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10 Questions with ... Greg Carpenter
April 18, 2022
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Please give us a brief career synopsis…I started in college at a country station (WCAO/ Baltimore) as a part-time board operator and part-time jock. Then, a full-time position opened for a PM Drive and production director at FM97 (WLAN/Lancaster, PA.) I worked for a bit at Y100 (WPLY/Philadelphia) before coming to MIX 106.5 (WWMX-Baltimore) as PM Drive/music director. In 2001, the team moved me across the hall to Today’s 101.9 (WLIF-FM) as the morning co-host and, eventually, becoming the PD then Brand Manager.
1. How would you describe your first radio gig?
It was “that job” where I said yes to everything. I was a board op at WCAO, but did so much more from gathering audio for the morning show, producing sports shows, engineering live sports broadcasts with the Baltimore Blast soccer team to becoming a fill-in jock and newsperson. It was a ton of fun and it’s amazing how the technology has changed over the years. A lot of us remember the miles of tape on the studio floor after a ton of manual edits.
2. What led you to a career in radio?
The craving to be in radio started in middle school. My stations were B104, 98 Rock, and WHFS. I studied how the stations put their programming together. The cassette recorder was on 24/7. When listening to Brian and O’Brien, Kid Curry, Kirk McEwen, Corduff and Lopez, and Sarah Fleisher, I knew this is what I wanted to do. In addition, a few of my relatives worked at ABC News and WASH-FM in DC.
3. What are some of the intricacies of both programming and doing mornings?
The biggest may be the number of hours in a day and the “haze” you walk around in all day from waking up early. I’m (kind of) kidding. It can be a challenge to take a step back from the morning show and analyze it like a programmer. As a jock, you think every break is the best. You think you’re completely connecting with your core audience. Then, you listen back to the show as a programmer and the reality hits you. Then, there’s the other side of that where a break could be “flowing” or really funny, but the programmer in you is thinking “it’s too long” or “end the break.” And, by being a PD on the air, you wreck a great break because you were overthinking in the moment instead of letting a great break develop.
4. Gina Crash has been co-hosting mornings with you for 7+ years now. How do you folks jump start the rest of the station’s broadcast day?
First, I have to say I LOVE HER. She worked at HFS for years and developed a skill of being able to pull a piece of information or funny line out from the abyss, deliver it perfectly, and make something out of nothing. She very quick witted. To start the day, we present our show the same way our listeners live their lives. We don’t do pre-produced bits (not that that is a bad thing) We are like “Live with Kelly and Ryan.” We are very topical in a fun way. We just “hang out” on the air as friends. Randy Odeneal taught us that people want two things. They want an escape and they want fun. Deliver that.
5. Do you use showprep services or rely solely on the things that you guys come up with for morning show content?
We do a mixture. We like to tell our stories for the majority of the breaks. I’m the family guy in the suburbs and Gina is the trendy/active person on the show. We have fun playing off of those roles. We do have a show prep service, but it’s not really written for us or our audience. We may take some ideas from it, but we completely re-work the presentation.
6. Who would be a “dream guest” to have on your show?
This will sound snarky though I don’t want it to sound that way. A dream guest would be anyone who can have a real conversation with us and not just promote their agenda. But, if we are being starry-eyed, Taylor Swift or Harry Styles so my daughter can place me at the top of her favorite people list…though I should already be there.
7. No two AC stations seem to sound the same these days. What does it take for a “current” to make the cut on the station?
Super mass appeal. With a Hot AC in our family of stations in Baltimore, they make ‘em hits and we grab them when they are monsters.
8. “Local local local” has always been radio’s mantra. How do you keep your station visible and involved in the community?
We pride ourselves on helping a lot of different charities. It’s a great opportunity to help our neighbors and, at the same time, be in front of people. It will be nice to come out of the pandemic and get our sense of community back. We’ve always had that commitment on air, and now it’s great to be in person again.
9. What was your favorite station(s) to listen to when you were a kid? Jock(s)?
Oh, I guess I answered that in a previous question. If I were to add to that list I’d add WKTK & WKHI in Ocean City, WYCR/York when it was Top 40, and WXYV. Additional jocks include Russ Mottla on 98 Rock, Aquaman or “AQ” on HFS, and Weasel on HFS, When I was a little kid there was a shock jock, Johnny Walker, on WFBR. He owned Baltimore at the height of Orioles Magic.
10. Who were your mentors?
Who would you say has influenced your career the most? The most influential mentors include Johnny Dark (WCAO,) Randy Odeneal (Sconnix) and though I only worked with him for a short time, I learned so much from Garett Michaels (WPLY). There are so many other programmers that I’ve learned from including, David Wood, David Moore, Todd Fisher, Adam Goodman, Bill Pasha, Dave Labrozzi, Tom Cook, Chuck Sapienza, Jason Kidd, Nikki Nite, Michael Levay (LA,) Pete Michaels, Josh Medlock, and Gary Berkowitz.
Bonus Questions
If the venue of your choice were available and you have an unlimited budget, what 3-5 artists would you pull together for a station show?
Only 3-5? I’d have a festival style list of artists, However, I’d say M&T Bank Stadium with Taylor Swift, Pink, Harry Styles, Bruce Springsteen, and an R.E.M. reunion. I think I just spent $3.5 million, but we’d sell some tickets. We definitely have to get that misting tent sold to a client.
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