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10 Questions with ... Justin Louis
April 22, 2019
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. There have been so many day-to-day things that I enjoy with WOBM, down to the littlest things like walking into a local business and hearing the station on the sound system. But we really shine as an organization when the community depends on us to know what's going on, like when we stayed on the air throughout Superstorm Sandy. With all of the technology today, when the power goes out, there's no TV and no Internet and people can't call their friends and family, they look to us, and that's when being live, local and prepared is so important
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
After doing an internship at WPLJ in the summer of 1998, I was hired on as a phone-op/producer. In the fall of '99, I got my first on-air gig doing weekends and fill-ins at New Haven's legendary KC-101 while I finished college. After about a year, I got hired to be a kind of jack-of-all-trades at Hartford's WTIC (part-time/fill-in/production assistant). My first full-time gig came as the night guy at Springfield, MA's Mix 93.1 (WHYN). From there, I went out to Central Pennsylvania to do PM drive on an absolute flamethrower of a signal that went through a few permutations (Adult Top 40 "106.7 CoolPop," which became Classic Hits "Mix 106.7"). While I was in Harrisburg, I was also going down to Washington, D.C. to do weekends on Mix 107.3 (WRQX). I then got the call to come back home to NJ in 2007 for PM drive on 94.3 The Point (WJLK), and I moved over to PM drive/APD on 92.7 WOBM about two years later.
1) WOBM is celebrating 50 years of broadcasting at the Jersey Shore. Talk about the stations longevity and how you're able to use it to your advantage...
We celebrated WOBM's golden anniversary last year, on March 1st, 2018. We were the first radio station in Ocean County, which not only has allowed us to be the community's voice for half a century, but has also given us a unique credibility within the market.
That's a big competitive advantage, but a huge responsibility, too.
2) You're celebrating 10 years at the station! What have some of the highlights been personally and professionally?
There have been so many day-to-day things that I enjoy with WOBM, down to the littlest things like walking into a local business and hearing the station on the sound system. But we really shine as an organization when the community depends on us to know what's going on, like when we stayed on the air throughout Superstorm Sandy. With all of the technology today, when the power goes out, there's no TV and no Internet and people can't call their friends and family, they look to us, and that's when being live, local and prepared is so important.
Personally, sure, you get to interview this person, go to that show, and all that usual splashy radio stuff, but you know what? The true highlight for me has been our boardwalk studio - we've had a studio on the Seaside Park boardwalk for a number of years now, and I do my afternoon-drive show from there every Friday from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. It doesn't matter how challenging a day you've had, you can't beat getting paid to hang out at the beach for a few hours every week!
Also, and I'm about to sell myself out as a total nerd here, I still get a thrill out of the office pinball machine. Through blogging about how cool it is that Ocean County has a pinball factory, I've become friendly with Jack Guarnieri of Lakewood's Jersey Jack Pinball, and we've had a "Hobbit" pinball machine for about a year-and-a-half now. Every day when I get off the air, I still play a game or two. It's my daily stress relief, and it's really a very cool thing to have in the office!
3) As the station's Assistant Brand Manager, what are some of the duties that come with the job?
In addition to the 3-8p afternoon-drive shift, I also do the music for both WOBM and our sister Oldies station, Beach Radio (WOBM-A/WADB-A).
I work with our Regional OM, Steve Ardolina, on the usual day-to-day station operations stuff like music meetings, strategy, etc.
And personally, I take that "brand" part of the title really seriously, especially with a heritage station. I think that it's so important to really understand what WOBM means to the community, and protecting the credibility of the brand and its place in the community is a big responsibility for all of us, I think.
4) What's the best part about doing afternoons?
Honestly, I'm not a morning person at all! My workday is usually about noon-8p. For me, that's just right. I can run errands and do what I have to do in the morning; there's still time to go out for a bit at night, and I don't have to set my alarm for an ungodly hour the next day. I'll take that lifestyle any day!
5) Speaking of heritage, Shawn & Sue are morning show staples. How do they set the table for the rest of the broadcast day?
At a station like WOBM, the longevity and comfort that comes from familiar voices and personalities is all part of why we stay so ingrained in the community. Up and down our on-air schedule, every jock lives locally and knows the market inside and out.
A market like this, where we have a huge influx of tourists every year, has a keen sense for when a jock is faking it, so being able to start every day with a team that has been a part of this market for so long gives listeners that comfort and relatability from the minute they start their day.
6) The format has evolved tremendously musically over the past 5 or 6 years or so. What's your take on that?
The evolution of radio formats over the past couple of years has been super interesting! When I came back home here to NJ in 2007, I started at our sister station, Hot AC WJLK (94.3 The Point) and WOBM was still using the "Soft Rock" positioning. When you look at where The Point was 12 years ago, that's pretty much where WOBM is now, having evolved to "Ocean County's Best Variety." Every format has kind of just taken a step to the left musically.
In a market where we have big signals from New York City and Philadelphia sneaking into the listening area, we definitely have to stay on our toes and make sure that we're programming WOBM for our audience. Sometimes it's in line with what the "conventional wisdom" is for an AC station at any given moment, but sometimes it isn't. I'll tell you what though, it's always fun!
7) What kind of social media responsibilities do you have?
All of our jocks are blogging a couple of times a day and interacting with listeners on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Social media really has become a super-powerful way for jocks to interact with listeners on a personal level. It's especially powerful for "format jocks" who traditionally haven't had the flexibility that morning shows have to really come through as "real people" (for lack of a better description).
Social media has really made it possible for all jocks to let their personalities as everyday people come through and has made interacting with our audiences so much more than just doing good phones and shaking hands at remotes.
8) "Local local local" has always been radio's mantra. How do you keep your station visible and involved in the community?
It's everything from being on top of the things going on in the market and owning that position of being the credible source, to doing events big and small - from the concerts and parades that thousands come to, to Christmas tree lightings and business grand openings.
The boardwalk studio also allows us to be front and center when summer rolls around and people flock to the beaches.
It counts for a lot that listeners could legitimately run into any of our jocks just doing their grocery shopping. We don't just talk about the community, we're members of the community ourselves.
9) As a kid growing up, what was your favorite radio station? Favorite jocks?
Man, I idolized WPLJ and the legendary jocks that were on the air there when I was growing up in Central Jersey in the '90s! I will never, ever forget the goosebumps that I got when I went to 2 Penn Plaza to interview for an internship at PLJ. I took the elevator to the 17th floor, the doors opened, and there in front of me was a huge 95.5 PLJ logo. I think I actually said out loud, "What the [blank] am I doing here??" I got the internship, by the way.
10) Who have your mentors been?
I could give an Oscar-speech worthy list of all the people who helped me, coached me, and pushed me in the right direction, but it would be so long that the band would play me off and I'd definitely forget people and feel like a jerk. But, I legit wouldn't be here without CBS-FM's Dave Stewart and WTLW's Jamie Lee. They spent a ton of time with me as a baby DJ, listening to college radio airchecks and coaching me honestly but gently. I actually just found the master DAT of the demo that got me my first gig at KC 101 in New Haven that Dave helped me put together. Now, if only I had a DAT machine...
Bonus Questions
What's something that everyone should know about the Jersey Shore?
We're not what you saw on MTV!
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