KDMT (AM)

On May 18, 1960,[1] the Federal Communications Commission issued a construction permit to John Buchanan, trading as the Satellite Center Radio Company, a construction permit for 1550 AM in Arvada, which selected the call letters KBRB. The station had not yet been built when Denver Area Broadcasters, owned by Frances C. Gaguine and Bernice Schwartz, acquired the construction permit the next year. Taking its new call letters from the name of the licensee, KDAB signed on the air on January 9, 1962,[2] broadcasting as a 10,000-watt daytime radio station. In early 1965, the station moved from Top 40 music to easy listening.[3]

The transmitter site along the banks of the South Platte River flooded in a storm in June 1965 and washed away KDAB's transmitter, transmitter building and tower,[4] forcing the station off the air for a number of weeks. The initial temporary 250-watt transmitter burned out quickly, requiring a 5 kW transmitter to be procured.[5] That fall, the station rebranded as KQXI, with the new call letters taking effect on September 27, 1965. Richard P. McKee bought into the station in 1967, but Schwartz acquired the other two partners' stakes in KQXI two years later and reorganized her holding as Media Enterprizes, Inc., in 1970. Schwartz relocated the studio and transmitter to a new site in Englewood in 1974. During much of this time, KQXI was constantly changing its format. On June 1, 1970, it junked country music to flip to gospel, avoiding competition with a 24-hour station that had flipped to country.[6]

Along with Bernice's other radio holdings, KQXI was folded into the group owned by her husband, Harold S. Schwartz and Associates, which primarily consisted of stations running religious programming. In 1986, the entire Schwartz chain was sold to BDG Enterprises, in a deal worth $9.1 million; BDG's principals were Burt W. Kaufman and George Spicer, the president and general manager of Schwartz station KXEG in Phoenix.[7] KQXI was able to add nighttime service with 166 watts during the ownership of BDG, which changed its name to Radio Property Ventures.[8]

Final Radio Disney logo used on KDDZ from 2013-2015.

In 1997, the FCC granted KQXI a permit to move to the AM expanded band at 1690 kHz,[9] which was assigned the call letters KAYK. Radio Property Ventures sold KQXI and the KAYK construction permit to ABC in June 1998, at a time when the company was buying stations for the Radio Disney network, for $3.5 million.[8] That same month, on June 3,[10] KAYK began operations; the new 1550-1690 simulcast also began to carry Radio Disney programming. When the sale closed late in 1998, the stations took on new Disney-inspired KDDZ and KADZ call letters after the sale closed. On January 15, 1999, the call letters were switched, with 1690 becoming KDDZ and 1550 becoming KADZ.[11] The stations remained a simulcast until ABC, forced to select 1690 or 1550, chose the expanded band frequency and closed KADZ on June 1, 2003.[12] (A new radio station was licensed at 1550, now known as KKCL, in 2011.)

On August 13, 2014, The Walt Disney Company put KDDZ and twenty-two other Radio Disney stations up for sale, in order to focus more on digital distribution of the Radio Disney network.[13][14]

On September 15, 2015, it was announced that the Salem Media Group had acquired the last five Radio Disney owned-and-operated stations for sale (including KDDZ) for $2.225 million.[15] KDDZ was acquired through Salem Media of Colorado, Inc., for $550,000.[16] According to Radio Insight, KDDZ would become Salem's Wall Street Business Network affiliate in Denver.[17] The sale was completed on December 8, 2015.[18] The call sign was changed to KDMT. On December 17, 2015, the station began stunting with music by Johnny Cash as "Cash Country 1690". The stunt led into the February 1, 2016 launch of "Money Talk 1690."[11]

In November 2019, the station was sold to Immaculate Heart Media, Inc., and it became an affiliate of Relevant Radio.[19][20][21]