of hip hop and R&B music, given that it gained competition from the former urban outlet KKBT and that the original KDAY signed off around that time. In 1996, It even embraced house in addition, although the station would no longer focus on the genre by 1997. By January 2005, the station had woven in non-R&B/hip-hop artists such as Natalie, Baby Bash, NB Ridaz and Gwen Stefani to the mix, resulting in a return to rhythmic Top 40. KPWR was on the Billboard R&B/Hip Hop airplay panel from 1997-2005 but reported to mediabase as Rhythmic. As of 2012, approximately 60% of KPWR's listenership is Hispanic. and contributes to both Mediabase and BDS Rhythmic reporting panels. In addition to playing hip hop and rhythmic pop, KPWR continued to embrace dance music tracks and even incorporated them into their daily and weekend mix shows, including the program Power Tools, produced by Gerry Meraz and hosted by Richard Vission. Power Tools is the station's longest-running program, debuting in 1992. However, by early 2016, KPWR has drastically reduced the amount of rhythmic pop and EDM tracks in its playlist to focus primarily on hip hop and R&B again. This was due to competition received from urban contemporary rival "Real 92.3", which reignited the market's hip-hop radio war from the 1990s when the station was in competition with 92.3 The Beat. Up until 2017, KPWR had also slightly increased the number of throwbacks/recurrents in its playlist, but has since refocused towards current product to reduce overlap with classic hip hop outlet KDAY. Also, as of July 2019, KPWR is the official sister station to KLLI ("Cali 93.9"), with both stations airing a rhythmic contemporary format—the latter as a Hispanic rhythmic. The sale reunited KPWR with the 93.9 frequency under common ownership for the first time since 2012. Morning shows In the earlier months of Power 106's launch, Tommy Jaxson and Deborah Rath were the original morning jocks and hosts of "The Power 106 Morning Zoo". That changed when actor, comedian, and radio veteran Jay Thomas took the helm of the show, giving the program its highest-rated numbers during his tenure. Thomas left in 1992 when The Baka Boyz took over the morning slot. During fall 1997, KPWR hired a former security guard named Big Boy to replace the duo. "Big Boy's Neighborhood" featured Big Boy with Rikki Martinez, Krystal Bee, and Louie G. serving as