Bachelor’s Degree in Telecommunication Operations and
Management from the University of Florida. Over ten years,
including: WRUF-AM - Gainesville, FL - News/Talk - a college
station where I started my radio career helping our
listeners advertise their goats and chickens, and direct
people to their yard sales. (Gotta love Tradio). WUFT-FM -
Gainesville, FL - Classical/Jazz - another college station -
where I learned how to enunciate and talk v-e-r-y
s-l-o-w-l-y. WKTK-FM - Gainesville, FL - AC - Interned in
production for two semesters with Ron Rothberg - one of the
funniest radio guys I’ve ever met! WYKS-FM - Gainesville, FL
- CHR - I worked nights for more than three years. Jeri
Banta was kind enough to give me my first “real” radio job
before I even graduated college. WDRM-FM - Huntsville, AL -
Country - Mornings/News & Public Service Director. WBBE-FM -
Baton Rouge, LA - AC - Middays/Public Service Director. And
here I am at WQCK-FM - Baton Rouge, LA - Mornings/PD/MD
1.How did you wind up at WQCK?
I have WCQR PD Jason Sharpe to thank for bringing me to
the Bridge. Shortly after Jason moved to Baton Rouge, he
called on me to see about becoming his morning co-host. I
didn’t come on board at that time, but did keep in touch
with GM Darren Ryder. Several months later God told me it
was time to come.
2. What is the most fulfilling aspect to you
personally about Christian radio?
Working in Christian radio affords me the opportunity to
do what I LOVE to do and glorify God. And it’s really nice
to play music and work in an atmosphere where I’m constantly
being uplifted. It’s so much different in the world of
secular radio. Many times you go home wondering why you ever
got into radio to begin with because of all the negativity
that surrounds you. And it’s really nice to be able to work
for a radio station I can let my kids listen to all the time
without having to monitor it.
3.How has God used you in your role at WQCK?
I think God has some big plans for me here. I started out
as a part-time midday announcer. As I said in question #1,
I had been interviewing here for quite a while before
actually coming on board. I’ve been in radio a long time,
and I’ve been a Christian for even longer, but I had never
thought of putting the two together. Shortly after I started
working here, I was promoted to MD. It wasn’t long after
that I accepted the APD/morning host role. I wasn’t APD very
long before I assumed the role of PD. I think God is using
me in mighty ways at WQCK, and I’m excited to watch His plan
as it is unveiled. I feel like there is a lot of harmony and
a new direction that was needed here for quite some time.
4. What is the criteria that determines if a song
receives airplay on your station?
Heads it gets spins, tails it doesn’t. I’M KIDDING!!! We
want to make sure that we don’t play music by any artist
whose life isn’t reflective of Christ’s life. Our listeners
depend on us to bring them good examples for their children,
and we don’t want to break that trust.
And there are other factors as well - the lyrics, the
number of uptempo/slow songs we already have spinning, etc.
Once we have a few songs picked out that we think would
fit our station, we take them to the listeners for feedback.
We’ve invested in some music research that lets us test
music before we put it on the air. We also take advantage of
the fact that our listeners enjoy giving their input. For
the past month, we’ve invited listeners to the station to
listen to music in different panels to let us know what they
think.
5. What kind of promotions work best for your
station?
Anything that gets our listeners involved. It’s not much
fun for listeners to “stop by and register” to win anything.
But invite them to play a game with you or to put on their
thinking caps, and they enjoy it much more.
6. How do you think Christian Record labels can
better serve Christian radio?
I feel like I’m getting excellent service from the
labels. If I were to ask for anything more, it would
probably be more interviews (phone or in-studio) and custom
artist drops/intros. I really appreciate Al Kim and his free
show prep service! It’s nice to know what’s going on in Sara
Groves’ life without having to ask.
7. In your opinion, what are the biggest obstacles
facing Christian radio today?
I think there is a big misconception out there about
Christian music. Many people beyond the core think Christian
music means “church music” or “gospel music.” Getting those
people to test us can be a difficult task.
8. What do you believe is the primary role of the
Christian radio air personality today?
I think it’s the same no matter what format you work. You
need to connect with your listeners on a personal level. You
need to remember you are talking to ONE person, and make
that one person feel something, whether it’s joy,
anticipation, sadness, fear, or any other emotion. If you
can make that connection, you’ve done something. I tell my
staff it’s important to make friends. If we are given the
opportunity to talk with or meet any one of our listeners,
we need to remember that person will be a listener for life
if we make them our friend.
9. What (if any) other Christian radio stations do
you consider as innovators today?
I’m really impressed that KLTY can get such great ratings
in a big market with the intense competition. I also love
KSBJ, KXOJ, and Way-FM.
10. Where do you see Christian radio in 5 years?
I think Christian radio is getting better. We’re getting
recognition in the trades and on sites that never used to
acknowledge our existence. I think there is incredible
talent in Christian radio, both behind the microphone and in
the production rooms. I’d like to see more Christian
stations with the same kinds of ratings KLTY is raking in.