| City of license | Phoenix, Arizona |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Phoenix metropolitan area |
| Branding | Eva 95.5 |
| Slogan | "The Valley's Old School" |
| Frequency | 95.5HD2 Smooth Jazz |
| First air date | 1963 |
| Format | erp = 96,000 watts |
| HAAT | 479 meters |
| Class | C |
| Facility ID | 18648 |
| Callsign meaning | K [C]oYOTe |
| Former callsigns | KRFM (1963-1970s) KQYT (1970s-1986) KOY-FM (1986-1993) |
| Owner | Clear Channel Communications |
| Sister stations | KESZ, KFYI, KGME, KMXP, KNIX, KOY, KZZP |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | eva955.com |
KYOT-FM (95.5 FM, "Eva 95.5") is a commercial rhythmic oldies music radio station located in Phoenix, Arizona, broadcasting on 95.5 FM
Despite the station's branding, there is no affiliation of any kind with the Phoenix Coyotes, the local National Hockey League team. (The KYOT call letters came before the Winnipeg Jets moved to Phoenix and became the Coyotes in the late 1990s.)
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In 1963, KRFM signed on with an easy listening music format. In the late-1970s, the call letters were changed to KQYT, retaining its easy listening music format.
On July 10, 1986, the format was changed to adult top 40, branded as "Y-95". The call letters were changed to KOY-FM. The station later evolved to a top 40 music format. The station gained some national attention in the late 1980s when they hired Jessica Hahn, a central figure in the Jim Bakker PTL scandal, as an on-air DJ. The station also helped start the careers of Arizona DJ Tim Hattrick and Fox News host Glenn Beck.
On September 2, 1993, the station began stunting, airing loops of quotes from famous people and figures from American pop culture and history. The format was then changed to a "Rhythm and Rock" music format branded "The Coyote". A change of call letters to KYOT followed to match its new branding.
In March 1994, the format was changed to a successful Smooth Jazz format, but retaining its branding as "The Coyote", with actor Geoffrey Holder providing the station's voice-over during its tenure. In 2010, the station began mixing some Soft AC music into the mix, similar to what is happening to KTWV in Los Angeles. However, due to the presence of sister station KESZ in the area, the station was still leaning towards Smooth Jazz. The station was owned by Colfax Communications which owned KOOL and WBIG in Minneapolis.
By 1997, Chancellor Media was acquiring stations across the country and reached a deal to purchase KYOT and KOOL 94.5 from Colfax. In 1998, Evergreen Media merged with Chancellor to form AMFM Broadcasting.
By January 2011, KYOT, who despite doing pretty well in the ratings, began to play less Smooth Jazz and more AC-sounding Pop/R&B recurrents and classic/old school cuts. In June 2011, KYOT officially shifted to Rhythmic AC, playing mostly Rhythmic Pop/R&B hits from the 1960s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s. Most of the smooth jazz product has since been phased out, as have the "Smooth Jazz" handle. The move has prompted a new battle in the Phoenix radio wars, in which another station with a similar direction, Urban AC KAJM, has countered with "Arizona's Number One Old School Station!" as a way to distinguish itself from KYOT's library of R&B/Pop/Dance classics.[1]
On August 31, 2011 KYOT rebranded as "Eva 95.5", playing rhythmic oldies. KYOT is still streaming commercial-free smooth jazz from its website www.kyot.com.
Eva's HD Radio signal is multiplexed. The main signal is a simulcast of Eva's rhythmic oldies programming. The second channel carries "Smooth Jazz", a format previously used when the station was branded as "The Coyote".
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