10 Questions with ... Jay Thomas

NAME:Jay Thomas TITLE:Music Director STATION:XM Satellite Radio/Highway 16 BORN:Buffalo, NY RAISED:Springfield, VA (suburban Washington, DC) RELIGION:Greek Orthodox POLITICAL PARTY:Republican but leaning Democrat after the last 6 years (once nicknamed Reagan's Little Soldier by Jim Asker) ANY ARRESTS:None FAVORITE SANDWICH:Gyro

1. You just moved to satellite radio recently after a long time in terrestrial radio (not counting the 10 minutes you worked at Category 5 Records), what's the biggest change?

Wait a minute, I was at the record label for 20 minutes. Ok, that said, when I came to XM's headquarters in Washington, DC last summer to interview for this job I felt like I had died and gone to radio heaven. I knew I wanted the gig and I hoped & prayed that I'd get it. And fortunately I did. The past seven months have been terrific. It doesn't take long to realize that as an XM programming employee this is what radio used to be like back in the day. It's actually fun again. I was talking with a co-worker today and we both agreed that we look forward to coming to work each day. That's the way it should be, and that's the way it is here at XM. So that's perhaps the biggest change. And today we even got free Ben & Jerry's ice cream. You gotta love that!

2. You work in Washington, DC and PD Jon Anthony works in Nashville. How does that work?

Jon Anthony may be in Nashville and I may be in DC, but that doesn't pose a problem at all. We talk by phone nearly every day and our small staff gets together weekly for a conference call. Having Jon in Nashville gives him a better chance to interview the artists. Having me here in DC our channel finally has a presence at the home office. So as artists are passing through DC and Baltimore on their radio tours we remind them that Highway 16 is here as well so they can stop and experience XM.

3. Most of the time when we ask terrestrial station PD's about the threat of satellite radio they say that it's not a big threat because they can never be local. How do you respond to that?

When I was in terrestrial radio I never thought satellite was a threat either. But I guess I was also in denial. We're not local in the sense that we're doing PSA's for the upcoming pancake breakfast at the volunteer fire department in town. But then again they're not doing at terrestrial radio anymore either. I like to think of XM much like a TV network because we're national. We cover all of North America. They can bark up the "you're not local" tree all they want. What we are is unique. Our focus is the music. We're all about the artists and their work. We're all about playing the new stuff. After all, Highway 16 focuses on the new releases and music from the past two years only. We have another channel, US Country on XM channel 17, that covers the hits from the 80's, 90's, and the first part of this decade. Having multiple channels in our country neighborhood allows each of us to have a specialty. And we're not competing with each other; we're actually co-promoting the content on all of the XM channels. We offer so much more than the same tired songs. So much more than another long set of commercials. People are obviously dissatisfied with their terrestrial radio. So much so that more than 14 million subscribers are paying $12.95 a month for XM and Sirius.

4. What is the response on the phones and e-mail by listeners been? And what parts of the country are they calling from? Is it a good mix of city, suburban, and rural listeners?

Phones and e-mails from subscribers are just as strong as ever. It's actually comforting to get notes from folks telling you how much they enjoy what they're hearing. We get a mix of suburban and rural listeners from all over the US and Canada. Although the southeast part of the US is where you'll find the largest number of XM subscribers. It takes some getting used to knowing that you're reaching such a large audience in so many different places.

5. What is the biggest draw for a country listener to subscribe to XM?

A country listener has seven different country choices on XM, from today's non-stop country on Highway 16 to the classics on America (XM channel 10). From the Bluegrass Junction (XM channel 14) to Americana on X Country (XM channel 12). And let's not forget Willie's Place on channel 13. That's Willie as in Willie Nelson of course. Rather than hearing the same 150 safe songs that test well according to the brand managers in all parts of the country, an XM subscriber really is getting a ton of variety. And in addition to the music, we have several specialty programs. Highway 16 Driver's Ed gives our subs a chance to meet a new artist and learn more about them and their music. Highway 16 ShortCuts gives us the chance to play an entire new CD before its release. Jon Anthony will sit down with the artist and play each cut on the album while the artists talks about the stories behind the songs. The artists love it and so do the subscribers. XM also has a show called Artist Confidential which is our signature specialty show. We invite the superstar acts to perform before a small studio audience and a host for 60 minutes. They share stories, play live cuts, and answer questions from the host and the audience. We recently aired an Artist Confidential with Vince Gill that was hosted by XM's Bill Anderson. XM has also featured Paul McCartney, Sting, REO Speedwagon, John Mayer, Lenny Kravitz, and many many others.

6. Was it weird at first being on a station that plays no commercials?

It was a little weird at first being on a commercial-free station. Having spent 18 years talking into spots, I had to adjust. There's almost like a de-briefing period that you go through here at XM. You have to stop thinking about hitting the traffic on the 8's and stop worrying about moving the spots so two car dealers don't run in a row. Instead you just concentrate on the music, which is why a subscriber is generally paying for our service.

7. On Highway 16, your channel, you play all currents and recurrents. How do you select music and are you using research?

Jon Anthony and I select all of the music that we play on Highway 16. We're almost always ahead of the game, so we're looking for what's going to be the next single. And we're looking for that new artist that has the potential to be the next big thing. And here's a concept, there's no such thing as a daypart category. If we add something we actually play it. We don't use music research other than what we're hearing from our listeners. Both Jon and I have been in the business long enough to have an idea of what's good and bad and what may or may not work. Plus, the listeners are very active and they'll tell you what they like the most.

8. How has response from the labels been so far?

The response from the labels has been lukewarm. Most of the independent labels love XM. And many of the majors want to love us, but their parent companies are currently involved with a lawsuit against XM that revolves around hardware that can record programming with digital clarity. The better questions would be how's the response been from the artists? And that's been overwhelmingly huge. The artists love XM for many reasons. And most are subscribers, so they get it.

9. Do you have any idea how the country channels on XM do versus so of the other channels?

XM offers more than 170 digital channels of music, sports, news, talk and entertainment. I'm proud to say that Highway 16 is consistently among the top 10 most listened to XM channels. Our cume is easily three times as much as WUSN in Chicago, the largest cumer of any terrestrial country station.

10. Is there such a thing as live appearances, remotes, and promotions for you? What kinds of things are you involved in?

There are definitely no remotes as you know them, such as the Saturday variety from a car dealership or a furniture store featuring free hot dogs and the wheel of fun. However, we do broadcast on location each day from our Nashville studios within the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. We invite listeners to come by when they're in town on their Nashville vacations. As far as promotions, we sometimes get involved in concerts. We did last year in Los Angeles after KZLA folded. XM's Highway 16 stepped in as the presenting station and Jon handled the stage intros. We'll do something similar in New York City for an upcoming Martina McBride show. And we use events like that to tie in with our marketing department so that XM has a big on site presence.

1. Is it true that you and PD Jon Anthony traveled in a space shuttle to actually visit the satellite?

Sure Jim. Jon and I travel on the Space Shuttle to visit the satellites. Actually, the closest may have been Jon flying with Lee Abrams somewhere.

2. Are there plans for you to relocate to Nashville?

There are definite plans for me to relocate to Nashville, more than likely in 2008. We have to expand our studios and offices in Music City. Until that work is done, I'll remain in DC.

3. Does Mel Karmazin call you personally to keep you posted on the proposed merger?

Does Mel call me? Jim, I think you've been traveling on the space shuttle!

4. At CRS you were spotted many times at a new restaurant called Sambuca. Why?

On your next trip to Nashville I highly recommend the restaurant Sambuca. Good food, but you'll have to put up with not so good music. Ask your waiter to charge the tab to the Joel Denver card. He'll know what you're talking about.

5. Why does Jon Anthony not return phone calls?

Jon's always returned all of my calls. I guess you are not that important, maybe he thinks you're a telemarketer.

6. Can you get us free XM stuff? The All Access staff would like some free XM radios.

I can't swing the free radios, but I'll get some XM swag on its way.