KEXP

KEXP (90.3 FM) is a non-commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington, United States, specializing in indie music programmed by its disc jockeys. KEXP's studios are located at the Seattle Center. The transmitter is located in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. The station is operated by the non-profit entity Friends of KEXP, an affiliate of the University of Washington. Since March 19, 2024, KEXP-FM's programming has been rebroadcast over Alameda, California–licensed KEXC, which serves the San Francisco Bay Area. As well as daily variety mix shows featuring mostly alternative rock music, KEXP hosts weekly programs dedicated to other musical genres, such as hip-hop, Afrobeat, punk, ambient, alternative country, Latin music, and world music. The station also regularly hosts live, in-studio performances by artists. Alongside its analog transmitters serving Seattle and San Francisco, the station offers an online live stream, a real-time playlist with DJ notes, and an actively maintained YouTube channel. Founded in 1972 as KCMU, the student-run station of the University of Washington, KEXP gained recognition for its influence on the regional music scene. It was the first station to air grunge bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden in the late 1980s. After partnering with the Experience Music Project, now the Museum of Pop Culture, in 2001, the station began to acquire an international listener base thanks to an early investment in internet streaming and its website. In 2014, the university transferred the FCC license of KEXP-FM to Friends of KEXP in exchange for on-air underwriting spots, granting the station independence in management and programming decisions.