the early 1980s, the Bay Area already had numerous competing rock stations; KMEL was the established, tightly-formatted AOR station that had been playing rock music since 1977. KRQR was the hard rock station and KQAK was a new station with a friendly, loosely programmed, personality-driven alternative rock/new wave format. There were two other rock stations in the South Bay - KSJO and KOME. One other San Francisco rock station, KSFX, switched to talk radio in May of that year. Of the six Bay Area rock stations that were on the air in late 1982, KFOG had been the last of the heritage rock stations. In 1989, KFOG was acquired by the Susquehanna Radio Corporation, along with KNBR, for $17.5 million. Susquehanna later merged into Cumulus Media, the current owner. AAA and alternative rock The station evolved over the years, but KFOG aired an eclectic rock format for more than a quarter century. In the 1990s, it adjusted its playlist to an adult album alternative (AAA) direction. In August 1995, it became "KFOG 97.7 and 104.5," when Susquehanna acquired San Jose station KHQT (97.7 FM) and turned it into KFFG, simulcasting KFOG on a full-time basis. On March 31, 2016, KFOG took all of its DJs off the air and began promoting an "evolution" to take place on April 20. On that day, at 6 a.m., KFOG relaunched its AAA format under the new slogan "Music Matters," and shifted its playlist to focus on songs from the 1990s to the present day. The first song under the "Music Matters" branding was "Times Like These" by Foo Fighters. As part of the change, former New York City rock DJ Bryan Schock was hired as Operations Manager/Program Director for KFOG and classic rock sister station KSAN. Most of the KFOG airstaff, including morning hosts Irish Greg McQuade and Renee Richardson, midday host Annalisa, afternoon host Bill Webster, night host Dred Scott, and weekend host Rosalie Howarth, were let go from the station. By 2018, the station gradually transitioned to a more mainstream alternative format. It then directly competed with KITS. At 9:00 p.m. on May 31, 2019, KFOG slightly re-branded as "KFOG 104.5," as KFFG was sold off to EMF and became K-Love affiliate KJLV; the station adopted a new logo to reflect the sale of the repeater. The last song before the simulcast broke was "High Hopes" by Panic! At The Disco.