KDWB Minneapolis: From Jackson Browne to Justin Bieber

When I listened to tape of KDWB Minneapolis from 1978, station concerts were still a rarity, but there was a concert spot for Jackson Browne, who was coming to town. In 1990, there was a teaser for the station’s Star Party with Michael Bolton (the rest of the lineup was coming tomorrow). In 1997, morning man Dave Ryan was taking a listener to the MTV Awards. This week the promos are for the iHeart Music Awards.

On Sept. 17, the last panel of “The Last Conclave” in Minneapolis will be “How KDWB Made Legends, Then, Now, and Next,” moderated by Kelly (K3) Doherty, and featuring current Sr. VP programming Rich Davis and morning host Falen. They’ll be joined by alum JJ Kincaid from WKHX (Kicks 101.5) Atlanta, Scotty Davis now at WFUS (US 103.5) Tampa, and KSTP-FM (KS95) Minneapolis’ Angi Taylor. 

Part of the excitement of coming to Conclave in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s was the CHR battle between KDWB and rival WLOL. The latter was sold to Minnesota Public Radio in 1991, a then-very-unusual instance of a viable commercial FM being taken out of the format mainstream, making KDWB effectively the official CHR of Conclave. Recently retired morning host Dave Ryan was on Conclave’s opening Ask Me (Almost) Anything panel.

KDWB’s Top 40 heritage covers almost the entire history of the format. As an AM, it launched in 1959. It came to FM in 1976 with a 3-4 year switch to Album Rock during CHR’s doldrums in the early ‘80s. To start in 1978, as I did, is to be reminded of how many other format downturns the station has ridden out. 

Your mileage may vary as to what those downturns are. Just the word “Bolton” on a 1990 aircheck might provoke, even before you get to White Lion and Technotronic, but it was an exciting period for the author (newly minted as Billboard’s radio editor) and Conclave always made the battle sound better. A KDWB sweeper promoting its 12-in-a-row asks, “why settle for four songs in a row on the imitation station?”

Here is a very partial sampling of KDWB through the decades, drawing heavily from the Internet Archive postings of Rob Zerwekh. 

In 1978, “Stereo 101” has brought KDWB to the FM frequency occupied by Top 40 FM U100 until 1976. The station’s prize of the day is a stereo system in its “if anybody asks…” contest, in which you need to both need to say you listen to KDWB and be able to prove it. (There’s no explanation of how that might happen in the wild.) Here’s KDWB on March 31, 1978 with Dave Kirby:

• Lynyrd Skynyrd, “What’s Your Name”
• Bee Gees, “Stayin’ Alive”
• Bread, “Baby I’m-A Want You”
• Eric Clapton, “Lay Down Sally”
• Chicago, “If You Leave Me Now”
• Billy Joel, “Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)”
• Youngbloods, “Get Together”—a decade old at this point
• England Dan & John Ford Coley, “We’ll Never Have To Say Goodbye Again”
• Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, “Blinded by the Light”
• Bee Gees, “How Deep Is Your Love”
• Yvonne Elliman, “If I Can’t Have You”
• LeBlanc & Carr, “Fallin’”
• Beatles, “A Day in the Life”
• Jackson Browne, “Runnin’ on Empty”
• David Gates, “Goodbye Girl”
• Bob Welch, “Sentimental Lady”

Here’s the station in April 1990 with Jessica Walker. The promo for Steve Cochran’s morning show is a bit about President Bush’s dislike of broccoli. Another “most music” sweeper begins with “read my lips.”

• Depeche Mode, “Personal Jesus”
• Exposé, “Your Baby Never Looked Good In Blue”
• Paula Abdul, “Opposites Attract”
• White Lion, “When the Children Cry”
• B-52’s, “Roam”
• Aerosmith, “Janie’s Got a Gun”
• Technotronic, “Get Up (Before the Night Is Over)”
• Gloria Estefan & Miami Sound Machine, “Here We Are”

Here’s KDWB in August 1997 with Tone E. Fly broadcasting live from the Minnesota State Fair. Ryan is now morning host. KDWB is ahead of most heartland markets in leaning rhythmic. With the CHR resurgence in full swing, one of Fly’s bits involves whether he has the band Hanson’s phone number. (It’s busy when he calls.)

• Blackstreet, “No Diggity”
• En Vogue, “Don’t Let Go (Love)”
• Sugar Ray, “Fly”—ID’ed by Fly as “my new favorite song”
• Freak Nasty, “Da Dip”
• Backstreet Boys, “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)”
• Jewel, “Foolish Game”
• Mr. President, “Coco Jamboo”
• LL Cool J, “Loungin’”
• OMD, “How Bizarre”

Here’s KDWB during the tail-end of “Turbopop” on August 10, 2011. There are promos for the iHeart Music Festival here as well. (The headliner is Lady Gaga; “Edge of Glory” plays in the promos.) Other acts are Jennifer Lopez, Coldplay, and Steven Tyler solo.

• Justin Timberlake, “Cry Me a River”
• Bad Meets Evil, “Lighters”
• Pitbull f/Ne-Yo, “Give Me Everything”
• Foster The People, “Pumped Up Kicks”
• Maroon 5 f/Christina Aguilera, “Moves Like Jagger”
• Chris Brown, “Forever”
• Rihanna, “Cheers (Drink to That)”
• Hot Chelle Rae, “Tonight Tonight”
• T.I., “Whatever You Like”
• Lil Wayne, “How To Love”

Falen, Colt & Jenny are KD’s new morning show—the former afternoon team paired with a Ryan team member, in turn sending the morning show’s Vont Leak to afternoons. (Leak is the former college radio PD whose rapid rise took him from a first job in Des Moines to nights at KDWB to the morning show at a speed not seen in decades.)

In an hour of morning drive on Tuesday, there was an entertainment report (mostly the Emmys, but also Tyler Hansen appearing on Dancing with the Stars.) There was “Radio Scategories,” in which the answer to “things beginning with a ‘C’ yelled during sex” was “c’mon” for both contestants, but which Colt later modified to “crank that Soulja Boy.” 

Falen called her 7-year-old daughter for her birthday. (“I like mom because I can snuggle her.”) Colt meditated on the movie Good Fortune with its “trading places” theme and the need to find glimmers of hope. For Falen, that had been knowing that she would always see a sunset on her way home from doing afternoons. For a caller, it was seeing a bald eagle.

Here’s the station on Tuesday, September 15 with Vont Leak, who was giving $250 to a caller who could answer a trivia question about the returning TV series Traitors. The winner says she’ll spend the money on “groceries and gas.” Leak says “crazy how that’s always the answer these days.” Leak also speculates on whether the 2027 Super Bowl halftime act will be Miley Cyrus, Bieber, Harry Styles, or, his pick, Ariana Grande.

• 50 Cent, “In Da Club”
• Sombr, “Back to Friends”
• Zara Larsson, “Lush Life”
• Katseye, “Animal”
• Dominic Fike, “Babydoll”—like “Yukon” several songs later, the station’s sweep starter is just the artist drop
• Miguel, “Sure Thing”
• Justin Bieber, “Yukon”
• Weeknd, “Cry For Me”
• Teddy Swims, “Mr. Know It All”
• Ariana Grande, “Positions”
• Taylor Swift, “I Knew It, I Knew You”—Leak declares that the speculation about whether Swift would appear at the Emmys can now turn to a possible guest appearance at the iHeart Music Awards.
• Pitbull f/Kesha, “Timber”
• Stella Lefty, “Boston”
• Doechii, “What It Is (Block Boy)”