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10 Questions with ... Jayar Reed
February 28, 2006
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NAME:Jayar ReedTITLE:HostSTATIONS:96 AffiliatesMARKET:Nashville, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Portland, Grand Rapids, West Palm, Ft. Meyers, Wichita, Jackson, Huntsville, Montgomery, Tallahassee to name a few.COMPANY:Wayfm/Christian Hit Radio Satellite Network (CHRSN)BORN:Bremerton, WARAISED:Port Orchard/Seattle, WA
BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
KBKS Seattle (CHR) was where I started. Worked with Matthew LA Reid, Marcus D, Bender and Jake Ray - some brilliant minds. Went to KPLZ/SEATTLE, (Hot AC) Station full of amazing people I'll never forget. Kent Phillips, Jill Taylor, Alisa Hoshimoto. Those two stations gave me a passion for radio... good radio. The next few years were spent working on my craft with stops in Sacramento, Reno, Boise, Missoula. I've done mornings, afternoons, nights, overnights. So I guess I'm still waiting for that midday gig to complete the circle.
1) What was your first job in radio? Early influences?
A girl in my community college geography class in Bremerton, WA was an intern at KBKS/Seattle. She asked me to intern with her. I feel bad because she wanted to be on the air. She invites me to be an intern and a month later they let her go and kept me.
I took a ferry from Bremerton to Seattle (1 hour) each day and then walked along the pier for 30 minutes to get to the station. Four hours travel a day, five days a week, for free. Needless to say I was jumping at the bit to make that "fake" tape and get on the air. The next four years I lived like a fugitive, I wasn't getting paid and sleeping in a different house every day!
2) How do you prepare for your show day? What's your biggest challenge?
Preparing for a show? That's easy, it goes like this... changing my daughter Kansas' diaper, people watching at Starbucks and brainstorming on the bed of my truck with my Producer Shimmy. Ya know, just studying life!
Biggest challenge?? Bottling up every ounce of passion and letting it come out on each break, not just with the A-list artist interviews.
3) What has made your show successful?
Passion and good people around me. My Producer Shimmy is on the same page as I am and so is our PD Dave Senes. No disrespect here, but our "radio bible" is the book "The Purple Cow." It's the filter that hopefully keeps the show from sounding un-relatable. I gag when I hear radio that sounds like radio! I feel like yelling into my radio, "I don't care about your church potluck over the weekend! Find a way to make me care about the potluck! What food was there that everyone can't stand but someone always brings. Make me get emotional so I'll remember you!" We jocks pretend to be superstars! The listener doesn't care about us UNTIL you find a way to relate!
4) Who do you feel is your competition in your market, and how do you go about competing with them?
Well it's an odd situation being on a syndicated network. I think the focus for the show is not beating another station, it's trying to set the bar. We haven't arrived, but that's the goal. Do a show in CCM that relates with humans. Also trying to convince CCM PDs that this show is worth picking up by doing shows each night with their favorite artists doing out of the box stuff. Ya know? BBQ in Toby Mac's back yard. Turkey dinner with Smitty. Shopping at Christmas time with Rebecca St. James. Just being different.
5) Best advice for making a show for a Christian station?
Sound like you live in the real world. People know fake. A giant portion of my friends are "pot heads" and "drunks." The other portion are those who speak into my life spiritually. I attack each show not thinking my audience is all believers. They are humans. Some are believers some are not! So it's my job not to scare them away but to relate with them and hit them where they're at. If spiritual content doesn't come up the whole show ... that's ok!!!! When I have a chance to take the spiritual route, I'll take it if it's relatable and if it evokes emotion, memorable emotion. Also, NEVER CATERING TO THE "CRUSADERS."
6) Who do you look up to as a air/personality not at your station?
Morning host: Bender (KBKS Seattle)
Producer: Jake Ray (stud)
Program Director: Dave Arthur (Fish Portland), Dave Senes (Wayfm Nashville), Bryan Oneal (KTSL Spokane), Mike Preston (KBKS Seattle), Jerry Woods (KTSY Boise)
Personality: Marcus D (KBKS Seattle) Matthew LA Reid (now mornings in Philly), Evan "Big Boy" Rose (now at Channel 955 Detroit)7) If you were just starting out in radio toady, but you knew what you know now, would you continue forward?
Sitting where I sit now, I am convinced I become wiser as I hang around those who are wise. In hindsight, I wish I had stayed in a top 20 market longer rather than bolting for the glory of a full time shift in unrated markets. I think young jocks think, "Hey I could go to Missoula and get afternoons rather than getting my APD his coffee here in Seattle." I am now convinced in hindsight that soaking up knowledge from the wise will get you further, in most cases.
8) Which character in the Bible do you most relate to? Why?
All the sinners and Pharisees. Desperately in need of Grace, Mercy and Love.
9) Any favorite or funny artist run-ins?
Being on the Toby Mac Winter Wonderslam tour for 2 weeks. A lunch at a Cafe in Tulsa was quite memorable! Matthew West, John Reuben, Toby Mac and I trying to have lunch together... lets just say Reuben can get a table rolling on the floor.
10) What is it that motivates you to be 'All You Can Be?'
Either God chose to load me up with an extra dose of passion in my DNA or the movie Rudy really impacted my life... either way... that's instant motivation to be "all you can be."
Bonus Questions
1) Do you read everything? Books, Magazines, etc. Nothing? What is your favorite reading material?
I read books about Pirates and American history. Currently: The Pirate Hunter by Richard Zacks and Widow of the South.
2) What's in your CD player right now?
An unsigned band called Route 7. I can't get enough of them. Google them... they'll be a catch for someone.
3) If you were stranded on a deserted island, what 3 things would you want with you and why?
Wife Christina, daughter Kansas...And we have another little girl on the way... so I'll have to memorize the Bible so I can leave that at home and include daughter number 2!
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