KAMX
Encyclopedia
KAMX is a commercial radio station
licensed to Luling, Texas
, United States
, broadcasting to the Austin, Texas
area from studios and transmitter in West Lake Hills, Texas
. KAMX airs a Hot Adult Contemporary music format.
1980s music can also be heard on 94.7 HD-2 (HD Radio
needed).
Greg Williams (Sam Williams)on air at KPTY, KFGY and KAMX.
but targetting the much larger audience in nearby Austin. The station debuted with a mass appeal or Top 40 format under the name "Capital FM." Finding little initial success against established Top 40 stations KHFI and KBTS (now KGSR
, the station would try other formats including beautiful music, country as "The Country Kat" KATG and oldies as "Froggy 94" KFGI. After June 1994 the format was changed to a Pop CHR known as KPTY Party 94.7 which lasted until September 1, 1995 when the station changed format again to KAMX "Mix 94.7".
The station reached the northern portion of San Antonio, Texas until the summer of 1998 when the broadcast tower was moved to West Lake Hills, Texas.
Bridget Taylor was already working at 94.7 (when it was Party 94.7), when JB Hager and Sandy Rivers were teamed up for a new morning show. JB had previously been in Dallas and Sandy had previously been in New York. They hadn't worked together before, but knew each other through the radio industry. They added producer Funky to start a brand new morning show in 1995. When Funky left, a replacement producer was hired known as the "New and Improved Funky". The JB & Sandy Morning Show with Bridget and Funky enjoyed some of the best ratings to this day on Mix 94.7. Eventually the show started to separate. Funky left the station in November 1999 to move to California to pursue his Hollywood dream.
Following Funky's departure, a new producer, Tim Puttre was brought in to replace him. Tim was from New York and was known for his overly excited, fast-talking personality. In December 2000, Jb and Sandy were making plans for a move to Dallas. Jb and Sandy made the decision to release Bridget Taylor from their show and a month later, since Dallas was a Top Ten market and Austin was not, JB & Sandy packed their bags and began simulcasting from Dallas, while still being on the radio in Austin. Bridget Taylor was offered to co-host the morning show on Majic 95.5, Mix 94.7's sister station, but instead waited it out until she got a job co-hosting the morning show in Houston on KHMX/Mix 96.5 with Larry Moon. Tim Puttre went on to Dallas and new morning sidekick Bess was added. The show being based in Dallas alienated many Austin listeners and Dallas ratings began to suffer because JB & Sandy's wholesome brand of show didn't play well on the urban Dallas radio station they were heard on. Within months of debuting in Dallas, the JB & Sandy show was canceled and they returned to 94.7 in Austin.
After arriving back in Austin with their tail between their legs, JB & Sandy began to build their Austin audience back to where it was when they left. This was difficult to do with Bess, who never caught on with the audience. She was let go and a search was on for her replacement. Listeners were encouraged to submit audition tapes, which would be narrowed down and a new sidekick would be hired - who would receive a one year contract and host of prizes, including a free car for a year, a free apartment for a year and a $50,000 salary. In the end, a 27-year old woman with no radio experience and a British accent was hired, named Debi O'Keefe.
Shortly after that, JB & Sandy hired on full-time their intern, Alex Franco (aka Digitz) as producer and another intern, Autumn Boukadakis to be assistant producer and sidekick.
In 2003, JB and Sandy's contract was up for renewal. The entire staff in Houston where Bridget Taylor was working had been laid off. The Program Director at KAMX called Bridget and wanted her to come back to Mix and replace Jb and Sandy in the morning. Bridget Taylor came back in October 2003 and was supposed to start doing the morning show with a co-host from Dallas in January. An old Program Director who put Jb and Sandy together originally, Dusty Hayes, was hired back at the same time. He really wanted to keep Jb and Sandy on Mix, so after three months of going back and forth, Jb and Sandy's contract was renewed and Bridget Taylor was back working in the Midday time slot. Within two years, Debi was fired and her good friend, Autumn was promoted to sidekick and traffic reporter. In January 2006, The Mix Happy Hour Show was formed in Afternoon Drive. Bridget Taylor moved to Afternoons and was partnered with a guy from Houston named Carey Edwards. It was Austin's only 2 person Afternoon Show. In December 2007, Autumn announced her resignation to pursue her music career full-time and left after the Bikes for Kids show in mid-December.
Since that time, no one was officially replaced either Debi or Autumn, but JB & Sandy have given intern Bree more air time than they would give to an intern under other circumstances so that they can continue to have a female voice.
In 2006, Entercom Radio announced its acquisition of Mix 94.7, along with 14 other radio stations in Austin, Cincinnati (OH)
, Memphis (TN)
and Rochester (NY)
, from CBS Radio
, with the acquisition made official on November 30, 2007.
In fall of 2008, JB and Sandy renewed their contract with Entercom for 5 years, keeping them on the air through the end of 2013. In May 2009, Bridget Taylor, Carey Edwards and Bree from the Jb and Sandy morning show were all released from Entercom. Shortly after Sara Osburn was hired as an on-air personality to fill out the four-some of JB, Sandy, and Alex. Cassiday Proctor, formerly the producer for Bridget Taylor and Carey Edwards, was also hired as an assistant producer.The Mix Afternoon Slot is being filled by Nikki Nite who is from Dallas.
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
licensed to Luling, Texas
Luling, Texas
Luling is a city in Caldwell County, Texas, United States, along the San Marcos River. The population was 5,080 at the 2000 census. There is some debate as to how Luling got its name. Some say it was named for a Chinese railroad worker, others for a judge named Luling, or that it was the maiden...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, broadcasting to the Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
area from studios and transmitter in West Lake Hills, Texas
West Lake Hills, Texas
West Lake Hills is a city in Travis County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,116 at the 2000 census, and 3,021 in the 2005 census estimate. The city of West lake Hills is a relatively wealthy suburb of Austin, located on the west side of Austin on the edge of the Hill Country...
. KAMX airs a Hot Adult Contemporary music format.
1980s music can also be heard on 94.7 HD-2 (HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
needed).
On-air staff
Current KAMX on-air staff include program director Cat Thomas, morning team JB and Sandy, morning producer & sidekicks Alex Franco (aka Digitz) and Sara Osburn, midday host Heather Rivera, afternoon drive host Nikki Nite, syndicated evening program Your Time with Kim Iverson, plus Kitty, Veronica Cruise, and Leah.Former on-air staff
Former on-air staff include Bridget Taylor and Carey Edwards, Drew Bennett, MacKenzie Crash, Clay Culver (left for KKMJ in 2004 and briefly returned in 2005, currently in Dallas, TX), Carrie Benjamin (currently at KLAK-FM in north Dallas, TX), Alex Forth, Dusty Hayes, Micki Gamez, Patrick Lemeuix, Carey Brady, Lynn Hernandez, the late Glenn Donovan, Jason.com, Funky, Leah, Larry the New Guy, Steak Boy (aka Chris Ruth), Bess, Debi O'Keefe (aka Super Mouth, currently at KROX-FM in Austin, TX), Morgana, Kacie Quinn (aka Prebble McLaughlin), Mark Ryan, Autumn Bouakadakis (left December 2007), Mary Jane (left December 2007), Tim Puttre, Jack Stevens, Forrest Bueller,Greg Williams (Sam Williams)on air at KPTY, KFGY and KAMX.
Programming history
KAMX first signed on March 22, 1987 as KAPT by owner/operator Mark Grubbs. It was one of the first "move-ins" in the area being licensed to serve Luling, TexasLuling, Texas
Luling is a city in Caldwell County, Texas, United States, along the San Marcos River. The population was 5,080 at the 2000 census. There is some debate as to how Luling got its name. Some say it was named for a Chinese railroad worker, others for a judge named Luling, or that it was the maiden...
but targetting the much larger audience in nearby Austin. The station debuted with a mass appeal or Top 40 format under the name "Capital FM." Finding little initial success against established Top 40 stations KHFI and KBTS (now KGSR
KGSR
KLZT is a radio station broadcasting an Regional Mexican format. Licensed to Bastrop, Texas, USA, the station serves the Austin area. The station is currently owned by Emmis Communications. The station is also broadcast on HD radio. It builds itself as La Z 107.1, -History:The station went on the...
, the station would try other formats including beautiful music, country as "The Country Kat" KATG and oldies as "Froggy 94" KFGI. After June 1994 the format was changed to a Pop CHR known as KPTY Party 94.7 which lasted until September 1, 1995 when the station changed format again to KAMX "Mix 94.7".
The station reached the northern portion of San Antonio, Texas until the summer of 1998 when the broadcast tower was moved to West Lake Hills, Texas.
Bridget Taylor was already working at 94.7 (when it was Party 94.7), when JB Hager and Sandy Rivers were teamed up for a new morning show. JB had previously been in Dallas and Sandy had previously been in New York. They hadn't worked together before, but knew each other through the radio industry. They added producer Funky to start a brand new morning show in 1995. When Funky left, a replacement producer was hired known as the "New and Improved Funky". The JB & Sandy Morning Show with Bridget and Funky enjoyed some of the best ratings to this day on Mix 94.7. Eventually the show started to separate. Funky left the station in November 1999 to move to California to pursue his Hollywood dream.
Following Funky's departure, a new producer, Tim Puttre was brought in to replace him. Tim was from New York and was known for his overly excited, fast-talking personality. In December 2000, Jb and Sandy were making plans for a move to Dallas. Jb and Sandy made the decision to release Bridget Taylor from their show and a month later, since Dallas was a Top Ten market and Austin was not, JB & Sandy packed their bags and began simulcasting from Dallas, while still being on the radio in Austin. Bridget Taylor was offered to co-host the morning show on Majic 95.5, Mix 94.7's sister station, but instead waited it out until she got a job co-hosting the morning show in Houston on KHMX/Mix 96.5 with Larry Moon. Tim Puttre went on to Dallas and new morning sidekick Bess was added. The show being based in Dallas alienated many Austin listeners and Dallas ratings began to suffer because JB & Sandy's wholesome brand of show didn't play well on the urban Dallas radio station they were heard on. Within months of debuting in Dallas, the JB & Sandy show was canceled and they returned to 94.7 in Austin.
After arriving back in Austin with their tail between their legs, JB & Sandy began to build their Austin audience back to where it was when they left. This was difficult to do with Bess, who never caught on with the audience. She was let go and a search was on for her replacement. Listeners were encouraged to submit audition tapes, which would be narrowed down and a new sidekick would be hired - who would receive a one year contract and host of prizes, including a free car for a year, a free apartment for a year and a $50,000 salary. In the end, a 27-year old woman with no radio experience and a British accent was hired, named Debi O'Keefe.
Shortly after that, JB & Sandy hired on full-time their intern, Alex Franco (aka Digitz) as producer and another intern, Autumn Boukadakis to be assistant producer and sidekick.
In 2003, JB and Sandy's contract was up for renewal. The entire staff in Houston where Bridget Taylor was working had been laid off. The Program Director at KAMX called Bridget and wanted her to come back to Mix and replace Jb and Sandy in the morning. Bridget Taylor came back in October 2003 and was supposed to start doing the morning show with a co-host from Dallas in January. An old Program Director who put Jb and Sandy together originally, Dusty Hayes, was hired back at the same time. He really wanted to keep Jb and Sandy on Mix, so after three months of going back and forth, Jb and Sandy's contract was renewed and Bridget Taylor was back working in the Midday time slot. Within two years, Debi was fired and her good friend, Autumn was promoted to sidekick and traffic reporter. In January 2006, The Mix Happy Hour Show was formed in Afternoon Drive. Bridget Taylor moved to Afternoons and was partnered with a guy from Houston named Carey Edwards. It was Austin's only 2 person Afternoon Show. In December 2007, Autumn announced her resignation to pursue her music career full-time and left after the Bikes for Kids show in mid-December.
Since that time, no one was officially replaced either Debi or Autumn, but JB & Sandy have given intern Bree more air time than they would give to an intern under other circumstances so that they can continue to have a female voice.
In 2006, Entercom Radio announced its acquisition of Mix 94.7, along with 14 other radio stations in Austin, Cincinnati (OH)
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, Memphis (TN)
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
and Rochester (NY)
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, from CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
, with the acquisition made official on November 30, 2007.
In fall of 2008, JB and Sandy renewed their contract with Entercom for 5 years, keeping them on the air through the end of 2013. In May 2009, Bridget Taylor, Carey Edwards and Bree from the Jb and Sandy morning show were all released from Entercom. Shortly after Sara Osburn was hired as an on-air personality to fill out the four-some of JB, Sandy, and Alex. Cassiday Proctor, formerly the producer for Bridget Taylor and Carey Edwards, was also hired as an assistant producer.The Mix Afternoon Slot is being filled by Nikki Nite who is from Dallas.