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10 Questions with ... Willobee
November 3, 2009
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Club DJ in NYC at The Electric Circus (my first boss was Jellybean Benitez), The Nursery, Danceteria, Studio 54 and Malibu, Long Island. Early and mid-'80s air talent at Alternative WLIR/Long Island; PD at Active Rock WMJY (Y107)/Monmouth; PD at AAA KCQR/Santa Barbara; PD at Alternative KKDJ (The Edge)/Fresno; MD and AM Drive at KEDJ (The Edge)/Phoenix; artist manager at Q Management/LA (Korn, General Public, Phunk Junkeez, Gigantic) and OPM Entertainment/Phoenix and Austin; GM at Two River Canyon Amphitheatre/Austin; air talent at Classic Rock KPEZ,/Austin; and PD at WEFX/ Norwalk.
LAST NON-INDUSTRY JOB:
Graphic and silk screen artist
FIRST RECORD EVER PURCHASED:
(single) Beatles -- Hey Jude; (LP) The Monkees
FIRST CONCERT:
Moody Blues at Queens College
FAVORITE BANDS OF ALL-TIME:
U2, The Alarm, XTC, Elvis Costello, The Clash, Depeche Mode, Prince, Frank Zappa, Pink Floyd, Traffic, Doors, King Crimson, Weather Report, and Mahavishnu Orchestra
1. What are you most proud of since joining WEQX?
The fact that we have been able to do so much with so little. I am very proud of where we have taken the brand and how we have grown so much in the five years I have been here. Our promotions and live concert events have exploded and helped to spread the word while not spending a dime using traditional means.
2. What have been the biggest changes you've made at the station in the past five years?
As they say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Any changes have been slight as not to alter the balance that has been the heritage of the station. Finding the best new alternative and AAA music that compliments our gold and image library has been the driving sound. In my five years, we have gradually shifted away from the younger sounding and harder edged stuff to ensure more at work listening, which seems to have worked. Another change has been to embrace social networking as much as we can to make up for the lack of marketing budget. We were also one of the first streaming to cell phones. Good for our listeners, bad for my staff, now that I can listen from anywhere at any time (LOL).
3. Explain what you have planned for WEQX's 25th Anniversary on November 14, 2009?
We kicked off a 5 week promotion: "'EQX - 25 YEARS IN 25 DAYS." This will be an on-air retrospective during the weekdays with blocks of music from respective years starting with 2009 and counting down each day until the actual anniversary of the sign-on date of November 14, 1984. The series will feature artist interviews and special guest appearances from past WEQX alumni. Also part of the celebration, the station has been running "The EQX 25th Anniversary Concert Series" featuring ten shows with Silversun Pickups, Cage The Elephant, Airborne Toxic Event, Matisyahu and two free shows with Hockey with The Black and White Years and on the eve of the actual anniversary, The Asteroids Galaxy Tour.
To top off this milestone, WEQX is also releasing a commemorative compilation CD "EQX-CLUSIVES, 25TH ANNIVERSARY" which will feature tracks recorded live in the EQX studios or at EQX festivals from They Might Be Giants, Ok Go, The Nightwatchman (Tom Morello), Carolina Liar, World Party, Bell X1, Eric Hutchinson, and many more.
4. How would you describe the station?
I think EQX is a unique entity. It's not just one genre and not just a niche, but a vibe. The brand has a distinctive sound and personality. Our listeners should be able to turn on the station and recognize right away that it's EQX. We know what the EQX brand stands for and we know what EQX should sound like. Our target is Adults 25-44, but we easily get listeners on both sides of the target.
5. What would surprise people most about WEQX?
I think many people are surprised when they find out that we are independent station and not a part of any of the big radio conglomerates. We pride ourselves on offering a quality product that can stand up to any major market station. They are further surprised that we broadcast from a little old Victorian house in Manchester, VT.
6. What would an outsider find most surprising about the Albany radio market?
I think they might be surprised to find so many rock outlets, specifically five stations that share alternative libraries. There are three active rockers, a classic rock, two AAA's, a AAA non-comm, and then EQX. That's a lot of rock for a market of this size. But there seems to be enough of an audience to divvy up the pie.
7. What part of your job do you like the best? Least?
The best part of my job is producing the big festivals we do every year. This year we raised the bar with Moby and Bell X1 headlining Larkfest. The city estimated there were close to 80,000 people. We thought we couldn't out shine last year with Tom Morello. Then there was the record breaking Tulip Fest this year with Third Eye Blind and last year with Spin Doctors.
The least favorite part of my job is all the paperwork associated with the sales that I also handle. An assistant would be nice. Too bad my dog doesn't have opposable thumbs.
8. What are you most passionate about?
I am most passionate about what this station stands for. Integrity to the format and the brand, a solid reputation to our clients, a devotion to our listeners and consistently delivering what we promise.
9. What do you remember most from your first few days in radio?
I remember a big, fat GM with his feet up on the desk, cigar in hand, spewing smoke in my face asking "so kid, what's your handle?" I didn't have one so he asked me if I had a nickname that my friends called me. I told him about my fascination with The Twilight Zone and that my friends called me Willobee, taken from the episode "A Stop At Wiloughby". With a swoosh of his cigar he screamed, "That's IT dammit! We'll call you Willobee, dats your handle kid."
10. What's the one truth that has held constant throughout your career?
Well, I don't have much to show for all my years in radio, except for one thing, my integrity and reputation. Without that, I can be sure that this radio station might have sounded very different these past five years. There are many people who have been with me on my journey as long as I have been in this business and they will tell you, that after all these years, we are still colleagues if not great friends.
Bonus Questions
What are your hobbies?
One of my hobbies is the Manchester Dog Park; I guess you could call it my pet project, woof. I thought this town needed a place for dogs to play off-leash so I put together a committee, helped raise private funding and made the park a reality. Now I spend weekends helping to maintain the park and also do fundraising (hint, hint). Another hobby of late is on-line Scrabble and Lexolous. Recently I got drawn into a match with Moby and now I'm running about 10 games a week.
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