10 Questions with ... Josh T. Landow

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

I started as an intern at Y100/Philadelphia in 1997, working my way up in promotions and on-air. I was there until the station went off the air in 2005, but have continued its legacy as an online station (in various iterations) ever since.

• Y100 (WPLY) from 1997-2005
• Y100Rocks.com from 2005-2006
• Y-Rock (WXPN) from 2006-2010
• Y-Not Radio from 2010-Present

1. How did you first become interested in radio?

I really only started listening attentively to the radio when I started driving I guess. That's when I found "alternative." Before then I wasn't really aware of radio that appealed to me. I became interested in being involved in radio after visiting WDRE when they were in the process of throwing their own funeral. Those two weeks or so were the most compelling radio I'd ever heard.

2. It's been 20 years now since Y-Not first originated as a specialty show on the former WPLY (Y100) in Philly. Take us back through the history on how a specialty show morphed into an Internet Radio Station.

Way back 12 years ago when Y100 was first taken off the air, it was more about the whole station morphing into an internet radio station. All of the credit for that has to go to Jim McGuinn. I just tagged along for the ride since I didn't have anything else to do at the time and I obviously had a horse in the race. Our goal at the time was to keep up the momentum enough for another radio company to want to pick up the whole station and staff. It didn't exactly work out that way, but eventually we did get picked up as an online/HD-2 channel by WXPN, the non-comm AAA station here in Philly. That was great while it lasted, but unfortunately that partnership ended on a sour note about seven years ago. Ultimately we kept things going, but needed to tweak the name. What we had evolved into over the years much more resembled the spirit of the Y-Not new music show than the narrower scope of Y100 proper, so adopting that name seemed an appropriate homage while still maintaining our overall branding.

3. What does everyone need to know about Y-Not Radio?

Y-Not Radio isn't a typical alternative station or AAA station. We exist somewhere in between sonically. While we have the freedom to go completely nuts, we maintain a level of structure, while playing over 100 currents with a gold library of around 4000. The station is staffed by about 20 volunteer DJs who don't have to strictly adhere to a log as long as they work within our general parameters. We're very Philly-centric, but have listeners from all over the country and around the world.

4. Who is the station targeting and how would you describe the Y-Not Radio brand?

Our target audience is fans of indie / alternative music who are disenfranchised with what's on the radio. They want to keep up with what's new, but may not have time to be scouring blogs, etc. They want to hear a greater depth of music from past as well, rather than the same tired 90's hits over and over.

5. Tell us about your partnership with iRadioPhilly.

When we first started, we used Live365 as our streaming provider. I was never very happy with their service though. I learned about iRadioPhilly, a local company doing online radio in a lot of different formats. They had an indie rock station, but it was unhosted and I thought that it would be good for both parties to team up. So we became their human hosted / curated indie station and they became a much better streaming platform for us.

6. Why is Y-Not Radio successful?

Is it? HA! I'm pretty sure that most anyone else would have given up on a venture like this a long time ago. I haven't because I love the independent spirit of radio that seems to be truly lost in the world of corporate controlled stations that we live in. If success is measured in the dedication of our fans, rather than the number of them, then we truly are successful because we couldn't exist without their support, both moral and financial.

7. What sort of things make Y-Not Radio unique?

I'm not going to say that there's nobody out there doing anything similar to what we do, but I think we have a lot going for us. There's probably no other FM turned internet station left out there with as rich a history as ours. Even all these years later Y100 is still very fondly remembered in Philadelphia and there are plenty of people who are surprised to learn that it still exists in some form.

8. What would surprise people most about the station?

That it's based in my living room with a couple crazy cats running around? Or maybe that we get to do some really great sessions in that living room (or at various partner studios around Philly). Some recent visitors have been Mondo Cozmo, Dude York, Springtime Carnivore, Los Campesinos!, and Rubblebucket. Those are all available On Demand.

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

A strong cup of tea?

10. What is a typical day like for you?

Typical? Is there any such thing? I usually start the day with my on-air shift in the morning. Then I'll do some behind the scenes work for the station: updating the website (YNotRadio.net), production of promos or specialty shows, reaching out to label and promo folks to set up sessions with bands coming through town, contacting local venues for show promotions. I also work part-time doing specialty charts for FMQB so that takes up a chunk of most days too. My workday is usually 10-12 hours all told.

What are weekends like for you?

Sometimes I have DJ gigs (weddings pay the bills when you run an internet radio station) and I spend a lot of time in the pottery studio.

What are your hobbies?

Pottery. That was actually my career path before radio.

First record ever purchased?

I think Michael Jackson's Thriller when I was a kid, but I I'll go with Stone Temple Pilots' Purple as my first real album (CD) purchase.

First concert?

Live and The Catherine Wheel

Favorite band of all-time?

Smashing Pumpkins