{{cite news|url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-RandR/1990s/1996/R&R-1996-09-20.pdf|work=Radio & Records|date=September 20, 1996|title=Transactions|page=13|access-date=October 12, 2019}} and saw them move into the KELO radio studios.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111135/|work=Argus-Leader|date=October 5, 1996|title=KRRO-WSN to move|page=6D|access-date=October 12, 2019}}

Even with its classic rock format, KRRO continued to be a ratings winner. It returned to number one overall in 1995, knocking KTWB out of first place for the first time in three years.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111016/|work=Argus-Leader|first=Ann|last=Grauvogl|access-date=October 12, 2019|page=1A|title=Rock 'n' roll rules in radio ratings|date=August 11, 1995}} The station expected further improvements, particularly to its signal in Iowa, with its 1998 move to a new tower in northern Lincoln County.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111235/|work=Argus-Leader|title=Media Watch|first=Bob|last=Keyes|date=March 28, 1998|page=1B|access-date=October 12, 2019}}

In 2000, tragedy struck at KRRO as one of its most popular disc jockeys and its program director, 36-year-old John C. Price, died of a heart attack.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111432/|work=Argus-Leader|first=Bob|last=Keyes|date=March 1, 2000|title=Popular disc jockey John C. Price, 36, dies|pages=1B, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111466/ 5B]|access-date=October 12, 2019}} He had hosted the station's morning show since 1996.{{r|price}} The station eventually segued to active rock.

After a 52-year history in Sioux Falls radio, Midcontinent sold all of its stations, including KRRO, to Backyard Broadcasting of Baltimore in 2004. It marked the company's exit from broadcasting, after selling KELO-TV in 1996.{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111611/|pages=1A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37111655/ 6A]|first=Jay|last=Kirschenmann|title=Midcontinent to sell its 5 radio stations|date=September 23, 2004|access-date=October 12, 2019|work=Argus-Leader}}

Backyard sold its seven Sioux Falls stations in 2012 to their present owner, Midwest Communications, in a $13.35 million transaction.{{cite news|last=Venta|first=Lance|date=July 25, 2012|title=Midwest Communications Expands To Sioux Falls|work=RadioInsight|url=https://radioinsight.com/headlines/59039/midwest-communications-expands-to-sioux-falls/|access-date=October 12, 2019}}

The KKRC-FM call letters were revived on August 31, 2020, when Townsquare Media flipped the former KMXC to classic hits.{{cite news|url=https://radioinsight.com/headlines/196815/townsquare-goes-back-in-time-in-sioux-falls/|work=RadioInsight|title=Townsquare Goes Back In Time In Sioux Falls|date=August 31, 2020|access-date=September 15, 2020|first=Lance|last=Venta}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.krro.com/ 103.7 KRRO]
• {{FM station data|59814|KRRO}}

{{Sioux Falls Radio}}

{{Midwest Communications}}

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RRO

Category:Mainstream rock radio stations in the United States

Category:Radio stations established in 1969

Category:Midwest Communications radio stations

Category:1969 establishments in South Dakota