10 Questions with ... JC Burton

NAME:JC Burton TITLE:PD STATIONS:WSTV Star 103.7 MARKET:Frankfort, KY COMPANY:Forever Communications BORN:July 10, 1981 Lexington, KY RAISED:Lexington, KY

Please outline your radio career so far:

I worked in the Promotions and Programming departments for Clear Channel Lexington from July 1999-November of 2006. I was the PD for WLKT (104.5 The Cat) from March 2006 to November 2006. After a brief stay on the beach, I moved there...yes literally. From March 2007 to July 2007 I was PD for AC WFSY and Top 40 Rhythmic WEBZ in Panama City, FL. From August 2007 to May 2008, I came back to Kentucky for on-air and Webmaster responsibilities at WLVK and WAKY in the Louisville/Elizabethtown, KY area. Since May 2007, I have been the PD/Morning drive for WSTV (Star 103.7) in Frankfort, KY. It's home, the people are great, the station is great, the company is fantastic. I love it!

1) What Got You Interested In Radio?

I think it started in Kindergarten. I played a character called "Ivan Earful" during our "Twelve Days of Christmas" production. I was the main narrator in the story and from what I remember I was good. Or, maybe I was bad? Anyway, I started listening to the local radio stations shortly after that...and here I am.

2) How did you get your on-air name?

I just took my first and middle initial and slapped them together...it worked in a pinch and I just stuck with it.

3) How would you describe the radio landscape in your market?

Frankfort is the capital of Kentucky, so it has it's own unique flavor. A lot of people commute into the city from other areas of the state, so we get a lot of at work and drive time listening. We pride ourselves on being one of the only "live and local" radio stations anywhere in central Kentucky. We have competition coming at us from both the Lexington and Louisville markets, but we hold our own pretty well.

4) What do you like best about working in this format?

It sounds cheesy, but I love the variety of music the station plays. We can go anywhere from Matchbox 20, to Leona Lewis, to Boyz 2 Men, to the Temptations. It is a ton of different music and a lot of fun to listen to.

5) What is the biggest change that you'd like to see happen in the business?

I'd like to see out of market voice-tracking go away. I think it is a shame that radio stations pipe in talent that don't know anything about the area they are supposed to be serving. A lot of people have forgotten what radio is all about and it's honestly kind of sad that the industry is not at the top of its game when there is so much competition around us.

6) How much of your day is spent working with your station Web site?

We just put up a brand new web site. I'm working on getting information put up as we speak. I will be spending almost as much time on it as I do on the music.

7) Favorite artist you have met?

Nicole from the Pussycat Dolls. I introduced her on stage for a concert at one of my former stations and I got a nice little hug from her. She is a Kentucky girl so we chatted about home, and of course the famous bourbon.

8) How much interaction do you have with record labels?

Not a lot. It's hard being in the middle of Lexington and Louisville...but from time to time I chat with some labels.

9) What type of billboards and/or TV campaigns are you running?

We have about half a dozen billboards up covering Frankfort, and some other local areas that we made sure to place in the hot spots around town. We also have short TV commercials running on the local cable channel here in Frankfort, and ads in the local newspaper as well.

10) Who is the most amazing talent you've worked with?

My former night guy at WLKT was OC. (HHe's currently at Kiss in Harrisburg). He is truly one of the best night jocks in the country, a hard worker, and he helped me get the best ratings in the past five years running at WLKT.