Chris & Janeen - Married With Microphones - WGRR - Cincinnati, OH

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

SET THE SCENE: You've been on top for years now at WGRR now there's a new owner. What's changed inside and outside your 4 walls?

Chris: Being with Cumulus since last November 1 is the best thing to happen to us in a long time. When CBS sold its 4 Cincinnati stations - of which WGRR was one -- to Entercom, WGRR was immediately swapped with a Cumulus country station. At the time, only the air staff had our contracts bought by Cumulus. (Although in the last few months we have been joined by some of our former colleagues there, including some of the better sales and promotion people.) Literally overnight we were in a completely different location. Since becoming part of Cumulus WGRR has flourished.

It's like new life was breathed into the station. The people around us and our facilities are just teriffic. We now have a program director who actually programs and management is honest and caring. Unlike our years at CBS, WGRR is no longer the "red-headed stepchild." We couldn't be happier or more successful. (btw, the remaining 3 former CBS stations aren't even owned by Entercom anymore!) We definitely got the better end of that deal.

How 'bout the amount of creative 'freedom' your show has?

Chris: We have a lot. Keith Mitchell, our PD, is very receptive to all of our ideas. We meet weekly to discuss ideas and upcoming segments. None of that daily whipcracking., although we do briefly touch base almost daily. Janeen and I are pretty much left alone, but we welcome Keith's input since he was a former morning jock for many years. It's a great atmosphere that lends itself to creativity for what we feel is a unique morning show.

THE SHOW:Chris & Janeen - Married With Microphones THE STATION:WGRR THE CITY:Cincinnati, OH THE FORMAT:Oldies THE CAST:Chris & Janeen

Resume Time

Give us brief rundown on each of you, your personal history, your radio bio, and what brought you together

Chris: We've been married for 22 years, and have worked together in some capacity for longer than that! We met while both of us were with Cincinnati's WKRQ in 1979. We married 6 years later.

I began in radio while a teen in my native South Carolina, working in the south before being offered a job in Cleveland while in Chattanooga. I moved from Cleveland to Cincinnati in 1974. Except for doing afternoons at Chicago's WMET 1977-78, I was with WKRQ for nearly 13 years. I began at WGRR in 1991.

Janeen joined WKRQ in 1979 while attending the University of Cincinnati's College Conservatory Of Music. She began with overnights, worked middays, and later moved to afternoon drive where she remained until 1988. I did AM drive, she did PM drive. Unlike now, we never saw each other! From there Janeen did talk radio, hosting the very popular Chick Talk show. Janeen co-hosted morning drive on WKRC until she was contacted about joining me at WGRR in 1995.

What's It All About?

Describe your show, your personalities, and the "premise" listeners wake up to every morning.

Chris: They can expect to hear us arguing! Actually, we bring daily life to the show. The greatest compliment we get at appearances and when meeting listeners is "you sound just like our family." People say they feel as if they know us already. Listeners love the fact that we have my parents from SC on the show regularly. Our son, Dylan, is a sophomore at the University Of Cincinnati and he has been a part of the show since he was very young! This summer he covered the Bengals at training camp for us.

Of course, we use the phones a fair amount and have some great guests from Kevin Spacey to Brian Regan to Paula Deen, but at the same time we are first and foremost local. The mayor of Cincinnati pops in to be with us, since we're right across from City Hall. This summer we did "The 2007 Chris & Janeen Summer Tour," broadcasting our show from a different community each Thursday for 8 weeks. The response was outstanding. We even write and record a new Bengals song parody each week during the season.

Prep 101

Let's talk prep. Who does it?

Chris: The nice thing about being married and doing the show together is that we can prepare anywhere at any moment...which means all the time! Unlike other morning shows, we don't have to phone or email a co-host about something. We can bounce ideas off each other, prepare things separately and then compare notes. Being together a lot means we see a lot of the same things when we are out or watching TV. We're usually on the same page with bits. We can record at home, which is a big plus. I produce a lot of stuff on the computer and, thanks to our engineer, we also have the luxury of being able to record interviews at home, which means we can do them any hour of the day. That's great when they're spur-of-the-moment or from the West Coast. Being together almost constantly means our prep is truly ongoing.

How has 'prepping' changed over the years?

Chris: Much easier, thanks to Al Gore inventing the internet. Information, audio, etc., are all at your fingertips in a matter of seconds (unless you have dial-up).

Quick Word Association

Illegal Immigration

Chris: Hey, without it who's gonna work in the Golden Corral kitchen?

Classic Hits... or Oldies

Chris: That's "Cincinnati's Greatest Hits" to you!

Presidential Election

Chris: Will it ever end...but we appreciate the material!

Celebs Overexposed

Chris: Most are, but again, the stuff writes itself!

Your idea of relaxation

Chris: Me...testing new batteries for the remote. Janeen...Starbucks!

X-tra Pointers

Throw us a freakin' bone, name one thing about yourself or about each other, that most people don't know. Be honest.

Chris: I have the dubious distinction of being the first announcer on the Jerry Springer Show. (It began in Cincinnati in 1991 and I was announcer for Channel 5, where Jerry was an anchor.)

Janeen:I have a Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do. That way I can protect Chris in the parking lot and keep him in line at home!

Your two cents? If there was one piece of advice you could give, what would it be?

Chris: Janeen says "Make time for physical activity every day." I say "Are you here for a long time or a good time? Try the chocolate cheesecake."

BitXChange THANKS to Chris & Janeen. You can find out more about the show, HERE: Chris & Janeen.
You can EMAIL them HERE: chris.obrien@cumulus.com.