10 Questions with ... Katie Dean

NAME:Katie Dean TITLE:VP/Radio Marketing LABEL:MCA & Mercury WEB:www.icanhascheezburger.com BORN:Augusta, GA RAISED:Everywhere!

Please outline your career so far:

1994-1996 AristoMedia
1996-2000 Country Music Association, International Dept
2000-2001 Music.com
2001-2003 Lyric Street Records
2003-2005 Mediabase
2005-present Universal Music Group

1) Your bio says you moved 15 times before graduating high school. Were you in the witness protection program? What was it like moving around so much as a kid? Moving that much must have been great preparation for this business.

Katie Dean may or may not be my real name. My dad was in the shipping business and we did live in Jersey for a while. Seriously, it was hard as a kid moving around that much. I have two sisters, so one of us always wanted to stay while the others were ready to move on to the next adventure. But now that I'm grown I wouldn't trade it for anything. My family is really close (even though we're scattered about the country), I got to see a lot of the world and it taught me that I can adapt to anything. My motto is "bloom where you're planted."

2) You didn't start out as a fan of country music; your dad had a hand in that. Tell us about how he influenced you. Was there a specific moment that you realized that you were hooked?

I can remember road trips as a kid with my parents blaring the Statler Brothers or The Oak Ridge Boys when all we wanted to hear was Madonna. But when I was in high school, my dad absolutely wore out King's Record Shop by Rosanne Cash and it was the first country album that I liked. Then I saw Mary Chapin Carpenter on Austin City Limits and I went to the record store the next day. I've been a country fan since.

3) Name three songs or albums that have had a strong impact on your life and tell us about them.

"Barracuda" by Heart. It was the first thing I heard on the stereo I got for Christmas when I was 12, even though that song was almost a decade old at that point. I've wanted to be Nancy Wilson ever since then.

Kim Richey's album Glimmer. It's a snapshot of period of my life and a definite desert island disc for me.

"Best of My Love" by The Emotions. Just because it makes me happy when I hear it. I am proud to say I'm a fan of the disco era. Concert wise, some of the best I've ever seen are Heart, Sarah McLachlan, the Indigo Girls, and Earth Wind & Fire. Just the pure musicianship of them.

4) In your role, you seem like you wear a lot of hats- can you give us an idea of what an average day for you looks like?

Coffee and chart checking at home. Then I get to the office and send out info on our singles out to everyone. After that it varies: making calls, doing research projects, scheduling media days, setting up album launch or syndication for single peak, maybe traveling to cover a show, it just depends. And that's why I love it so much.

5) What are some hobbies you like to do in your spare time? Do you even have any spare time?

I need to be better about turning off the Crackberry. But I definitely make time for fun, and my current obsession is golf. I love to spend time at Center Hill Lake on the boat. I'm hopefully about to do some remodeling so I'm knee deep in trips to Home Depot right now. I'd like to pick my guitar back up too, since I rarely play anymore. Most days I love to just chill at home with my family and menagerie of animals: three dogs, a hamster and some fish.

6) At one point in your career you decided to take a break and bolted for a lake in North Carolina- that must have been heaven so why did you come back- and when you did, were you refreshed with a whole new perspective?

To quote John Mayer, I think it was a quarter life crisis. I went to the lake to figure out some things. It was great to spend a summer on the water and it definitely re-affirmed that I needed to come back to Nashville because working in this business is my passion.

7) What has been your favorite city to live in? Is there a particular place where you'd love to run off to after you decide to retire from the music business?

My favorite city to live in was probably Chicago. We were only there a year, but I loved it. As far as retirement, you'll find me in a cabin in the mountains on a lake, probably in North Carolina, or maybe Belize.

8) You work with some pretty kooky but great VPs over there- Royce Risser, Damon Moberly and Bruce Shindler, not to mention E.J, Putnam, Van Haze, we can go on and on. Are you a licensed therapist? Seriously, what is it like working with such varied personalities? It sounds like a fun and creative atmosphere.

I no longer fall for the "pull my finger" bit, and I try to have eyes on Risser at all times so he doesn't sneak up from behind and scare the crap out of me. We have an incredible team over here - every person in our department is funny in some way and we laugh everyday. That is the best therapy there is!

9) What are some of the upcoming projects you guys are excited about over at MCA and Mercury?

I can't wait for everyone to hear the Lee Ann Womack album that comes out October 21. It picks up right where "There's More Where That Came From" left off and it is freaking incredible. And I'm really excited to hear the new Billy Currington project that he's just finished.

10) What do you think you would be doing if you were not in the industry? Do you have a fantasy job in mind?

Thankfully, I believe I already have my fantasy job - but if I won the Powerball, I'd also dabble in the following fields: rock stardom, criminology, oceanography, architecture and philanthropy. I'd love to run an animal rescue organization out in the country somewhere.

1) What kind of music are you jammin' to on your iPod/CD player right now?

My iPod stays on shuffle. Here's the last five tunes: "I'll Be Around" by the Spinners, "Makin' Pies" by Patty Griffin, "A Sorta Fairytale" by Tori Amos, "Love You Inside Out" by the Bee Gees and "Blue Christmas" by Johnny Mathis.

2) Favorite junk food?

Wine - specifically Pinot Grigio.

3) If Hollywood were to make the Katie Dean story, who would play you?

Ellen Page, just because people keep telling me I am an older version of her character in "Juno."

4) Can you remember your first concert? Who was it?

I will never forget it because it was so random - Julie Andrews (Yes, THAT Julie Andrews) at Merriweather Post Pavillion in Columbia, MD. I think I was 8 at the time. The first concert I spent money on was Heart when we lived in Chicago. I was traumatized because we had lawn seats, and the people next to us started smoking pot. I didn't touch the stuff, but I just knew my parents were going to smell it on me when I got home and I'd be grounded for something I didn't do.