KHEY-FM

KHEY-FM (96.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station in El Paso, Texas. It airs a country music radio format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The station carries the syndicated "Bobby Bones Show" on Monday through Saturday mornings, and "After Midnight with Cody Allen" overnight. The rest of the weekday schedule features local DJs. The studios and offices are on North Mesa Street (Texas State Highway 20) in West Central El Paso.
KHEY-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 88,000 watts (100,000 with beam tilt). The transmitter is off Scenic Drive in the Franklin Mountains in El Paso. The signal covers parts of Texas, New Mexico and the Mexican state of Chihuahua, including Ciudad Juárez. KHEY-FM broadcasts in the HD Radio hybrid format. The HD2 subchannel carries a 24 hour replay of Bobby Bones Country Top 30.
History.
KEZB.
On August 1, 1974, the station signed on as KEZB. It was the FM counterpart of AM 690 KHEY. KEZB, as the call sign indicated, played easy listening or beautiful music, while 690 KHEY played country music.
KEZB and KHEY were owned by KHEY, Inc., with studios on North Piedras Street. KEZB was a rare radio station in that era, in having a female program director, Karen Linton.
Switch to Country.
As the 1970s ended, more people were acquiring FM radios. Management decided to extend the successful country format on AM 690 over to the FM dial. In 1981, KEZB switched its call letters to KHEY-FM. An FM station on 93.9 (today KINT-FM) quickly picked up the KEZB call sign and beautiful music format.
The new KHEY-FM simulcast some of the AM station's programming. But most of the day, it was more music-intensive. AM 690 carried world and national news each hour from the ABC Information Radio Network, while FM 96.3 tried to minimize non-music elements. KHEY-FM had its own program director and most of the day had different disc jockeys.
Changes in Ownership.
In 1990, KHEY-AM-FM were bought by U.S. Radio L.P. for $8,425,000. U.S. Radio ended the overnight simulcast of Y-96. 690 KHEY aired separate programming from 24/7 Networks. KHEY (AM) also aired some sports including University of Texas football.
In 1998, KHEY-AM-FM were sold again, this time to San Antonio-based Clear Channel Communications. The price tag for the two stations was $10,500,000. Clear Channel also owned 1380 KTSM (AM) and 99.9 KTSM-FM. It switched the two AM stations, with KTSM and its talk radio format going on AM 690, while KHEY began broadcasting on AM 1380, and became a sports radio station. But KHEY-FM has remained a country music station for nearly four decades. Clear Channel was renamed iHeartMedia in 2014.