10 Questions with ... Brock Havens

1) What was your first job in radio? Early influences?

Technically, my first job in radio was as an intern for WLUP/Q101 in Chicago. However, my first paying job in radio was with Mid-West Family Broadcasting in Madison, WI doing the Farm Report. I was hired by the Fabulous Farm Babe Pam Jahnke as her Assistant Farm Director. You wanna talk about baptism by fire! I think everyone in radio at some point and time should have to do farm broadcasting, cause that right there, is a true test of your mettle. It was one of the best experience of my life though, and I owe so much to Pam. Shortly after is when I started working for WJJO.

2) What led you to a career in radio? Was there a defining moment that made you realize "this is it?"

It actually just happened by accident. I went to college to play football and didn't have a clue on what I wanted to do. Then during a tour of the campus they took me by the college's radio station and I thought "huh, that might be fun." And there was a defining moment; it was the first time I had someone tell me they really enjoyed my show. I was just an 18 year old kid screwing around on a mic, but the realization that I connected with someone, that someone liked what I was doing really resonated with me. I've been fortunate enough in my career to have some amazing people take a chance on me and have helped me get to where I am today.

3) Before you started working at WIRX, you spent six years as MD and afternoons at KQRA in Springfield, MO. Tell us about that experience.

Where do I even begin? It was an absolutely amazing, life-changing experience. The things I got to experience, the people I got to meet, and the relationships in the industry I built ... I can't really describe it. The fact that I am doing my 2nd All Access 10 Questions is because of my time at KQRA. It's were I found my voice as a full-time on-air personality. It's where I sharpened my skills as a MD. I was damn near as green as I could be when I moved to Missouri. Thankfully MWF took a chance on me and hey, it seemed to work out pretty well.

Plus, I met my smoking hot wife down there ... so that's a plus, too.

4) You left KQRA in December 2016 to do mornings for WIRX in St. Joe/Benton Harbor, MI. What were the factors that made this move right for you?

I've wanted to do mornings since I started in radio. All the way back to college. So the chance to finally do what I've always dreamed of doing played a huge part in the decision making process. It was also just the right time for a change. Springfield was so great to Kristen and me, but WIRX was a new opportunity to grow. It was a chance to take on a new challenge in our professional careers.

5) Besides getting up a lot earlier, what are the major differences for you in doing mornings after doing afternoons and music at KQRA?

The show prep is way more intense. Planning for the next day, creating different bits and segments, plus live appearances ... the morning show, at least in our market, is kind of like the face of the radio station, so we are constantly out in front of our listeners. I've also had to become waaaaay more organized. I mean, I'm still disorganized ... but I've definitely improved.

6) You're doing mornings now at WIRX under the name "The Plan B Morning Show with Brock and Hunter." How would you describe the show?

It's just a fun atmosphere. It's real. We don't take ourselves seriously and I it resonates really well with our listeners. I am so fortunate to have a company and PD who support me and really let me spread my wings when it comes to the show. They've never once sai,d "No, you can't do that." Of course, they've had to guide me or help me tweak certain things, but they let me be creative. I also lucked out with my co-host, Hunter. He and I get along like we've been friends since grade school. He's a perfect fit for the show I envisioned when they offered me the job. Long story short, we're just two buddies shooting the shit with our buddies on the other end of the mic and hopefully making them laugh in the process.

7) What's the typical morning show for you guys? a) What is the process? b) How much show prep do you do and what are some of the key benchmarks of your show?

Show prep always starts the day before. So on Friday, we start planning Monday's show, Monday, we start planning Tuesday's show, etc. Once we figure out the topic for the next day we record our "coming up" promo that will air till that show day. We meet with Zack (PD) most days, then Hunter and I will chat about different angles we want to take during the next day's show. I get in at 5:30a and start the show at 6a. Since Hunter carries over into the middays, he doesn't come in till about 7:15a and then we get to our topic at 7:30a. Show prep is king when it comes to mornings. Don't get me wrong, you can have some amazing stuff pop up organically, but you got to have a good base to start with. Hunter and I are usually e-mailing each other notes throughout the day about topics or ideas that come up.

We have a lot of fun stuff on the show. We have the Morning Dump, sports, WTF of the Day, Dumb Vocabulary, Shower Thoughts, Jay the 80's Rock Guy singing headlines. A lot of goofy shit that really livens up the show.

8) I know it's only been a year-and-a-half in the making, but tell us some of the best and most memorable moments to date on The Plan B Morning Show.

We've crammed in a lot in the short time I've been here. A really funny one that got a lot of response was when we had Benny (our intern at the time) make good on a bet he made with me. He had to stand out on the corner of this super busy intersection near the station in nothing but an Aaron Rodger jersey holding up a sign that said "My name is Benny and I love the Green Bay Packers!" He's a diehard Lions fan, so he didn't enjoy it. Plus, it was freezing outside and snowing like crazy. I'm glad he didn't lose a toe to frostbite.

Outside of some the funny bits, I'm really proud of the charitable things we've done. The station developed the "Rock Alliance" and we select a local charity to get behind. In 2016 we partnered with the DHHS Foster Care program. We were able to do a lot of amazing things with them and helped a lot of kids and parents in the process. Everything from "My Own Pillow" and "Christmas in August." It was great to see the power of radio help such a great cause.

Honestly, even after just a year I could fill up a few pages with the memorable moments. I'm excited to add to them.

9) How much does The Plan B Morning Show use social media (Facebook and Twitter) to interact with its listeners? Give us an example of a social media campaign that worked.

We use social media a lot. We post our topics for the next morning on FB so listeners can comment. We get a ton of response on those and that's great show prep. We do Facebook Live for a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on at the station or events. Artist interviews and in-studio performances are always big for us. Whether it's Twitter, Instagram, Facebook ... it's an everyday thing.

10) Finally, I understand you're also doing mid days at another of your sister Rock stations, WXRX/Rockford, IL. How is that going so far?

Yes! I'm really excited about being a part of the WXRX team! I ran into Mark Zander at Radiocontraband and he put the feelers out seeing if I was interested ... and of course, I was! I love being on-air ... so any chance to be on-air more, I'm going to take it. And our stations are very similar so it's been a pretty smooth ride so far. WXRX is a killer station with a fantastic staff and I'm so happy they are in the Mid-West Family Broadcasting lineup. I'm excited to keep growing with them. The only tricky part is making sure I use the right station call letters :)