The station began broadcasting on September 2, 1967 as KRSP.[3] Until the mid-1980s, the station aired a contemporary hitsformat, simulcast with its FMsister stationKRSP-FM.[4][5][6] By 1986, the station had begun airing separate programming from KRSP-FM, carrying an oldies format, playing music from the '50s and '60s. The station was branded "Utah's Oldies Station".[7][8]
Children's Radio era
On September 24, 1990, the station changed its call sign to KKDS.[9] It began broadcasting a children's radio format branded "The Imagination Station", with programming from the Orlando-based "Kids' Choice Broadcasting Network."[10][11] KKDS was the first radio station aimed at children in the nation.[11] The station later affiliated with the children's network Radio AAHS.[12]
Adult Standards era
On November 12, 1997 the Radio AAHS affiliation ended, and the station began airing an adult contemporary and oldies format branded "All American Classics".[12] By 2000, the station's format had changed to Adult Standards.[13] In 2004, Holiday Broadcasting Co filed for the call sign KDYL, which had previously been held by AM 1280 while that station aired an Adult Standards format.[14] On February 2, 2004, the station's call sign was changed to KDYL.[9] In June 2005, KDYL began broadcasting the Jones Radio Networks' "Music of Your Life" Adult Standards format.[15] Later, the station carried a syndicated Adult Standards format from Westwood One.[15]
Real Oldies 1060
Station's logo as Real Oldies 1060
On January 1, 2008, the station switched to an oldies format known as "Real Oldies" with live and local personalities, spotlighting hits from the mid-1950s through the mid-1960s.[16] The change put the station in competition with another local oldies radio station 860 KKAT, which, at the time aired Scott Shannon's True Oldies Channel, although, unlike the True Oldies Channel, KDYL's playlist included only a small amount of post-1970 music. KKAT would eventually change formats, making KDYL the only pre-1970 oldies station in the Salt Lake metro area.
Oldies leaves Salt Lake AM radio
On March 4, 2013, KDYL changed formats to music, talk and news in Mandarin and English, with programming from China Radio International[17] after Mountain View Broadcast began operating the station under a time brokerage agreement.[18][19] In 2015, Mountain View Broadcast purchased the station from Holiday Broadcasting Co. for $712,000, which included $525,000 it had paid in brokerage fees over the previous two years.[18][20]
On December 1, 2017, KDYL changed formats to music, talk and news in South Asian and English from Radio Desi USA, after SSS Broadcasting LLC began operating the station under a time brokerage agreement.
Radio Unica
On January 1, 2019, KDYL began simulcasting Radio Unica, KFUR-LP 101.1, St. George, UT under a time brokerage agreement.[21] The Radio Unica programming ended on January 1, 2020, after which KDYL broadcast soft rock classics, new age music, and classic hits for a short period of time. On April 23, 2020, KDYL went silent.[22] On November 18, 2020, an application for assignment of license was submitted to the FCC for approval after KDYL was sold.[23] According to the asset purchase agreement filed with the FCC, the sale price for KDYL is $50,000. On January 8, 2021, the application for assignment of license was approved by the FCC.[24] The sale of KDYL was consummated on April 9, 2021, and the license was voluntarily reassigned from Mountain View Broadcast, LLC, to Radio Activo 3, LLC.[25] The assignment of license was granted by the FCC on April 11, 2021.[26] On June 18, 2021, KDYL returned to the air, and is currently stunting (broadcasting) with a mixture of automated lite rock music and Spanish pop music. According to a recent post in a Utah radio discussion group, the station's new owner plans to air a Spanish language format on KDYL in the near future.[27] On June 21, 2021, KDYL went silent again after testing over the Juneteenth weekend. As of February 25, 2022, KDYL remains off the air due to technical problems with the station's transmitter.[28] However, there have been several reports of KDYL periodically testing its transmitter since November 12, 2021.[29] On March 10, 2022, KDYL returned to the air with a Spanish language format. The station went silent again at the end of March 2022 because of lightning damage to transmitter power supplies, and it remains off the air as of May 5, 2022. On May 27, 2022, KDYL began broadcasting a Regional Mexican format branded as "Radio Unica 1060".[30]
KDYL Today: Spanish Variety RADIO 1060 AM, LA MEJOR!
The sale of KDYL was consummated on April 9, 2021, and the license was voluntarily reassigned from Mountain View Broadcast, LLC, to Radio Activo 3 LLC. The assignment of license was granted by the FCC on April 11, 2021. New owner kept the Radio Unica staff and rebranded it as RADIO 1060 AM "LA MEJOR"! with a Spanish Variety Format.
