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10 Questions with ... Jennifer Foxx
October 20, 2008
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NAME:Jennifer FoxxTITLE:PDSTATIONS:WEZF Star 92.9MARKET:Burlington, VTCOMPANY:VOX AM/FMBORN:Holden, MARAISED:Barre, MA
Please outline your radio career so far:
WARE-A/Ware, MA - 1983 (High School Internship)
WMWC/Gardner, MA - 1984-86 (College Radio)
WARE/Ware, MA - 1986-87
WHYN/Springfield, MA (weekends) - 1987
WHDQ (Q 106)/Claremont, NH - 1988
WDRC & WDRC-A (Big D 103)/Hartford, CT - 1988-1989
WHYN/Springfield, MA - 1989-94
WPKX (Kix 97.9)/Springfield, MA - 1994-99
WXPS (Kix 96.7)/Burlington , VT - 1999-2000
WEZF (Star 92.9)/Burlington, VT - 2000-2006
WEZF (Star 92.9)/Burlington, VT - 2008-Present1) What Got You Interested In Radio?
Listening to WAQY (Wacky 102) in the late 70's in Springfield, MA! I would turn it DOWN during songs, and UP when the DJ's came on. They were having fun, and I said, "That's what I want to do when I grow up! Have fun, and get paid for it!" (Of course...I didn't know how little they got paid for it, Ha!)
2) How would you describe your first radio gig?
Hmmm, I guess this doesn't include interning? My first professional gig was at WARE in Ware, MA. We still spun some songs on 45's, though most were on cart. I remember we had a nickel taped to the sound arm, round pots, and no auto-segue. That was fun!!! We had to down the power at sunset. I ran Red Sox Games, and had to keep checking the UPI huge roller to see if it was jammed again. Oh, and we used a razor blade to splice, and little ripped pieces of masking tape when we ran out of splicing tape. Ah... the good 'ol days!
My first PD there was truly my mentor. I will always credit Gary James as the guy who taught me radio. If only we could have imagined digital production, voice tracking, and grabbing our news from the Internet back then.
3) Who were your early influences?
Ken Barlow, the "Big Tuna" Jim Kaye, Jay Christopher, Glenn "FM" Stevens, George McGrail, and all the DJ's at WAQY (Wacky 102). (A groupie??? Me????...Hmmmmm?)
4) What is your favorite part of the job?
My airshift!
5) Describe a typical day in your position?
In at 8:45 (after dropping 3 kids off at school), meetings, music scheduling, promotional planning, and my airshift from 2-7p...then go home! :)
6) What is the biggest misconception about your station?
We are still overcoming the past. Back in the 80's, WEZF was "Soft," "Easy Listening." It wasn't until the late 90's that the station began to morph into a Mainstream AC format (even tipping into HAC). Still, every once in a while hear the comment..."Oh, you're the Easy Listening station." Um, Daughtry is "Easy Listening?"
7) What do you enjoy most about music scheduling?
Balance. It's an art. In this format, (including currents, and also delving back as far as the 80's and even a little 70's) we're playing Rock, Dance, Ballads, Techno, Pop...and I love being the artist that puts that daily puzzle together in Selector.
8) How much difference is there between your programming at night, versus programming in the day? How about weekends?
A lot, but it's all very good. I'm happy to say that we are now "Live and Local" from 5a-7p!! Not many stations can say that anymore! Our format during the day is a straightforward Mainstream AC. At night, we soften with Delilah from 7-midnight.
We kick of our "Feel Good Flashback Weekends" every Friday at noon. They are based in the 80's and 90's, and are pretty upbeat.
9) Do you have any music scheduling tricks you've learned that you wish to share?
The best "trick" is to look at each and every song individually. Eye it, and see how it
works around the other songs in the hour. There will NEVER be a computer program that can do it better than you.
10) How do you stay in tune with your audience?
I AM the demo. I listen to other moms at school, drop offs, etc. It's a great way to keep a handle on what our demo is talking about and wants to know.
Bonus Questions
1) Who is the most amazing talent you've worked with?
Me! Ok, seriously. I'd have to say Ken Barlow. It's still amazing to me that I was listening to him on the radio when I was a kid, and that is what led me to go into this biz. Now, 30 some odd years later, I'm working for him for the second time!
2) What was the biggest gaffe you've made on air? (dead air ... forget a mic was still on ... etc.)
It's gotta be a tie. I had a brand new job and it was my first day on the air. The guy before me neglected to tell me that we don't have weekend meteorologists. So I read the forecast, and used the name he had written on the top of the forecast sheet, "Today's forecast from meteorologist Dick Head." Yeah. It got right by me.
The other one I don't think can even be printed. So I'll skip it...:)
3) Most of us have known or even worked for a "colorful" owner/GM/air talent. Care to share a story? (The names can be changed to protect the innocent).
Well, there was one....(And by the way, that experience wasn't even worth listing in my job history above).
Here are some quotes I would hear on a daily basis:
"How is that going to make me money?"
"Do you like getting paid every Friday?"
"How would you like it if I paid you in movie passes?"And how about this...I'd be doing a live break on the air, and the owner would walk in the studio, and start tapping on the counter because he had something URGENT to discuss!
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