KKXT

KXT has hosted hundreds of in-studio performances since its inception, welcoming the likes of Chrissie Hynde, Violent Femmes, Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle, Pete Yorn, Sondre Lerche, Guy Clark and Rogue Wave. These sessions have been archived at kxt.org.

KXT airs World Cafe, a nightly radio show from WXPN in Philadelphia hosted and produced by Talia Schlanger and syndicated by NPR, on weeknights with an overnight encore. The station also airs UnderCurrents nightly. Other special programs aired on KXT include: eTown, Acoustic Café, American Routes and The Latin Alternative.[6]

Local Dallas-Fort Worth area musician Paul Slavens hosts the award-winning program The Paul Slavens Show that airs Sunday nights on KXT. The show features a diverse and eclectic playlist created from audience suggestions. Suggestions are accepted weekly on KXT's blog.

View from the stage at KXT Sun Sets in 2016.

The KXT blog features a variety of music-focused content, including concert alerts, ticket giveaways, artist interviews and festival coverage.

KXT reaches listeners all over the world via a live stream on kxt.org.

KXT's concert calendar offers a list of upcoming shows and events in North Texas of interest to KXT listeners.

Twin Peaks performed a live session at the KXT studios in September 2016.[10]

KKXT was founded in 1950 by the Elkins Institute, at the time known as Texas Trade School, as KVTT 88.5 FM ("The Voice of Texas Trade School"). The school used it as a training ground for students including Rush Limbaugh and moved to 91.7 FM in the late 1960s to early 1970s.[11]

In 1976, Eldred Thomas, the founder of Covenant Educational Media, bought KVTT and turned it into a Christian music and teaching station. Thomas took KVTT's original call letters and created the "Keep Voicing The Truth" tagline.[12] From its studios in North Dallas, it carried a variety of teaching programs, talk-format programs, and Praise and Worship music, along with their long-running and highest rated program for 20 years, The Journey hosted by Tom Dooley, who died on November 9, 2010.

Logo used from 1986 until 2004 sale to Covenant Educational Media

In July 2001, KVTT license holder Research Educational Foundation, Inc., applied to transfer the broadcast license for this station to The Learning Foundation, Inc.[13] The reported $5 million sale price would have also included the station's donor list for the preceding two years.[13] The transfer was approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on August 24, 2001, but the deal ultimately fell through. The license remained with the Research Educational Foundation.[14]

Logo used following sale to Covenant Educational Media

In July 2004, Research Educational Foundation, Inc., again applied to transfer the license for KVTT, this time to Covenant Educational Media, Inc.[15] The sale price for this single non-commercial station was reported as $16.5 million.[15] The transfer was approved by the FCC on September 21, 2004, and the transaction was consummated on November 16, 2004.[16]

In June 2006, KVTT's owners tried to broker a frequency swap with WRR (101.1 FM), a commercial radio station owned by the City of Dallas.[17] The swap would allow the relocated KVTT to sell commercial advertising to increase its revenue stream. Even though one official estimated the deal "could be worth up to $50 million" to the city of Dallas, the swap was ultimately rejected by the city.[18][19]

It was announced on June 9, 2009, that Covenant Educational Media would be selling this station to North Texas Public Broadcasting (owners of KERA (90.1 FM) and KERA-TV) for $18 million.[2][20] The deal was approved by the FCC on July 30, 2009, and the transaction was consummated on September 28, 2009.[3][21] It was said to be the biggest single radio station sale to that point in 2009.[22]

The 2008 economic downturn, coupled by a shortfall of donations from its "share-a-thon" and an "urgent" fundraiser, led to the sale of KVTT.[23] The station's now-previous owners have vowed to keep the Christian format in operation in some capacity.[24] The final broadcasting day for the Christian format on 91.7 FM was September 28; on that date, the station moved its programming to a daytime-only station, KJSA (1110 AM).[25] In addition, the station also provided its programming via the internet from its website, kvtt.org. The KVTT call sign was then transferred to Covenant's sister station in Palisade, Colorado, KAAI, on October 1, 2009. On October 14, 2009, the KVTT call sign returned to the D/FW area on the AM station formerly licensed as KJSA, which was transferred to the Colorado station (that station has since reverted to KAAI).

KXT 91.7 logo from 2009 launch until January 2016.

On October 1, 2009, the 91.7 frequency became "KKXT", and the station temporarily went silent; programming, under the moniker "KXT 91.7", began on November 9.[26] The format flip to adult album alternative also occurred on that date.[22][27] The station carried national and locally produced music programming. Music programs formerly heard on KERA FM moved to 91.7, including 90.1 at Night, which was renamed as The Paul Slavens Show .[26][28] With the format change of long-time alternative station KDGE to adult contemporary in November 16, 2016, KKXT was considered the de facto alternative station for the market until November 17, 2017 (almost one year later after KDGE's flip) when Entercom purchased CBS Radio and flipped KVIL to alternative as "Alt 103.7."

As of early February 2017, KKXT also broadcasts a digital signal using the iBiquity "HD Radio" system.

On October 2, 2017, KXT relaunched its positioning statement as "The Republic of Music", with a greater emphasis on local artists, and revamped their daily schedule.[29]