The New 1420

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The New 1420 (KKEA) is a commercial news, talk, and sports AM radio station licensed to Honolulu, Hawaii, serving the island of Oʻahu and the broader Honolulu metropolitan area. Originally signing on the air on September 1, 1966, under the historic call letters KCCN, the station operated for decades as a legendary proponent of traditional and contemporary Hawaiian music. In February 1998, the station transitioned to a sports talk radio format focusing on University of Hawaiʻi athletics. Acquired in 2002 by Blow Up, LLC from Cox Radio, the call sign was officially updated to KKEA. In June 2006, KKEA adopted the widely recognized 'ESPN 1420' brand, operating as Honolulu's principal ESPN Radio affiliate for nearly two decades. In March 2026, station management executed a strategic brand swap between sister stations KKEA (1420 AM) and KHKA (1500 AM). As part of this realignment, KKEA assumed the news, news/talk, and general sports focus under the fresh identity 'The New 1420 — Hawaiʻi's News & Sports', while the ESPN Radio brand shifted to sister frequency KHKA. Under this updated programming structure, The New 1420 delivers a comprehensive multi-platform mix of local news broadcasts, national talk shows, and major regional play-by-play sports coverage. Programming on The New 1420 features a daily morning simulcast of KHON-TV's popular 'Wake Up 2Day' news broadcast, alongside national programming from ABC News Radio, CBS News Radio, and Westwood One. The station serves as a key broadcast home for sports in the Hawaiian Islands, featuring play-by-play broadcasts of San Francisco 49ers NFL football, San Francisco Giants MLB baseball, local Hawaiʻi high school sports, and University of Hawaiʻi Rainbow Warriors and Rainbow Wahine athletics.

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