KLRX

KLRX (97.3 K-Love) is a radio station in the Kansas City, Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas area that plays contemporary Christian music. The station is licensed to Lee's Summit, and broadcasts at 55,000 watts with a transmitter located in east Kansas City, Missouri.

History

KCSX (1998–2003)

Originally, KCSX was a country music station based in Moberly, Missouri. In 1998, First Broadcasting moved the station's transmitter and target area to Kansas City, who sold half of ownership of the station to Union Broadcasting. This was a rare occasion where two companies shared programming of one radio station. In 2002, the station moved their transmitter further into the Kansas City market, causing two stations in Kansas to change frequencies (Topeka-based WIBW-FM moved from 97.3 to 94.5, while Junction City station KJCK-FM moved from 94.5 to 97.5).

KZPL The Planet (2003–2005)

In January 2003, the station dropped its country music format and stunted by playing nothing but songs by The Beatles for one week, followed by similar daylong marathons of music from The Rolling Stones, U2, Aerosmith, and Metallica. At Midnight on February 10, the new station known as "The Planet" debuted, with "The World I Know" by Collective Soul. For the first month, all programming was fed via satellite from Dallas. Eventually settling on adult album alternative (dubbed "World Class Rock" by The Planet), KZPL gathered a small yet devoted following. However, it sat consistently near the bottom of most ratings charts throughout its two-year existence. In Spring 2003, arguments between both ownership companies resulted in First Broadcasting taking Union Broadcasting to court, eventually leading to the full sale of the station to Union. The station suffered from low ratings during this time period, despite the effort Union put into the station's unique music mix, which was only heard on college radio station KTBG.