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10 Questions with ... Anthony 'Roach' Proffitt
May 19, 2009
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NAME:Anthony 'Roach' ProffittLAST WITH:99X - WJBXPHONE:865-607-0222EMAIL:antproffitt@yahoo.com
Please begin by giving us a brief career history ...
I started in radio in Daytona Beach at WNFI (I-100). I then went on to get my Communications degree at the University of Georgia. (Go Dawgs). From there my adventure went like this: PD at WPUP/Athens, GA; nights and MD at 99 Rock WKSM/Ft. Walton Beach, FL; middays and PD at 94.3 The X WNFZ/Knoxville, TN; middays APD 99X WJBX Ft. Myers, Fla.
1) What do you do to maintain a positive mental attitude and stay motivated?
I do a lot of drugs ... just kidding! I try to stay focused and positive as much as I can. It is an emotional roller coaster. Some days are better than others. I am blessed to have a LOT of people behind me, who believe in me, and they are the ones who keep me focused. Networking is important ... and keeping in touch with those in our business who are real is a key for me. It's funny how many friends in the biz you have when you are "in" and when you are "out"... well, you find out who was real and who wasn't. Faith, family and friends that will take care of most of it!
2) How are you occupying your time, besides looking for a job?
I am currently working/creating a TV show called "Taste of Music." It's been really a lot of fun and helps keep the creative juices flowing while staying up with the thing I love most ... music. It involves artists and food. Just like music, we all have different tastes -- and artists get to share their tastes of food with us. It can involve us cooking with them, dining out at their favorite places or even going to their houses and invading their kitchens to see what they like to whip up when they aren't on the road. We all eat ... and the stars do, too.
3) Do you plan on sticking with the music/radio industry?
This business is making this question tougher and tougher. It's easy to say you want to stay in the business when you have a job, but when you see the state of our industry and how many good people are out, it can be discouraging. In my heart of hearts this is all I have ever wanted to do. For me, it's not a job but it's a way of life. It bums me out to see so many people who have lost their passion for this business. So I guess if the business will have me, I will be here. I just want to keep that spark alive and if it ever fades I will know my time is up. I hope this little light of mine will continue to shine for years to come. Hell, I may need a blowtorch when I get back in to fire some people up!
4) What's the longest stretch you've had on the beach?
This is it. We have all lost jobs in radio or records, but to sit "on the beach" for the length that I have is ridiculous. The sad part is that I have talked to others who I looked up, too, and they have been "on the beach" longer than me. Not encouraging at all. The talent pool is deep ... the job pool is shallow. The problem is that you have a lot of good people out there and just a few jobs to pick from WHEN they are available.
5) How are you finding the "courtesy level" at places you've applied? (Callbacks, e-mails, rejection letters, etc.)
Horrible. I have sent out my share of T&Rs and have only received one EOE letter. So very PC it was, too. Not long ago I was sitting at that same chair that many are sitting in right now. Of course, you get those T&R packages and yes, sometimes it's tough to respond right away. However, I always sent an e-mail, phone call or sometimes that dreaded EOE letter just so that individual got some kind of feedback. Hell a "F-OFF" sometimes would be nice just to know that they received something. I think people skills are one of the things that many managers lack and as they say ... nobody pays me to be nice. Well, just remember one day your time may come, if it already hasn't, and your reputation as a person will go much better if you can not only be a good programmer, but a good person as well.
6) Are you finding salaries/benefits lower than you ever thought, about the same, or have you seen some pleasant surprises?
It's bad ... and the sad part is that the "suit and ties" know they have us by the gonads. I can't believe how many jobs are paying less, but yet they expect you to give them more. The funny part is these same people who expect you to do more for less are the same ones who are enjoying the high life while you struggle to survive. When an employer asks his employees to take a pay cut for budgetary reasons and then in turn shows off a new ride, how does that set an example for their staff? I'll just say that that is more common than not. I have yet to see a radio cluster executive take a pay cut or even hand out their bonuses to be shared with the staff instead of them. All I can say is it's "Good to be the King!"
7) Are you spending as much time listening to radio as you used to?
No, because it kills me to hear some of the jocks who have NO clue. One of the reasons they are there is because they have NO clue.
8) Are you able to slow down and enjoy free time doing things with your family and friends that you probably did not have time to do while you were working?
Yea a little, but at the end of the day I'd rather be working. You have your whole life to stop and smell the roses. Well, some of those roses are just stems with pricks! I do enjoy not being at clubs till 3a and being up at 8a. I do like not having to go to a car lot and standing on the pavement for three hours, but I have to say I'd rather be able to turn those gigs down than not have them offered at all. Of course, seeing my girl and the kids make me feel all warm and fuzzy and they are really fun, but I think my lady would rather have me working, too, so I could shut up talking about how I wish I was working! LOL.
9) What has been your biggest career accomplishment?
Just being in this career for so long has been one of my biggest accomplishments. I started when I was 20 and almost 17 years later I am still doing it. (Well not now ... but hope to be) I have seen so much and actually remember most of it. From artists who were nothing at first when I met them and went on to have great careers (Dave Matthews, Sheryl Crow. Kid Rock, Shinedown, Theory of a Deadman. Breaking Benjamin, Trapt ... .the list could go on) to bands that were once great and faded. I also like the fact that I was able to actual flip a station. In Knoxville, we had 94.3 Extreme Radio. The Extreme brand was too much, so we needed to do something. So we basically blew it up and started over with 94.3 The X. That was a challenge (new logo, new imaging, new EVERYTHING!) and was very rewarding at the same time. Thanks, Terry, for the belief in me! I guess I also like the fact that I helped get a band signed to a real deal and saw what the power of radio actual did. That whole experience was amazing! That band was 10 Years from Knoxville, TN. My consultant at the time felt that breaking bands was not what "we do." Well, I broke from the norm and went with my gut and their success has showed me that my gut was right again. Too many programmers use research as the bible and forget that gut has to play into the equation as well.
10) How will this experience change you when you get back to work?
It will make me more cautious and apprehensive regarding what people say and who to actually believe. There are a lot of FAKE people in this business and I will have no time for them in the future. Sure, they have a job to do, but to be a wolf in sheep's clothing is what I will watch out for with a keener eye. I also will be more appreciative to those who work hard and don't get the credit they deserve. This business is awesome, and yes it's a business, but at the end of the day you have to look in the mirror and know that you are giving it your all and you believe what you give is all that you have. Being a good person and a solid programmer means more to me than being a shark and cutting those down who get in the way. Being two-faced is not the manager or the person I want to be.
Bonus Questions
Care to contribute a low-cost recipe to our "ON THE BEACH" cookbook?
Well, since I was talking about my new show, "Taste of Music," earlier (view it at www.tasteofmusiconline.com) I think I will go with a spectacular Ramen Noodle dish that all can afford.
Take 2 packs of Ramen Noodles (Chicken or Beef) and boil them. Drain thoroughly.
Add 2 slices of American Cheese (Kraft is best but since we are on the beach ... generic will work) while hot. Let them melt.
Then add either a can of diced chicken or tuna if you prefer and ...
BAM! You have the low-dough Ramen a la Chicken or Tuna! If you want to splurge, add some minced onions and you're living the high life. Top it off with a 40-ounce of your favorite malt liquor and the night is yours!
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