The station had its inception in 1948 by station owner Ed Davis and programmed a Classical music format as KDFC. It remained a Classical station for most of its history, though at one point during the 1950s, it featured a beautiful music format. The station also simulcasted on KIBE, a daytime-only 5 kW AM station in Palo Alto, California that began broadcasting in 1949 from a transmitter near the western approach to the Dumbarton Bridge. It is now a news-talk station. It also had a booster station in Concord, which fills in coverage gaps caused by topography issues. In 1993, Ed Davis' company Sundial Broadcasting sold the AM and FM to Brown Broadcasting Corporation for $15.5 Million. In 1996 BBC sold the FM station and AM simulcast sister stationAM 1220 to Evergreen Media, who in turn sold the FM to Bonneville Broadcasting and the AM to Douglas Broadcasting. In 1997, new station management transitioned KDFC's programming to a more mass-appeal approach, which boosted ratings significantly, though was occasionally criticised for their new "top 40 of classical music" approach. Bill Leuth, who had done mornings on rival classical station KKHI, moved to mornings at KDFC in 1997, and also contributed to the station's rise and shift from automation to live hosts. In 2003, KDFC became the first station in the Bay Area to broadcast using HD Radio. On January 18, 2007, Bonneville signed an agreement with Entercom Communications Corporation to trade three San Francisco stations — KOIT, KMAX, and KDFC — for three Entercom stations in Seattle, Washington and four in Cincinnati, Ohio. Entercom officially took ownership of KDFC on February 26, 2007.
The University of Southern California announced on January 18, 2011, the purchase of 90.3 KUSF from the University of San Francisco. That same day, a deal, in the works for months prior, was announced to acquire the intellectual property and call letters of KDFC from Entercom, thus making KDFC a listener-supported non-commercial outlet, operated by a San Francisco-based non-profit organization, and also simulcasting on newly acquired 89.9 KNDL in Santa Rosa. Then, on January 24, 2011 at Noon, after playing "Fanfare for the Common Man" by Aaron Copland as performed by the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, KDFC flipped to Classic Rock as "Classic Rock K-Fox" with the new call letters KUZX. The station was a simulcast of San Jose stationKUFX, which Entercom acquired earlier in the month. The first song on "K-Fox" was "Roll Over Beethoven" by Electric Light Orchestra. The station launched with a full airstaff including Greg Kihn in mornings, Radio vets Tim Jeffries and "Big Rick" Stuart in middays and afternoons respectively, and Laura Steele hosting nights. KUZX never seemed to gain traction with the simulcast, and throughout its tenure, the station saw many on-air changes, including the additions of KFOG vets Annalisa Parisale for mornings and Bill Webster for nights from 2012–2013. After Annalisa was let go, the station brought back former K-Fox host Chris Jackson to host mornings.
As KRBQ "Q102" (2014–Present)
On August 1, 2014, at 2 p.m., after playing "One Thing Leads to Another" by The Fixx, KUZX abruptly broke away from the simulcast and flipped to a Rhythmic Hot AC format as Q102, The Beat Of The Bay, with the first song being This Is How We Do It by Montell Jordan. The format was similar to sister station KHTP in Seattle, which has seen success since launching in August 2013. On August 8, 2014, KUZX changed its call letters to KRBQ to match the new branding. On September 2, after promoting a "Commercial Free August", the station began adding personalities, including Freska in middays, Mia Amor in afternoons, and Hoodrat Miguel hosting nights. On September 15, KRBQ added Bay Area radio vet Joey "Joey V." Vlasny and Alexx Dupri to host morning drive. KRBQ also bought back a mix show that was once a staple at KNGY, Clubber's Commute, airing Saturday nights. At the time, KRBQ faced competition from Urban KMEL, Top 40/CHRs KMVQ, KYLD and KREV, Rhythmic Top 40KVVF, Rhythmic OldiesKISQ and Adult Top 40s KLLC and KIOI, as it shared the same music as the other outlets. As of February 2015, KRBQ dropped current tracks, and refocused its direction to the growing Classic hip hop format, with occasional 1990's R&B titles. It now positions itself as "The Bay Area's Throwback Station." On April 2, 2018, KRBQ relieved morning host Mia Amor and afternoon host Hoodrat Miguel of their duties, and later announced that Chuy Gomez will take over the morning slot, which comes after his exit from KVVF the previous January. At 10 a.m. on August 12, 2019, after playing "Best I Ever Had" by Drake, KRBQ flipped to rhythmic oldies with an emphasis on 1970s through 1990s R&B, while keeping the "Q102" branding, launching with "Let's Groove" by Earth, Wind & Fire. The move positions KRBQ closer musically to Bonneville-owned KBLX, and its new logo has a similar style as that of KISQ that was dropped in early 2016 when it flipped to Soft AC as The Breeze. Ten days later, morning host Chuy Gomez and afternoon host Victor "Big Daddy" Zaragosa were laid off.
