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10 Questions with ... Zann
March 26, 2019
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. I have very few things in my life that keep my attention. Radio has been the only consistent thing that keeps my attention. I live and breathe the station/company I work for to the point that my boyfriend asks me to just put my phone down for a second. I focus on so many details in radio that it's more of a hobby for me than a job. How do songs sound flowing into each other? What imaging should go into this song? How can I present this content in a way nobody else will? These are all questions I ask myself constantly that I want to be around to answer
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Zann got her start in radio as executive producer of Chio and Shila in the morning at Wired 96.5 in Philadelphia and later worked doing nights and afternoons in NYC at 92.3 NOW. In 2015 she moved to Dallas to do nights at Hot 93.3/KLIF. In 2016, she moved dayparts to middays on Hot 93.3 and syndicated middays for WW1 Hits NOW and Hot AC formats. In 2018, she moved to Seattle, WA to work for KBKS doing afternoons. Zann received her BA from Temple University (Philadelphia) in Data Analysis and Broadcasting Telecommunications. She's currently an aspiring programmer and talent coach with iHeartMedia.
1) You're coming up on your one year anniversary in Seattle. Is doing afternoons on 106.1 KISS a dream come true?
The latest transition in my career has been a dream in the making for almost a decade. If we're being quite frank, I always thought working for iHeart was out of my reach. When I started out in Philly, I remember there being a clear battle between my station and iHeart. In that moment I kind of figured out that iHeart was truly the radio company to beat. As far as doing afternoons for iHeart in Seattle? I've had a lot of people try to stick me in other dayparts that just weren't for me. But, had I not done them, I'd never have known I wasn't into them. Being given an opportunity to do afternoons in a market that I fit into and for a company that I've always wanted to be part of is definitely part of a dream coming true. The continued support I have from iHeart is what's helping the ultimate "dream" come true. As a female in the industry it's also cool to be in a daypart that has had a limited female occupancy until recently.
2) You've been in town for one of the wackiest winters ever in the Northwest. What's that been like?
I've lived in some cities with crazy winters, Philly and NYC in particular, but nothing quite compares to a snowy Seattle winter. The problem with Seattle -- and every person not from here will tell you about it -- is that they don't know how to prepare for it. Seattle is the land of hills. Literally, a few inches of snow falling in Seattle means the whole city shuts down. The snow is so bad on the hills because you can't drive up them or down them. You can't even walk down them to go to the store. At least I won't. This past winter I bailed on one and sent my boyfriend down it to Walgreens to get me tampons. People from the Pacific Northwest say it's rare that this happens in Seattle, but fool me once, ya know?
3) What led you to a career in radio?
This is the short version because I didn't start out wanting to do radio. I had moved to Philly to get away from a bad relationship and started attending Temple University for a degree in sociology with emphasis on quantitative data analysis. I didn't have much money to pay for school, so I had to drive about 45 minutes to outside of Philly to work a part-time job. While I'd sit in the terrible traffic leading from 95 to 676, I'd listen to Wired 96.5. The night DJ at the time (Chris) would text back and forth with me. He was funny and I even peed my pants one time waiting for him to shout me out (I've never told that to anybody). I eventually ended up asking him how I became an intern. This was before the whole "you need to do it for credit" thing. He told me how to do it, so I did it and haven't looked back since.
4) How important is social media to the success of your show?
There is a misconception about the dependency of a radio show on social media. Not a lot of people would agree with me, but I think they are two completely different entities. If one were to be dependent on the other, I'd say social media's success relies on radio. Let's be real, nobody goes on social media and says "Hey, I'm looking for a new radio show to listen to." But people do listen to the radio and say "Hey, I found that person funny/relatable/full of info, I should follow them on Instagram." When you strip it all down, radio and Instagram are two very different products, with different ways to deliver the same content. There are ways to use social media to boost web hits and promote content, but radio will always be the cake in my big girl world.
5) "Local Local Local" is one of the things that we always hear about. What are some of the ways that you like to be out and about with your listeners?
Being local is such an important element of having a radio show. First of all, if an event is happening that is huge and known in your market, you should be at it, even if it's a quick drop-in. I do feel in order to have a great connection with your local listeners, it's important to make a connection with them off the air as well. I've been part of a lot of station launches. When launching a station, some things I like to do is incorporate known locals in the station, whether musicians, artists or just shouting out a bar on our shows when we go there on our own time. Anybody can tell you finding a ratable listener is like looking for a needle in a haystack, but the more moments you put yourself out on the streets, the more likely you are to find one. For me, it's always been about creating experiences for listeners that competitors can't. For example, if you're giving out tickets to the first home football game, you better have more than just tickets. Maybe set up a football themed beer pong. Anything other than the same old T-shirts and Chapsticks. Still order the Chapsticks, though. I live off of that stuff.
6) If you could pick one 'dream guest' to interview live in the studio who would it be?
My boyfriend always asks me this question and I can never think of anybody. There are a ton of artists out there who are super-dope. In this moment, right now it would be Lizzo. Radio needs to hop on her sooner than later. She's doing some stuff for a community that's been under-represented my entire life: the big girls.
7) Who were your favorite stations and jocks as a kid growing up?
I grew up in a small beach town in California. My favorite station was Sly 96, but unfortunately I woke up one morning and it was gone. It had flipped to Country. Then I found Wild 106. Jojo Lopez is one of the hardest workers in the radio industry. He programs Wild, does the morning show, runs promotions, voices and images the station and also does tracking for some of the other stations in the cluster. It's kind of crazy to know about all this now that I was such a huge fan growing up listening to the station.
8) What is one truth that has held constant through your career?
When networking, don't be the person asking for something, be the person offering something.
For example, I've caught more PDs with "Hey, was wondering if you had time to give me your insight on my audio?" vs. "hey, are you hiring?"
9) Who were your mentors? Who would you say has influenced your career the most?
God, where do I even start on this one? I've been so lucky to have some pretty amazing mentors. Kannon and Leo Baldwin from Wired in Philly gave me my first job and airchecked me weekly so I was constantly growing. If you ever want to know where I got my style from on-air, look no further than Kannon with a K. The night host at Wired (Chris) helped me every night to put together fake airchecks. Gillette and Rob Wagman in NYC gave me my first big break that made people know who I was. Gillette also taught me that there was a place for a big girl in both the real and radio worlds. Louie D in Dallas picked me up after I lost my gig in NYC. He had a way of making me feel excited about the industry and re-launching stations. Dustin Kross was the first PD to teach me how to schedule and program.
Currently, I spend a lot of time learning from Tim Herbster, who is such a brilliant jock. He's also a brilliant programmer and knows how to rock a sweater vest. Maynard is one of my dudes right now. Maynard is one of those guys that lives and breathes radio. He is EXCITED about it. He's teaching me how to think outside of the confinements of typical radio. Mark Adams in San Francisco, was instrumental in the jock I've become today. As soon as he could get me to stop ramping down, I was on my way to iHeart. He also played a hand in getting me to NYC.
10) What is it about our industry that keeps you wanting to do it for a living?
When I started in radio, it was just natural for me. I have very few things in my life that keep my attention. Radio has been the only consistent thing that keeps my attention. I live and breathe the station/company I work for to the point that my boyfriend asks me to just put my phone down for a second. I focus on so many details in radio that it's more of a hobby for me than a job. How do songs sound flowing into each other? What imaging should go into this song? How can I present this content in a way nobody else will? These are all questions I ask myself constantly that I want to be around to answer.
Bonus Questions
If someone who'd never been in Seattle before were coming to town, what would you make sure that they saw?
Space Needle for sure, Pike Place Market, maybe grab a burger at Dick's, Capitol Hill, Seahawks or Mariners game and in 2020, a hockey game! Also, gotta get out on a lake when you're in the PNW. This area has the most beautiful lakes I've seen.
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