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10 Questions with ... JEETZ
July 2, 2013
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
- 99.9 KISW Oct. 2004-Feb. 2013
- 94.7 KZND Feb. 2013-present
1) What was your first job in radio? Early influences?
My actual first job in radio was helping out at a college radio station (not the broadcasting school I went to) -- just a gig making sure everything was up and running.
My interest in radio started when I was a punk-ass kid and I used to listen to Sonics games on the radio. Their play-by-play man was Kevin Calabro, and I remember him extracting so much emotion out of me, I knew in some way, I wanted to have the same effect on people. And by the looks of my hate mail, mission accomplished!
2) I know you cut your teeth for years in this business at the famed KISW/Seattle. Tell us how long you worked there and what your various roles at the station encompassed?
I was at KISW for eight-and-a-half years. I got my foot in the door doing promotions and a little production. I remember a little after I started, I was asked by my promotions director at the time, what my long term goals where at KISW. I said I was going to make an impact on-air. I was literally laughed at and was told my goals were probably a little too lofty to accomplish at KISW. I left that meeting saying to myself, "I will work harder than anyone in this building to prove her wrong." Lo and behold, I ended up doing on-air weekends. That led to everything from editing podcasts, production, produced videos, and being part of music meetings. Soon I became the stations everything go to swing guy, which led to roles on every major daypart, including a segment on the top-rated morning show "The BJ Shea Morning Experience." I was extremely fortunate that for eight-and-a-half years, I learned from, hands down, the best in this genre, including Dave Richards, Ryan Castle, Jolene, BJ Shea, and The Mens Room guys.
3) How long have you been at KZND and what makes this station so unique?
I started here back in February. What makes KZND unique to this market is the personality and customer service. The goal everyday is to make a personal connection with our audience. When we answer our phones we ask people how they're doing. We genuinely care about every single one of our listeners and strive to do our best to entertain them.
4) You have the dual role as PD and afternoon-drive host ... how do you balance your time so both roles are effective?
I'm no stranger to 10-hour days -- and I love it! I'm here to win, not to beat the traffic. I refuse to voicetrack. Voicetracking an afternoon show makes me cringe. In fact, when I first got here and they tried to show me how to voicetrack, I told them not to waste their time. So I get to work early in the morning, schedule everything up until show time, then stay an hour or two after and tie up loose ends.
5) KZND recently made the transition from Alternative to Active Rock. Is the station fully Active now or are their still remnants of the Alternative format?
We're 90% Active Rock and 10% of the very top Alternative hits that still make sense for what we're doing.
6) At KISW, you worked for a large broadcasting company in Entercom. Now you're working for a locally owned company (Alaska Intergrated Media) in a market with Clear Channel and Morris Communications as competitors. What resources do you have to stay competitive in this environment?
I have an owner who has my back and the long and short of it is: To work harder and be more creative.
7) What's your take on current Active Rock music? Is it as good as six months or a year ago, better, or about the same?
It's good but not great. Having the Alice in Chains, the Soundgardens, the Black Sabbaths of the world releasing new tracks has been a shot in the arm. But I believe it's critical to establish more core artists to build on top of the Volbeats, Shinedowns and Halestorms. The good thing is there seems to be some up-and-coming artists who are on that path. This isn't the Golden era of Active Rock, but I think it's on the right track.
8) You're originally from the Northwest and Seattle area, but I would imagine Anchorage, Alaska is a whole different animal. What can you tell us about programming Rock radio in Alaska? How much different is it doing radio there as opposed to the "lower 48?"
First off, like Seattle, Anchorage is a GREAT rock town. People from Alaska are extremely proud of being Alaskan. You need to learn their lingo and integrate your programming style into their way of life. It's a much smaller market as well, so you have to come up with creative ways to promote within the unique lifestyle that is only Alaska. Let me put it this way: The other day I saw a moose in my front yard. The only moose I saw in Seattle was the Mariners Moose.
9) Let's talk about social media and KZND. How much do you use Facebook and Twitter to interact with your station's listeners?
Social media is a HUGE way to interact and entertain your listener even when they might not be able to listen to the radio. We are extremely active on our social media pages. It is something we went full-throttle with once we made the switch to the Active side and our interaction has went through the roof. We've increased our Facebook "likes" by 20% in four months on a page that has been around for three-and-a-half years. Why people would blow a bunch of $$$ on bumper stickers and ignore social media is BEYOND me. Those are the same people who probably have 27-inch rims on a Pinto.
10) I know you are a huge "hoops" fan. Will you ever get over the Seattle Sonics moving to Oklahoma City?
First off, I believe the Sonics will return to Seattle as an expansion team sooner than later -- and that fires me up! Secondly, I encourage anybody who has interest in the story of the Sonics leaving Seattle to watch the award winning documentary "Sonicsgate" and then try to convince me the Sonics weren't robbed from Seattle. It's not going to happen. So no, Clay Bennett and David Stern will never get a Christmas card from me. On the bright side, at least twice a year every team in the NBA is my favorite team whenever they play OKC.
Bonus Questions
What do you like to do for fun when you're not in your "working at a radio station" mode?
I like to get out and play my favorite game of "drink the beer."
You're stuck on a deserted island and you only have five CDs with you. What are they?
Five copies of "Balls Out" from Steel Panther. Just in case I lose the other four.
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