KLIF-FM

Marcos A. Rodriguez was the first to control the license after having successfully obtained it directly from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). After his financing source defaulted, Rodriguez sold the license to Susquehanna Radio.

93.3 FM began broadcasting on October 31, 1996, as KNBR-FM "The Zone", with an adult alternative format.[1] The call letters KNBR-FM were only short-term, as they were changed to KKZN to match the moniker on December 20, 1996. After a day-long stunt with episodes of The Bob Newhart Show and a loop of "Pop Muzik" by M, the station became KKMR "Merge", with a modern AC format on August 31, 1999. The first song on "Merge" was "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" by Lenny Kravitz.[2][3]

At midnight on January 3, 2002, after playing "Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders, the station began stunting with funeral bells and random audio soundbites. At 5 p.m. that day, the station became KDBN "The Bone", with a 1970s-1980s classic rock format (specifically hard rock and heavy metal from that era), launching with "Bad to the Bone" by George Thorogood.[4] This produced an initial spike in ratings, though the station lost much of that audience as the years progressed. The old KDBN call sign, as an abbreviation for Dallas Business News, were once used at 1480 AM in Dallas for a business news format from September 21, 1989, to September 4, 1991. Cumulus Media subsequently took control of the station in May 2006 as part of its acquisition of Susquehanna, instituted cost-cutting measures, and completely restored a classic rock format after the station had experimented with more recent rock offerings.

On April 24, 2009, KDBN began stunting with music from the Dave Matthews Band with limited commercial interruptions. It would switch back to adult album alternative as "FM 93.3 - Quality Rock" on April 27. On-air staff included The Regular Guys, a morning show syndicated from Atlanta, Alexis (middays), and Scott Gaines (afternoons).[5] Among former on-air staff were Gary Thompson (mornings), Pugs and Kelly (afternoons), Candy Stuart, Bo Roberts, Yvonne Monet, Jeff K, Carter, Channing, Jennifer Reed, Kat Von Erick, Debbie Sexxton, Squeaky, Paladin, Logan, Gary Zee, Royce Dex, Barb Smith (traffic reporter), and Rich Phillips (sports reporter). However, this format would be short-lived, as the station's ratings failed to raise their already anemic numbers.

The station was formerly an affiliate of the Dallas Cowboys Radio Network.[6]

Previous i93 logo used from 2009 until 2014.

On September 2, 2009, the station began stunting again, urging listeners to tune in that Friday (September 4) at noon.[7] At that time, the station launched a top 40 format as "i93", and on September 7, a callsign change to KLIF-FM was made.[8] As a reference to the station's I branding used for newer Cumulus-launched top 40 stations, the station's new top 40 format launched with The Black Eyed Peas' "I Gotta Feeling". The station aimed for an older audience; rival 106.1 KISS-FM skewed toward younger listeners. KLIF was the flagship station for Nights Live with Adam Bomb. After another format change at 93.3, the show moved back to Atlanta with WWWQ-FM.

In September 2014, websites were registered showing a possible rebranding or format change to rhythmic Top 40/CHR, urban, classic hits, oldies, smooth jazz, or rhythmic oldies. The registrations followed the recent hiring of former KBFF program director Louie Cruz for the same position at KLIF-FM. This station had not been able to make up ground on KHKS as it continued to hover right below a 2 share in the Dallas/Fort Worth Nielsen ratings of August 2014.[9] The change was confirmed on October 3 of that year, when 93.3 began running liners promoting that "Something New Arrives At 93.3" at 5 p.m. that day, and relaunched as "Hot 93.3". While the station still maintained its Top 40 format as before, KLIF-FM began leaning towards rhythmic CHR.

On November 14, 2014, at 5 p.m., KLIF-FM began playing classic hip hop songs around the clock (as part of a holiday season-only promotion), only to be upstaged an hour later by KSOC, who dropped their urban AC direction to go full-time with classic hip hop as "Boom 94.5". It is not known if this was done intentionally, or if KLIF-FM was trying to pull a pre-empted strike to bring the format first to the area before another station picked it up. The flip has also resulted in Mediabase changing KLIF's reporting status from Top 40/CHR to rhythmic.[10]

On December 2, 2014, at 6 p.m., KLIF-FM shifted their format to urban contemporary, retaining the "Hot 93.3" branding, even though Mediabase continued to list the station as a rhythmic reporter.[11] Competitors in the format included KKDA-FM and KBFB. In March 2015, KLIF adjusted its direction back to Rhythmic with the inclusion of pop/dance crossovers that it had dropped previously and was added to the Nielsen BDS Rhythmic reporting panel.

In September 2015, KLIF-FM gradually returned to more of a mainstream Top 40/CHR format, putting it in competition with KHKS once again - a status affirmed with Mediabase returning KLIF-FM to its pop panel in November.[12] Nielsen BDS continued to have KLIF-FM report to the rhythmic panel until May 2016. It currently competes with KHKS and, for a time in October 2016 to November 2017, CBS Radio-owned Hot AC-leaning KVIL. Ironically, AM sister station KLIF, during its Top 40 era, was competing with KVIL in the late 1960s.

As of September 2019, KLIF shifted back to a Rhythmic Top 40 direction as it began increasing the amount of R&B/Hip-Hop currents being played, thus putting it back in competition with KKDA and KBFB again, while continuing to go after KHKS.

KLIF-FM is the 3rd station in the metroplex to use the "Hot" branding. The first was KRBV (now KJKK) 100.3 from 1999 to 2001, and the 2nd was KESS-FM (now KDXX) 107.9 in 2013.