10 Questions with ... Mark Hamilton

NAME:Mark Hamilton TITLE:PD STATION:KNRK MARKET:Portland, OR COMPANY:Entercom BORN:West Germany in a British Army base RAISED:U.K.

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

On-air at Top 40 KRKQ/Lompoc, CA in '85; Top 40 KZZP/Phoenix in '86; crosstown Alternative KEYX (The Key) in '87-'88; APD/middays at Alternative KITS (Live 105)/San Francisco from '88-'95; and PD at KNRK '95-present.

LAST NON-INDUSTRY JOB:

Landscaping/construction in early to mid-80s.

FIRST RECORD EVER PURCHASED:

I used to buy 45s around 1970. The first three were Mungo Jerry - In The Summertime, Gary Glitter - Rock N Roll Part 1, and Gilbert O'Sullivan - Get Down.

FIRST CONCERT:

I started going to concerts at the Hammersmith Odium in London in '78 or '79. I saw first U2 show. I also remember seeing Allman Bros, Frank Zappa, Van Halen, and Led Zeppelin.

FAVORITE BAND OF ALL-TIME:

Orange Juice (Edwyn Collins' band).

1. How did you become interested in radio?

My mom you used to listen all the time. It was on constantly when I was growing up as a kid. I used to think the bands were playing at the station. I was fascinated by it.

2. What was your favorite station to listen to when you were a kid?

BBC - Radio 1 and Radio Luxembourg (a pirate radio night-only station). Radio Luxembourg used to do a countdown every night that I used to listen to religiously. It was a very Americanized, a different presentation to BBC - Radio 1.

3. What led to the station's fabulous Summer '07 Book?

There were lots of different things that contributed to it. We did a perceptual study with Edison Media to get our music plan fine tuned. We tweaked and made the station a little more wide-appeal. We definitely brought in more cume. Also, community involvement and launching our H2 station helped build our profile and get people to remember us. We had a solid first month. The first phase was enormorous.

4. What were the highlights of the Summer '07 Book for KNRK?

#1 adults 18-49, #1 adults 25-44, #1 25-34, #2 men 25-54, #1 mornings 18-34 and #2 18-49.

It's really nice to have a book like this, but we need to manage people's expectations in the market. One thing that is pleasing is Portland will be PPM market in Summer '09. These numbers are like PPM numbers, which bodes well for the future.

5. How has the station changed in the past year?

The station has changed very little in the past year. We did some fine tweaking following a perceptual and music study. We added listener-generated content to our programming. The "Perfect Playlist" is where a listener sits in each afternoon with Gustav at 5pm and plays five songs and talks about the them. It can get really out there, but it is a really popular feature. We launched our HD station, where we only play music from the Pacific Northwest. We're pushing out Bootleg videos to our database. We started our "Alternaschool" one-on-one promotions with listeners such as Making Sushi With Muse. When we do this contesting we pull out fans from our database of the particular band. It's something someone would always remember. We've stepped up our community involvement. Our 3rd Pet Aid concert with the Smashing Pumpkins raised between 10-20k for the Oregon Humane Society and Dove Lewis.

6. How would you describe the music and imaging on the station?

We are 25-44, not 18-34. We don't think alternative begins with Nirvana. We play the Talking Heads, The Clash, The Ramones ... Our oldest song in the station is David Bowie "Space Oddity (1969). Duran Duran "Girls On Film" sounds great next to The Killers "Somebody Told Me." Don't be scared people, there is life before grunge and they like it. Don't be afraid. We're very selective in our new music, and not ignoring female music. We play a nice dose of stuff out of northwest like The Shins, Band Of Horses, and Modest Mouse. We also play The White Stripes, Snow Patrol, and Beck. We stay away from the Midwest rock alt and emo artists.

I'm real excited to see the return of female artists. We've had a great run with Sara Bareilles, Regina Spektor, Feist, Tegan & Sara, and Amy Winehouse. That's a radical change from a few years ago. It reminds me of 1996 when Alternative was still in afterglow of the grunge area, and the majority of Alternative stations ignored this music and gave birth to Modern AC and sent alternative into a tailspin.

One of our main positioning statements is "More Than 25 years Of Great Alternative Music. We provide an historical perspective. For example, "In 1986 The Price Of Gallon Of Gas Was $1.25 And This Is The Cure."

7. What makes KNRK unique?

What makes KNRK unique is the imaging -- the presentation coupled with the music. You can't get an idea what makes this station different by looking at Mediabase. You need to stream www.947.fm.

8. What would an outsider find most surprising about the Portland market?

They would be surprised that the quality of radio matches the programming of any other state. This is a well programmed and competitive market with very good on-air talent.

9. Fill in the blank: I can't make it through the day without _________?

Thinking how lucky I am to be here at the station and have fun doing what I'm doing.

10. What is the one truth that has held constant throughout your career?

A genuine passion and enthusiasm is more valuable than just raw talent.

What are your hobbies?

It's all about my golden retriever.