In 1946, the station first signed on as KWEM in West Memphis, Arkansas. The call sign referred to the original city of license, WEst Memphis. KWEM was a daytimer, owned by West Memphis Broadcasting, powered at 1,000 watts and required to sign-off at sunset each day. Because West Memphis is located west of the Mississippi River, the station's call letters began with a "K," while call letters in Memphis mostly begin with a "W." Even when it relocated to Memphis, east of the Mississippi, it kept its "K" call sign.
In 1954, the station was bought by E. D. Rivers, Jr. Rivers got the Federal Communications Commission to allow KWEM to move across the river into Memphis. He started the "Dee" Rivers Stations Group, which later owned WEAS-FM in Springfield/Savannah, Georgia, and WGOV in Valdosta, Georgia, as well as other stations in Georgia and Florida. In 1959, Rivers changed the call letters of AM 990 to KWAM. In the 1960s, the station got FCC permission to boost its power to 10,000 watts, using a directional antenna, but it still could not broadcast after sunset. In the 1950s and 60s, the "Mighty 990" gained fame for playing "The Memphis Sound," including locally recorded soul music, R&B, country music and rockabilly. Its website history page says "KWAM helped launch the careers of B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Ike Turner and many Sun Studios stars such as Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash."
Gospel and religion
Around 1980, as music listening moved over to FM radio, KWAM began airing religion shows, selling blocks of time to preachers and playing black gospel music. In 1981, Dee Rivers Stations acquired FM station 101.1 KLYX, which was renamed KWAM-FM. At first, it also aired a gospel and religious format like its AM counterpart. But in 1983, the call letters were changed to KRNB, with the station switching to a rhythmic contemporary and disco format, while 990 KWAM continued its gospel sound. In 1986, KWAM got nighttime authorization. It was allowed to stay on the air after sunset, but at 450 watts.
Change in ownership
In 1998, KWAM and its FM station, now known as KJMS, were sold to Clear Channel Communications. Clear Channel had previously acquired AM 1070WDIA, which airs a full service black format, and KJMS's chief urban rival, 97.1 WHRK. Clear Channel sold KWAM to Concord Media for $1 million in 2000. Concord switched KWAM to a talk radio format, which competes with iHeartMedia talk stationAM 600WREC. Several years later, KWAM changed hands again, this time bought by Legacy Media, which also owns WEKS, an FM country music station in Zebulon, Georgia, just outside Atlanta. In 2017, Legacy Media added a 250 wattFM translator station to simulcast KWAM, 107.9 W300DE. The next year, Legacy Media would change the station's branding to "KWAM The Voice - Talk Radio for the Midsouth." Legacy Media sold KWAM as well as its translator for $685,000 to the upstart Starnes Media Group, which is owned by Todd Starnes, a long-time journalist who served stints at Baptist Press and later Fox News before starting his own radio station in his native Memphis. Upon the close of the purchase, Starnes Media Group changed the station's branding to reflect the history of the station, renaming it "The Mighty 990."
